Nebraska Football: The 25 Best Bowl Games in School History

One of the best parts of being a Nebraska fan is having a history of excellence to draw upon. Nebraska has played in 47 bowl games, winning 24 of them. So, thankfully, there were plenty to choose from in selecting the greatest 25 in school history.

Yes, three of the games on the list are losses (quick, without looking, can you guess all three?), but all of them are part of the rich tapestry of Nebraska’s football tradition.

Images for all the bowl program covers are located here.

(Remember, the year listed is the year the bowl game was played, and may not reflect the season that got Nebraska to that bowl. So, for example, Tom Osborne's first national championship season is generally referred to as the "1994 Nebraska Cornhuskers." But the Orange Bowl that won Osborne that title was played in January of 1995, so for purposes of this slide show it is referred to as the "1995 Orange Bowl.")

25: 2000 Fiesta Bowl (Nebraska 31, Tennessee 21)

Eric Crouch warmed up for his Heisman Trophy senior campaign with 148 yards passing (including one touchdown) and 64 yards rushing. NU opened up a 17-point lead on the No. 5 Volunteers early in the game, but Tennessee pulled the score back to 17-14 early in the third quarter. Nebraska then turned the offense on and never looked back.

24: 1996 Orange Bowl (Nebraska 41, Virginia Tech 21)

Nebraska knocked off the No. 10 Hokies on the strength of MVP Damon Benning’s rushing performance. Benning rushed for 96 yards and two touchdowns as Nebraska overcame an early 7-0 deficit, and pulled away with 10 unanswered fourth-quarter points to seal the victory.

23: 1969 Sun Bowl (Nebraska 45, Georgia 6)

Nebraska used an 18-point first quarter to dominate Georgia, shutting the Bulldogs out until the fourth quarter. Placekicker Paul Rodgers won the offensive outstanding player award, kicking four field goals including a 50-yarder. Nebraska’s win over Georgia started NU’s string of 30 straight bowl appearances, broken in 2004 under Bill Callahan.

22: 1980 Sun Bowl (Nebraska 31, Mississippi State 17)

Jeff Quinn threw for two touchdown passes and 159 yards as Nebraska pulled away from Mississippi State. NU scored in the first three minutes of the game, and took a 17-0 lead into the half. The Bulldogs never seriously threatened Nebraska, scoring two fourth-quarter touchdowns to make the score more respectable after the contest had been decided.

21: 1973 Orange Bowl (Nebraska 40, Notre Dame 6)

Johnny Rodgers put an exclamation point on his Nebraska career with a five-touchdown performance against Notre Dame. Rodgers scored four rushing touchdowns, and threw a 52-yard strike to Frosty Anderson.  The 1973 Orange Bowl also was Bob Devaney’s last game in charge of the Cornhuskers.

20: 1987 Sugar Bowl (Nebraska 30, LSU 15)

LSU had a 66-yard touchdown drive to start the game, and a 66-yard touchdown drive to end the game. Other than that, it was all Nebraska, as Steve Taylor threw for 110 yards, rushed for 63, and scored two touchdowns.

19: 1983 Orange Bowl (Nebraska 21, LSU 20)

Four turnovers helped hold a powerful Nebraska offense in check against LSU, bringing the game down to a fourth-quarter Turner Gill touchdown to give Nebraska the lead. The Blackshirts then kept LSU out of the end zone, holding the Tigers to a late field goal and preserving the win.

18: 1974 Sugar Bowl (Nebraska 13, Florida 10)

Only a furious fourth-quarter comeback rescued Nebraska against Florida and preserved NU’s four-game winning streak in bowls. Florida held a 10-0 lead at the half, and it wasn’t until Monty Anthony found the end zone early in the fourth quarter that Nebraska showed signs of life. Two field goals from Mike Coyle, the last with 1:46 left to go in the game, gave NU the come-from-behind victory.

