1970 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team

1970 Nebraska Cornhuskers football
File:Nebraska Cornhuskers logo.svg
Big 8 Champions Orange Bowl Champions AP National Champions
Orange Bowl vs. #5 LSU, W 17-12
Conference	Big Eight Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 3
AP	No. 1
1970 record	11-0-1 (7-0-0 Big 8)
Head coach	Bob Devaney (9th season)
Offensive coordinator	Tom Osborne (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	I formation
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium
Seasons

1970 Big 8 football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
#1 Nebraska	7	–	0	–	0			11	–	0	–	1
#20 Oklahoma	5	–	2	–	0			7	–	4	–	1
Kansas State	5	–	2	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Colorado	3	–	4	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Missouri	3	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Kansas	2	–	5	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Oklahoma State	2	–	5	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Iowa State	1	–	6	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1970 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team represented the University of Nebraska in the 1970 college football season. The team was coached by Bob Devaney and played their home games in Memorial Stadium in Lincoln. The Huskers went 11-0-1 to win the first of two consecutive national championships.

Overview

The Huskers started the season at #9 and tied #3 USC in Los Angeles in the second game of the season. After winning their next nine games, including all seven in the Big 8, Nebraska was ranked third in the nation entering the 1971 Orange Bowl against #5 LSU of the SEC. Top-ranked Texas and #2 Ohio State both lost their bowl games earlier in the day and a 17-12 Nebraska victory that night in Miami gave the Huskers their first national title.

Through the 1973 season, the final UPI coaches poll was released in early December, before the bowl games. In 1970 it picked Texas as national champion on December 8, before the Longhorns' 24-11 loss to Notre Dame in the 1971 Cotton Bowl in Dallas on New Year's Day. Notre Dame (10-1) finished second to Nebraska (11-0-1) in the final AP writers poll, released after the bowls in early January.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent#	Rank#	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 12*		Wake Forest	#9	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, Nebraska		W 36-12	66,103
September 19*		at #3 USC	#9	L.A. Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, California		T 21-21	73,768
September 26*		Army	#8	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, Nebraska		W 28-0	66,928
October 3*		at Minnesota	#6	Memorial Stadium • Minneapolis, Minnesota		W 35-10	52,287
October 10		#16 Missouri	#6	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, Nebraska		W 21-7	67,538
October 17		at Kansas	#5	McCook Field • Lawrence, Kansas		W 41-20	50,000
October 24		Oklahoma State	#4	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, Nebraska		W 65-31	67,822
October 31		at Colorado	#4	Folsom Field • Boulder, Colorado		W 29-13	50,881
November 7		at Iowa State	#4	Clyde Williams Field • Ames, Iowa		W 54-29	34,007
November 14†		#20 Kansas State	#4	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, Nebraska		W 51-13	67,894
November 21		Oklahoma	#3	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, Nebraska		W 28-21	67,392
January 1*		vs. #5 LSU	#3	Orange Bowl • Miami, Florida (1971 Orange Bowl)	NBC	W 17-12	80,699
*Non-Conference Game. †Homecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Central Time.

