Big Eight Roundup : Nebraska Dumps Missouri, 26-18

Missouri had 5th-ranked Nebraska on the ropes but the Cornhuskers had enough left to deliver a knockout punch.

Bryan Carpenter’s 49-yard run with 8:24 left boosted Nebraska to a 26-18 victory even though the Cornhuskers were held to 116 yards rushing and 269 yards in total offense. Nebraska was averaging more than 420 yards rushing a game, tops in the nation.

“It’s a Russian roulette-type of deal,” Nebraska Coach Tom Osborne said. “It’s a full blitz about 60-to-70% of the time. In the 1st half, they won.”

The only scoring in the 1st half came on field goals of 25 and 32 yards by Jeff Jacke that gave Missouri (2-5-1 overall, 1-3 in the Big Eight) a 6-0 lead.

Jacke added a 19-yard field goal to make it 9-0 in the 3rd period before Steve Taylor found tight end Todd Millikan on an 82-yard scoring play to give Nebraska (8-1, 4-0) its 1st points. It was Millikan’s 14th career touchdown catch, a record for a Cornhusker tight end.

Nebraska cornerback Charles Fryar recovered 2 Missouri fumbles in a span of 3:28, returning 1 for an apparent touchdown only to have it called back by a personal foul.

The other recovery gave Nebraska the ball at the Missouri 25. On the 2nd play of the series, Taylor scrambled 24 yards to the Missouri 1. Tyreese Knox scored on the next play to give the Cornhuskers their 1st lead, 14-9.

Missouri’s Michael Jones put the Tigers back on top with a 3-yard touchdown run before Nebraska kicker Chris Drennan hit a 29-yard field goal that put Nebraska ahead, 17-15, with 1:37 left in the 3rd quarter.

Jacke gave the Tigers the lead again with a 51-yard field goal with 10:43 left. His 4 field goals tied a school record.

Colorado 24, Iowa State 12--Eric Bieniemy and J.J. Flannigan each rushed for more than 100 yards and scored 4th-quarter touchdowns as the Buffaloes overcame the Cyclones in a Big Eight game at Boulder, Colo.

The win boosted Colorado to 6-2 overall and 2-2 in the Big Eight. Iowa State dropped to 4-4 for the season and 2-2 in league play.

Colorado was clinging to a 10-6 lead in the final quarter when Bieniemy ran 46 yards for a touchdown. Bieniemy had 166 yards in 24 carries, giving him 1,104 yards in 183 carries for the season.

Flannigan replaced Bieniemy and gained 84 of his 103 yards during a 99-yard drive, scoring from 10 yards out to make it 24-6.

Iowa State took a 6-0 lead on field goals of 49 and 52 yards by Jeff Shudak.

Oklahoma 63, Kansas 14--Quarterback Charles Thompson ran for 118 yards and 2 touchdowns as No. 8 Oklahoma trounced Kansas in a Big Eight game at Norman, Okla.

Kansas (0-8, 0-4) managed a 14-14 tie in the 1st quarter as Kelly Donohoe hit Willie Vaughn on an 80-yard scoring pass play and set up another touchdown with a 47-yarder to Vaughn.

Oklahoma (7-1, 4-0) took 21-14 halftime lead on Thompson’s second 1-yard touchdown run and broke things open with 6 touchdowns in the 2nd half.

Jamelle Holieway passed for a touchdown and scored another while becoming Oklahoma’s career total offense leader. His 129 yards on gave him 4,852, surpassing the record of 4,818 set by Jack Mildren in 1971.