17: 2005 Alamo Bowl (Nebraska 32, Michigan 28)

While the game itself was an impressive end to Cory Ross’ NU career (including 161 yards rushing), the contest will always be remembered for its crazy end. Down four, Michigan’s last-gasp play was a designed multiple lateral, with the ball going back and forth across the field. The play ended up gaining 51 yards, and only a Titus Brothers tackle saved NU from what would have been one of the most remarkable plays in college football history.

16: 1974 Cotton Bowl (Nebraska 19, Texas 3)

A tight 3-3 contest at halftime, the game broke open when Nebraska’s Bob Thornton returned a missed field goal for 41 yards. That field position set up Nebraska’s first touchdown, a 12-yard reverse from Ritch Bahe. Nebraska's defense held from there to seal the victory.

15: 2009 Holiday Bowl (Nebraska 33, Arizona 0)

“Nebraska’s back, and we’re here to stay!”

That was Bo Pelini’s bold proclamation after Nebraska dismantled Arizona, recording NU’s only shutout in a bowl game. Niles Paul was the game’s offensive MVP, while Matt O’Hanlon won the defensive MVP honors in leading a Blackshirt squad that only allowed Arizona 109 yards of total offense.

14: 1964 Orange Bowl (Nebraska 13, Auburn 7)

Nebraska knocked off Auburn for its first Orange Bowl win in school history. NU took a 13-0 lead into the half, on the strength of quarterback Dennis Claridge’s 68-yard touchdown run on the first play from scrimmage. Auburn scored a third quarter touchdown, and Nebraska needed John Kirby to knock down a Tiger pass at the goal line to preserve the win.

13: 2000 Alamo Bowl (Nebraska 66, Northwestern 17)

Nebraska recorded its highest point total in bowl history, blitzing Northwestern with 31 second-quarter points en route to a win. Bobby Newcombe caught one touchdown pass and threw another, and Eric Crouch had two rushing and two passing touchdowns to help torch the No. 19 Wildcats.

12: 2003 Alamo Bowl (Nebraska 17, Michigan State 3)

The game itself was not all that memorable, a dour and defensive game marked by a 66-yard run by offensive MVP Jamaal Lord to secure the win. Instead, the game was important as it marked Bo Pelini’s first game as head coach of Nebraska, albeit in an interim role after Frank Solich was fired. Pelini’s Alamo Bowl performance helped cement his legend in the minds of the Nebraska fan base, and had to be at least a part of Tom Osborne’s decision to hire Pelini as the successor to Bill Callahan.

11: 1976 Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl (Nebraska 27, Texas 24)

Nebraska overcame two 10-point deficits to edge Texas Tech in a wild game. Vince Ferragamo led NU on an 80-yard drive in the final two minutes of the first half to keep Nebraska in the game, and Chuck Malito hauled in another Ferragamo pass in the second half to give Nebraska their winning score.
Plus, has there ever been a cooler name for a bowl game than the Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl?

10: 2009 Gator Bowl (Nebraska 26, Clemson 21)

Bo Pelini cemented his role as head Husker with a gritty 26-21 win over Clemson. Pelini’s Blackshirts were crucial in holding a high-powered Clemson offense down in the second half, after the Tigers marched to an 11-point halftime lead. Joe Ganz led NU’s offense with 236 passing yards and two touchdowns. But, fittingly, it was a defensive stand at the end of the game to deny Clemson the go-ahead score late in the game with the Tigers in Nebraska’s red zone.

9: 1962 Gotham Bowl (Nebraska 36, Miami 34)

This game is important in Nebraska history for two reasons. First, it marked Nebraska’s first win in a bowl game, secured by a Bob Brown interception in the end zone in the dying moments. Second, who doesn’t love the “Gotham Bowl” name? Seriously, was Commissioner Gordon in attendance?