Roster

Adkins, John #57 (Jr.) DE Anderson, Frosty #89 (So.) SE Anderson, Jim #18 (Jr.) RCB Austin, Al #78 (So.) OT Beran, Mike #62 (So.) OG Blahak, Joe #27 (So.) LCB Bomberger, Bill #46 (Sr.) FB Branch, Jim #51 (So.) LB Brownson, Van #12 (Jr.) QB Butts, Randy #36 (So.) HB Carstens, Jim #47 (So.) FB Cox, Woody #83 (Jr.) SE Decker, John #21 (Sr.) LCB Deyke, Tom #92 (So.) DE Didur, Dale #84 (Sr.) SE Duffy, Joe #52 (So.) MG Dumler, Doug #54 (So.) C Dutton, John #90 (So.) DT Glover, Rich #79 (So.) DT Goeller, Dave #28 (So.) HB Grenfell, Bob #59 (Sr.) OG Harper, Willie #81 (So.) DE Harvey, Phil #82 (Jr.) TE Hauge, Bruce #48 (So.) LB Henderson, Joe #73 (So.) OT Hollstein, Gary #29 (Jr.) S Hughes, Dennis #63 (So.) OG Hughes, Jeff #26 (Jr.) HB Hyland, John #58 (So.) DE		Ingles, Guy #88 (Sr.) SE Jacobson, Larry #75 (Jr.) DT Jamail, Doug #50 (So.) C Janssen, Bill #55 (Jr.) C Jennings, Henry #38 (Jr.) MON Johnson, Carl #71 (Jr.) OT Johnson, Doug #64 (So.) DE Johnson, Monte #37 (So.) DE Jones, Bob #15 (So.) QB Kinney, Jeff #35 (Jr.) HB Kinsel, John #54 (So.) C Kosch, Bill #24 (Jr.) S Linder, Max #11 (So.) QB List, Jerry #85 (So.) TE Longwell, Brent #91 (So.) P Lowe, Rex (Unk) E Malone, Dan (Unk) DT Mason, Dave #25 (Jr.) MON McClelland, Tom #16 (Jr.) S McFarland, Bob #10 (So.) LCB McGhee, Donnie #70 (Sr.) OT Miller, Jim (Unk) DE Morell, Pat #40 (Jr.) LB Morock, David #43 (Sr.) MON Murtaugh, Jerry #42 (Sr.) LB Newton, Bob #74 (Sr.) OT Newton, Clint #13 (Jr.) RCB Norberg, Bill #32 (So.) HB O'Connell, John #34 (So.) S		Olds, Bill #44 (So.) FB Orduna, Joe #31 (Sr.) HB Pabis, Bob #66 (So.) MG Peetz, Mike #33 (So.) MON Periard, Ed #56 (Sr.) MG Pitts, John #80 (So.) DE Pogge, Bill #17 (So.) DE Powell, Ralph #41 (So.) FB Robinson, Tom #68 (So.) DT Rodgers, Johnny #20 (So.) HB Rogers, Paul #30 (Sr.) CB Rupert, Dick #77 (Jr.) OT Schloff, Merle #69 (So.) DT Schmit, Bob #23 (So.) HB Schneiss, Dan #22 (Sr.) FB Schultz, Kelly #87 (So.) TE Strong, Jon #49 (So.) LB Tagge, Jerry #14 (Jr.) QB Terrio, Bob #45 (Jr.) FB Vactor, Frank #19 (Sr.) HB Walline, Dave #76 (Sr.) DT Weber, Bruce #61 (Jr.) OG White, Daryl #72 (So.) OT Winter, Wally #67 (Sr.) OT Wolfe, Bob #86 (So.) TE Wortman, Keith #65 (Jr.) OG Yanda, Steve #39 (So.) LB

Coaching staff

Name	Title	First year in this position	Years at Nebraska	Alma Mater
Bob Devaney	Head Coach	1962	1962-72	Alma
Tom Osborne	Offensive Coordinator	1969	1964-97	Hastings
Cletus Fischer	Offensive Line		1960-85	Nebraska
Carl Selmer	Offensive Line		1962-72
Jim Ross			1962-76
John Melton	Tight Ends, Wingbacks	1973	1962-88	Wyoming
Mike Corgan	Running Backs	1962	1962-82	Notre Dame
Monte Kiffin			1967-76	Nebraska
Warren Powers	Defensive Backs		1969-76	Nebraska
Boyd Epley	Head Strength Coach	1969	1969-2003	Nebraska
Bill Thornton			1970-71	Nebraska

Game notes

Wake Forest

Wake Forest at #9 Nebraska [box score]

by Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Wake Forest 3 2 0 7 12 • #9 Nebraska 14 14 8 0 36 Date: 1970-09-12 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game attendance: 66,103

Wake Forest hit first with a field goal thanks to a Nebraska fumble, but by the half it was the Cornhuskers 28-5. The Demon Deacons would go on to win the ACC title.

USC

#9 Nebraska at #3 USC [box score]

by Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total #9 Nebraska 0 14 7 0 21 #3 USC 0 7 7 7 21 Date: 1970-09-19 Location: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California Game attendance: 73,768

Nebraska entered the game as a two-touchdown underdog, but never trailed the Trojans during the course of the game. Each team traded touchdowns, and each team missed opportunities for the win, right up to USC's incomplete 50 yard pass on the last play of the game.

Army

Army at #8 Nebraska [box score]

by Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Army 0 0 0 0 0 • #8 Nebraska 0 7 14 7 28 Date: 1970-09-26 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game attendance: 66,928

Nebraska owned the day, shutting out Army 28-0 in an otherwise unremarkable game.

