Published Thursday | December 29, 2005
Henne says wrong call made on fumble
But Wolverine quarterback Chad Henne kept going.
He said officials blew the call when they ruled that Henne fumbled with 5:56 left in the game, setting up Nebraska's go-ahead touchdown in a 32-28 victory.
Henne said he was turned toward the flat to throw a short pass and had begun his delivery when a defender "clipped my arm."
Nebraska's Blake Tiedtke, blitzing from his safety spot, knocked the ball loose and tackle Ola Dagunduro corralled it.
When asked if that was a forward pass, Henne replied:
"Definitely. I followed through, just like a regular pass. I don't know what they were looking at."
Carr cut himself short when asked about the play.
"It looked to me like, well . . . that was a big play," Carr finally said.
Carr congratulated Nebraska for strong play in winning the game, but showed frustration after a night of turnovers and timeouts used while trying to give the replay official time to seek reviews.
"Some things happened at the end that I'll have to see on film," he said. "But I think our players deserved better."
When pressed to expand on that remark, Carr paused, then said: "My statement doesn't need any more comment."
Later asked about plays that weren't reviewed, Carr said, "I have so many questions that I can't remember the answers."
Among the plays Carr likely wanted reviewed was the final one - a multitude of laterals that ended with Michigan tight end Tyler Ecker racing 62 yards while Nebraska players and coaches ran onto the field to celebrate and Alamo Bowl officials dragged the awards stand toward midfield.
"I don't know how that many people could end up on the field," Carr said. "I just don't know how that happened."
Michigan linebacker Pierre Woods came to the interview room and claimed that a Nebraska tight end with a jersey number in the 80s came from the sidelines to help tackle Ecker at the NU 13.
UM media officials later said Woods apparently was mistaken, but Woods didn't back off one statement.
"That play was still alive," he said. "The refs didn't blow the whistle."
Through the 4-hour, 4-minute game's confusion, one thing was clear for Carr.
"Our turnovers were really monumental," he said. "Our defense was outstanding in the first half and gave our offense a lot of opportunities.
"But we couldn't capitalize, so give Nebraska credit for that."
Contact the Omaha World-Herald newsroom
Copyright ©2005 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or distributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