8: 1994 Orange Bowl (Florida State 18, Nebraska 16)

Yes, it was a loss, an agonizing one at that. But Byron Bennett’s wayward field goal attempt as time expired put a sour end on a remarkable performance by a 17.5 point underdog Nebraska team that most thought would be blown out of the stadium. Nebraska’s toe-to-toe fight with the Seminoles, coupled with the heartbreaking loss, set the table for NU’s “Unfinished Business” slogan the following season, which resulted in Tom Osborne’s first national title.

7: 1984 Orange Bowl (Miami 31, Nebraska 30)

If there is one game—if there is one play—that defined Nebraska football, it might have been the two point conversion in this game. Down one with 48 seconds left in the game, it was all but certain that a tie would have given then fourth-ranked Nebraska a national title given how the other games of the day played out. But Tom Osborne decided to go for the win, only to have Turner Gill’s conversion pass to Jeff Smith tipped away by Miami safety Ken Calhoun. The win catapulted Miami onto the national stage, and left a defining legacy of courage for Osborne.

That legacy looks a lot different (and a lot better) with the three national title trophies Osborne ended his career with, of course.

6: 1941 Rose Bowl (Stanford 21, Nebraska 13)

Nebraska’s first appearance in a bowl game, the Rose Bowl marked the start of Nebraska’s reputation for traveling fans. Even in the midst of World War II, red-clad fans made the long trek to Pasadena to see NU face off against Stanford. Although NU lost, Nebraska’s tradition of bowl appearances—and bowl ticket sales—was born.

5: 1972 Orange Bowl (Nebraska 38, Alabama 6)

Bob Devaney’s second consecutive national title was won emphatically, with a thorough domination of Bear Bryant’s Alabama squad. NU had a 14-0 lead at the end of the first quarter, and a 28-3 lead at halftime to end any drama in the contest. The win marked Devaney’s first victory over Bryant in three attempts for the Bobfather.

4: 1998 Orange Bowl (Nebraska 42, Tennessee 17)

Tom Osborne was sent out in style, seeing his Cornhuskers dominate Peyton Manning’s Tennessee Volunteers in his final game as Nebraska head coach. Ahman Green broke Nebraska’s bowl record with 209 yards rushing and two scores, and Scott Frost made a passionate plea for a national title on behalf of his coach, “at least a share.”

Frost was apparently very convincing, as Nebraska ended the season sharing a split national title with Michigan.

3: 1995 Orange Bowl (Nebraska 24, Miami 17)

It wasn’t just about beating Miami. It was about beating Miami in Miami. It was about exorcising the ghosts of Orange Bowls past, of purging those hot south Florida nights watching the plodding farm boys being outrun and outplayed by the hated Hurricanes.

And it couldn’t have ended in a more fitting manner, with fullback Corey Schlesinger tearing through an exhausted Miami defense for two fourth-quarter touchdowns. Two quarterback sacks and an interception later, and Nebraska had finally given Tom Osborne the trophy he had quietly chased his whole career.

2: 1971 Orange Bowl (Nebraska 17, LSU 12)

Nebraska wasn’t supposed to be in this position. It took a loss to No. 1 Texas and No. 2 Ohio State for NU to even be in a position to claim a national title. But Bob Devaney’s Cornhuskers took advantage of their unexpected good fortune. Trailing 12-10 in the fourth quarter, Nebraska engineered a 67-yard drive, capped off by Jerry Tagge’s iconic reach of the ball across the goal line that gave NU the win and its first national title in school history.

1: 1996 Fiesta Bowl (Nebraska 62, Florida 24)

Once again, Nebraska came into a national title game as heavy underdogs, this time to Steve Spurrier’s “fun and gun” Florida Gators. Nebraska responded emphatically, dominating the Gators on both sides of the ball and securing its place as the best team in the history of college football.

The game also provided the single, iconic image of Nebraska football. As the third quarter expired, Tommie Frazier kept on an option play and was wrapped up by four Florida defenders. Frazier kept running, kept churning and broke away from them all, scampering 75 yards down the sideline for the touchdown that secured Nebraska’s victory.

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