Minnesota

#6 Nebraska at Minnesota [box score]

by Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total • #6 Nebraska 21 7 0 7 35 Minnesota 7 3 0 0 10 Date: 1970-10-03 Location: Memorial Stadium, Minneapolis, Minnesota Game attendance: 52,287

Bob Devaney's record against the Big 10 was extended to 9-0 as the Cornhuskers had little trouble with Minnesota after running ahead 28-10 before the half.

Missouri

#16 Missouri at #6 Nebraska [box score]

by Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total #16 Missouri 0 7 0 0 7 • #6 Nebraska 7 0 0 14 21 Date: 1970-10-10 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game attendance: 67,538

Nebraska scored only 7 points in the first half, and Missouri matched it before the half. The subsequent defensive battle continued through into the 4th quarter before the Cornhuskers broke away with an additional 14 points, one from a 48 yard punt return touchdown.

Kansas

#5 Nebraska at Kansas [box score]

by Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total • #5 Nebraska 10 14 7 10 41 Kansas 6 14 0 0 20 Date: 1970-10-17 Location: McCook Field, Lawrence, Kansas Game attendance: 50,000

Nebraska was surprised to find themselves behind 10-20 with 10 minutes left in the 1st half, but battled back to take the lead with two more touchdowns before the break, and never let Kansas score again as they cruised to a 41-20 final.

Oklahoma State

Oklahoma State at #4 Nebraska [box score]

by Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Oklahoma State 7 0 6 18 31 • #4 Nebraska 14 27 10 14 65 Date: 1970-10-24 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game attendance: 67,822

Nebraska piled up 65 points, its highest total since 1922, and held Oklahoma State to just 64 ground yards as the Cornhuskers made short work of the Cowboys.

Colorado

#4 Nebraska at Colorado [box score]

by Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total • #4 Nebraska 12 0 3 14 29 Colorado 0 7 0 6 13 Date: 1970-10-31 Location: Folsom Field, Boulder, Colorado Game attendance: 50,881

Nebraska pulled out in front right away with a 12-0 1st quarter lead, but stubborn Colorado fought back and trailed the Cornhuskers by only 13-15 in the 4th quarter - after missing a 2 point conversion that would have tied the game - before Nebraska decided to stop the uprising with two touchdowns in the last 10 minutes to pull away.

Iowa State

#4 Nebraska at Iowa State [box score]

by Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total • #4 Nebraska 12 14 21 7 54 Iowa State 0 11 6 12 29 Date: 1970-11-07 Location: Clyde Williams Field, Ames, Iowa Game attendance: 36,000

The game was not as close as the score indicates, as Iowa State put up two late touchdowns against Nebraska reserves in the 4th quarter after the Cornhuskers had run up a 54-17 lead with 5 minutes remaining to play.

Kansas State

#20 Kansas State at #4 Nebraska [box score]

by Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total #20 Kansas State 0 7 0 6 13 • #4 Nebraska 14 7 16 14 51 Date: 1970-11-14 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game attendance: 67,894

Kansas State came to Lincoln with hopes of a Big 8 title opportunity, but they were not prepared for the domination that Nebraska would show them in a convincing defeat. The Wildcats managed only two touchdowns, one of which came with 5 minutes remaining in the 4th against the Nebraska reserves. At one point in the game, the Cornhuskers exploded for 27 points in less than 4 minutes, pushing their lead out to 51-7.

Oklahoma

Oklahoma at #3 Nebraska [box score]

by Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Oklahoma 0 14 0 7 21 • #3 Nebraska 0 14 7 7 28 Date: 1970-11-21 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game attendance: 67,392

Nebraska locked up their first unbeaten regular season since 1965 by coming from behind twice to get the win over stubborn Oklahoma. It wasn't until 7:42 remainined in the 4th quarter that Nebraska pulled ahead by a touchdown to settle the final score.

Louisiana State

#3 Nebraska vs #5 Louisiana State [box score]

by Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total #5 LSU 0 3 9 0 12 • #3 Nebraska 10 0 0 7 17 Date: 1971-01-01 Location: Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida Game start: 8:35 pm EST Game attendance: 80,699

Third-ranked Nebraska jumped to a 10-0 lead in the first quarter and lead 10-3 at halftime, but #5 LSU fought back to make a game of it, pulling ahead on a field goal at the end of the 3rd quarter to get to 12-10. With over eight minutes remaining, Jerry Tagge jumped over the pile from the 1-yard line for the game's final points, and the Blackshirts held on the rest of the way to preserve the win. Top-ranked Texas and #2 Ohio State both lost their bowl games earlier in the day, which allowed the Huskers to claim their first national championship.

