MIAMI - The glorious quarter century of the quiet man from Nebraska ended with a 42-17 victory and a lingering hope. Nebraska Coach Tom Osborne walked away a winner. But he would need a massive 11th-hour change of heart by a lot of voters to walk away a national champion.
Second-ranked Nebraska made its final argument for a second look in the polls, taking apart mistake-plagued, No. 3 Tennessee last night in the Orange Bowl to finish Osborne's last season 13-0 and throw the national championship into the laps of the voters.
"If all the pollsters honestly think after watching the Rose Bowl and the Orange that Michigan could beat Nebraska, then go ahead and vote for Michigan by all means," Nebraska quarterback Scott Frost said. "(But) I don't think there's anyone out there with a clear conscience who could say Nebraska and especially Tom Osborne, that great man, doesn't deserve the national championship for this. At least a share."
"We did all we could," Osborne said. "We won 13, and that's all we played."
Tennessee Coach Phillip Fulmer said he would vote for Nebraska.
The results from the media (Associated Press) and coaches' (USA Today-ESPN) polls were due early today, when the Cornhuskers would see if they gained enough support to get past No. 1 Michigan.
They would see if a rushing game that produced an Orange-Bowl record 206 yards by Ahman Green - 152 in the third quarter - and a defense that allowed Peyton Manning one touchdown meant anything.
It's a long shot. The Rose Bowl victory Thursday by the Wolverines, who had sizable leads in both polls, lowered the thermostat of this game, right down to the ticket prices. The announced crowd was a near-capacity 72,385, but scalpers outside Pro Player Stadium asked $15 for $80 tickets.
Nebraska turned two early Volunteer turnovers into a 14-0 lead and then crushed Tennessee (11-2) in the second half with pure power.
Frost ran for three touchdowns and Green two. The Cornhuskers rushed for 340 of their 409 yards after halftime.
"We did what we could control," Green said. "We ran the ball and pounded on Tennessee. We can't control anything else. The talk at halftime was we had to keep rolling. Coach Osborne said we had to keep driving on them, keep pounding on them. That's what we did. We pounded on them."
There was no better way for Osborne to leave than with a victory built on defense and the ground game - cornerstones of the program he maintained at Nebraska. He leaves with a 25-year record of 255-49-3, a winning percentage of .838 unmatched by any active coach.
"He's everything that college football should be about," Fulmer said. "A lot of people would like to be like him in this profession."
But he might leave as a historical footnote in frustration - with the expanded bowl alliance coming next season, the last coach whose team was No. 2 and unbeaten but never had a chance to play No. 1.
Manning said his goodbye with a long, hard night and only the third loss of his career as a starter to a team not named Florida. He completed 21 of 31 passes but for only 134 yards. His touchdown pass in the second half only briefly interrupted the Nebraska onslaught.
"We hurt ourselves all night," Manning said. "You can't turn the ball over against a team like Nebraska and expect to win."
Just before the clock struck midnight, with occasional rain and "We're No. 1!" cries from Nebraska fans in the air, the game ended. And so did Osborne's era. "It's kind of a bittersweet moment," he said of coaching his last game. "It's a great night for Nebraska."
It was a moment of considerable emotion, leaving just one question: How many voters were moved?
Tennessee 0 3 6 8-17
Nebraska 7 7 21 7-42
FIRST QUARTER
Neb-A.Green 1 run (K.Brown kick), 1:10.
SECOND QUARTER
Neb-Wiggins 10 run (K.Brown kick), 11:28.
Ten-FG Hall 44, 8:28.
THIRD QUARTER
Neb-Frost 1 run (K.Brown kick), 10:11.
Neb-Frost 11 run (K.Brown kick), 5:07.
Ten-Price 5 pass from Manning (pass failed), 1:58.
Neb-A.Green 22 run (K.Brown kick), :29.
FOURTH QUARTER
Neb-Frost 9 run (K.Brown kick), 4:24.
Ten-McCullough 3 pass from T.Martin (Stephens pass from T.Martin), :58.
A-72,385.
Ten Neb
First downs 16 30
Rushes-yards 21-128 68-409
Passing 187 125
Comp-att-int 25-35-1 9-12-0
Return yards 4 59
Punts-avg. 6-52.3 4-39.0
Fumbles-lost 2-2 3-2
Penalties-yards 5-37 8-63
Time of possession 23:57 36:03
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - Tennessee, Lewis 14-90, Levine 2-30, T. Martin 1-11, Stephens 3-6, Manning 1-(minus 9). Nebraska, A.Green 29-206, Makovicka 9-61, Frost 17-60, Wiggins 3-28, Sims 4-23, Newcombe 3-16, Buckhalter 2-14, Alexander 1-1.
Passing - Tennessee, Manning 21-31-1-134, T. Martin 4-4-0-53. Nebraska, Frost 9-12-0-125.
Receiving - Tennessee, Nash 5-53, Copeland 4-30, Bryson 4-25, Lewis 4-4, McCullough 3-50, Price 3-9, C.Wilson 1-13, Edmonds 1-3. Nebraska, Jackson 4-56, A.Green 3-31, Newcombe 1-22, Davison 1-16.
Peach Bowl: Auburn comes back to win
Yahoo Sports: NCAA football
