COLLEGE FOOTBALL : Big Eight Roundup : Nebraska Throws Bench at Kansas

Coach Tom Osborne used 104 players Saturday in No. 2-ranked Nebraska’s 54-2 rout of Kansas in a Big Eight opener at Lincoln, Neb.

Third-string I-back Ken Clark had scoring runs of 4 and 22 yards as the Cornhuskers (5-0) compiled 363 rushing yards in beating Kansas (1-4) for the 19th consecutive time.

Thirteen Huskers carried the ball, including six who rushed for 30 yards or more.

“We had a chance to play a tremendous number of people and that was one of the goals we had in the ballgame,” Nebraska assistant coach George Darlington said. “We were pleased we won as people expected us to.”

Nebraska, however, played without starting quarterback Steve Taylor and starting I-back Keith Jones because of injuries.

Kansas Coach Bob Valesente said he felt his team played well for 56 minutes before a late lapse led to the last two Cornhusker scores in the final four minutes.

“You can’t be happy with any phase of the game when you get beat by that many points,” Valesente said.

The Kansas coach ordered his team off the field immediately after the game, halting their usual post-game meeting between players from the two teams.

“There were no hard feelings between our team and Nebraska,” he said, “and I told Coach Osborne that after the game. I asked our team to leave the field early because of the four minutes I mentioned.

“I didn’t think our team deserved to mingle around the field after the game.”

Oklahoma St. 46, Colorado 17--Coach Pat Jones gave his 19th-ranked Cowboys a history lesson after they beat the Buffaloes at Stillwater, Okla.

“I just told our squad that since the end of World War II, 1945, there’s only been one football team in the history of this university to start off 5-0 and it’s us,” Jones said. “We’re very proud of that.”

The Cowboys, behind the accurate passing of Mike Gundy and the inspired play by their defense, dropped Colorado to 3-2 in the Big Eight opener for both teams.

Gundy, a sophomore, completed 21 of 28 passes for 257 yards and 2 touchdowns.

The defense turned the game around early in the third quarter by recovering consecutive fumbles by Colorado fullback Michael Simmons, both leading to Oklahoma State touchdowns.

Thurman Thomas, the nation’s leading rusher, had 110 yards in 23 carries for Oklahoma State, the fifth straight game in which he has topped the 100-yard mark.

Missouri 34, Kansas St. 10--At Columbia, Mo., Darrell Wallace scored on runs of 51 and 31 yards and became the Tigers’ career rushing leader.

Wallace carried 10 times for 99 yards for a career total of 2,393, surpassing the record of 2,357 yards set by James Wilder as Missouri handed Kansas State its 10th consecutive loss.

The Tigers piled up 501 yards in total offense and ran for 376. Quarterback John Stollenwerck, a transfer from Southern Methodist, completed 7 of 11 attempts for 118 yards as Missouri improved to 3-2 overall, 1-0 in the Big Eight.

The Wildcats (0-5, 0-1) lost starting quarterback Gary Swim to a shoulder separation on the last play of the first quarter.

Iowa St. 39, N. Iowa 38--Freshman Jeff Shudak kicked a 28-yard field goal with 1:23 to go at Ames, Iowa, giving Jim Walden his first win as the Cyclones’ coach.

The game-winner came seven plays after Shudak executed a perfect on-side kick to give the Cyclones the ball and capped a fourth-quarter rally that wiped out a 38-21 Northern Iowa lead in the final 11 minutes.

Northern Iowa got to midfield after the field goal, but defensive backs Chad Welding and Jeff Dole batted down desperation passes inside their five-yard line on the game’s final two plays to preserve the victory.

Walden, the head coach at Washington State for nine years before taking the Iowa State job last December, saw his team win for the first time in five games. Northern Iowa, an NCAA Division I-AA school, fell to 3-3.