Rankings

See also: 1970 college football rankings

Ranking Movement

Poll	Pre	Wk 1	Wk 2	Wk 3	Wk 4	Wk 5	Wk 6	Wk 7	Wk 8	Wk 9	Wk 10	Wk 11	Wk 12	Wk 13	Final
AP	9	9	8	6	6	5	4	4	4	4	3	3	3	3	1
Coaches															3

Awards

Award	Name(s)
National Coach of the Year	Bob Devaney
All-America 1st team	Jerry Murtaugh, Bob Newton
All-America 2nd team	Joe Orduna
All-America honorable mention	Joe Blahak, Van Brownson, Willie Harper, Guy Ingles, Donnie McGhee, Joe Orduna, Johnny Rodgers, Jerry Tagge, Dave Walline
All-America Sophomores	Joe Blahak, Doug Dumler, Willie Harper, Johnny Rodgers
Big Eight Player of the Year	Jerry Murtaugh
Big Eight Sophomore Lineman of the Year	Willie Harper
All-Big Eight 1st team	Bill Kosch, Donnie McGhee, Jerry Murtaugh, Bob Newton, Joe Orduna, Ed Periard, Johnny Rodgers, Paul Rogers, Dave Walline
All-Big Eight honorable mention	Van Brownson, Guy Ingles, Jerry Tagge, Wally Winter

1970 Team Players in the NFL

The 1970 Nebraska Cornhuskers seniors selected in the 1971 NFL Draft:

Player	Position	Round	Pick	Franchise
Joe Orduna	RB	2	49	San Francisco 49ers
Bob Newton	T	3	71	Chicago Bears
Paul Rogers	K-DB	8	190	Pittsburgh Steelers
Dan Schneiss	TE	11	261	Boston Patriots

The 1970 Nebraska Cornhuskers juniors selected in the following year's 1972 NFL Draft:

Player	Position	Round	Pick	Franchise
Jerry Tagge	QB	1	11	Green Bay Packers
Jeff Kinney	RB	1	23	Kansas City Chiefs
Larry Jacobson	DT	1	24	New York Giants
Carl Johnson	T	5	112	New Orleans Saints
Van Brownson	QB	8	204	Baltimore Colts
Keith Wortman	G	10	242	Green Bay Packers

The 1970 Nebraska Cornhuskers sophomores selected in the 1973 NFL Draft:

Player	Position	Round	Pick	Franchise
Johnny Rodgers	WR	1	25	San Diego Chargers
Willie Harper	LB	2	41	San Francisco 49ers
Monte Johnson	LB	2	49	Oakland Raiders
Bill Olds	RB	3	61	Baltimore Colts
Rich Glover	DT	3	69	New York Giants
Doug Dumler	C	5	108	New England Patriots
Joe Blahak	DB	8	183	Houston Oilers
Bill Janssen	T	8	206	Pittsburgh Steelers
Dave Mason	DB	10	246	Minnesota Vikings
Jerry List	TE	11	283	Oakland Raiders

NFL and Pro Players

The following 1970 Nebraska players joined
a professional team as draftees or free agents.

Name	Team
Joe Blahak	Houston Oilers
Doug Dumler	New England Patriots
John Dutton	Baltimore Colts
Rich Glover	New York Giants
Willie Harper	San Francisco 49ers
Larry Jacobson	New York Giants
Bill Janssen	Charlotte Hornets
Carl Johnson	New Orleans Saints
Monte Johnson	Oakland Raiders
Jeff Kinney	Kansas City Chiefs
Brent Longwell	Memphis Southmen
Dave Mason	New England Patriots
Jerry Murtaugh	New England Patriots
Bob Newton	Chicago Bears
Bill Olds	Baltimore Colts
Joe Orduna	New York Giants
Johnny Rodgers	Montreal Alouettes
Bob Schmit	Portland Storm
Jerry Tagge	Green Bay Packers
Frank Vactor	Washington Redskins
Daryl White	Detroit Lions
Bob Wolfe	Birmingham Americans
Keith Wortman	Green Bay Packers