The 2005 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team represented the University of Nebraska–Lincoln

University of Nebraska–Lincoln

The University of Nebraska–Lincoln is a public research university located in the city of Lincoln in the U.S. state of Nebraska...

 in the 2005 NCAA Division I-A football season

2005 NCAA Division I-A football season

The 2005 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with the least amount of controversy surrounding the Bowl Championship Series title game in many years.To an extent it was a return to classic football...

. The team was coached by Bill Callahan

Bill Callahan (football coach)

William E. Callahan is the Assistant Head Coach for the New York Jets. He was formerly the head coach of the Oakland Raiders for the 2002-2003 seasons and for the University of Nebraska for the 2004-2007 seasons....

 and played their home games in Memorial Stadium

Memorial Stadium, Lincoln

Memorial Stadium is located on the campus of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States. It is the home of the Nebraska Cornhuskers football team....

 in Lincoln, Nebraska

Lincoln, Nebraska

The City of Lincoln is the capital and the second-most populous city of the US state of Nebraska. Lincoln is also the county seat of Lancaster County and the home of the University of Nebraska. Lincoln's 2010 Census population was 258,379....

.

Before the season

Nebraska experienced many changes to their team's roster; not only did key wide receiver Ross Pilkington leave the team after he gave up football, but after the spring game, new junior college transfer Zac Taylor

Zac Taylor

Zac Taylor in an American football quarterback. From 2005 to 2006, he was the starting quarterback for Cornhuskers football team at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. He was recruited late in the 2004-2005 off-season by the Huskers, being a described "lucky break" due to the Huskers lack of...

 replaced the 2004 starter Joe Dailey at the key position of quarterback. Shortly thereafter Joe Dailey transferred to North Carolina.

Schedule

Roster and coaching staff

Maine

Speculation that the 2005 season could perhaps be worse than the 2004 season began when Nebraska struggled to defeat the severe underdog Maine team 25-7.

Wake Forest

The team went on to crush the Wake Forest Demon Deacons (Zac Taylor's former four year college) 31-3. The win was unusual in that Nebraska's defense scored more points than either team's offense (Nebraska's defense scored 18 points, their offense 6, their special teams 7).

Pittsburgh

Their next game is arguably one of the most climactic in the history of all of football. The score was Nebraska 7 and the Pittsburgh Panthers 6. With 7 seconds remaining, the Panthers were going to attempt a game winning field goal from 36 yards. The ball was snapped with the holder unprepared for the play. The ball rebounded off the holder's helmet. Pittsburgh's kicker recovered the ball and threw it incomplete to preserve time. One second remained on the clock as Pittsburgh prepared for the final play. Pittsburgh attempted the kick again, the holder prepared this time. Pittsburgh's kicker looked as though he would have made the field goal had it not been blocked by Nebraska's Adam Ickes.

Iowa State

Nebraska's next game was equally exciting as unranked and undefeated Nebraska took on the #23 Iowa State Cyclones. They won in a hard fought match that went into 2 overtimes by a score of 27-20. The game marked the first time that overtime had occurred in Memorial Stadium. Regardless of the quality win, Nebraska remained unranked.

Texas Tech

Nebraska was the only team that was unranked and had no losses going into their next game against the 15th ranked Texas Tech Red Raiders. After trailing 21-0 in the first half, Nebraska fought back and eventually gained a 31-27 foothold over Texas Tech. In the final minutes of the game, Nebraska seemingly sealed their victory and a top 25 ranking when lineman LeKevin Smith intercepted a Texas Tech pass only to fumble it seconds later to return possession to Texas Tech. The Red Raiders were given a second-chance and with time winding down threw the game winning touchdown pass to defeat Nebraska.

Baylor

Missouri

Oklahoma

Kansas

The Huskers lost 3 of their next 4 games, including losses to their rival Missouri Tigers, who defeated them 41-24, a crushing 40-15 defeat to the Kansas Jayhawks (which snapped a 36 year winning streak over Kansas), and rival Oklahoma Sooners, the latter being lost in the final minutes of the game. (This victory was vacated by an NCAA disciplinary panel in July 2007 and then conversely overruled in February 2008.) The only win in this slump was a victory over a sub-par Baylor team.

Kansas State

In a particularly windy game against Kansas State, Nebraska trailed 25-24 with 4:18 remaining in the game. Zac Taylor was on the receiving end of a hard hit that landed him with a mild concussion, removing him from the game. Zac remained on the ground for a couple of minutes with Callahan and KSU's Bill Snyder towering over him. The sold out crowd began to chant his name, as Taylor tried to recompose himself. Backup quarterback, freshman Harrison Beck, recorded his first action in a college football game. After throwing an interception in his first drive, he threw a key reception in Nebraska's final drive. Freshman kicker Jordan Congdon came in to make the go-ahead field goal. This was a risky move as the wind was swirling and was so strong that it ripped the stadium's mammoth U.S. flag off a crane that was suspending it, seemingly as a testament to its power. Regardless Congdon made the 40-yard field goal to give Nebraska the win.

Colorado

Nebraska's final regular season game of 2005 was at Colorado. Colorado, who was leading the Big 12 North division in the race to the Big 12 championship game, was the heavy favorite, as Nebraska was cold after 3 straight losses followed by a near miss against a struggling Kansas State team. Tension built up between the rivals as a verbal skirmish involving every player erupted in the center of the field between the two teams when Nebraska mistook Colorado players walking toward their half of the field as an insult. Colorado was stunned, however, when Nebraska dominated Colorado in every aspect of the game. Wearing motivational T-Shirts reading "RESTORE THE ORDER" underneath their jerseys, Nebraska beat Colorado 30-3 with breakout performances from nearly every player, particularly Zac Taylor and Colorado native Cory Ross.

Michigan

The team finished with 7 wins and 4 losses in the regular season. Nebraska would play their bowl game against the Michigan Wolverines in the 2005 Alamo Bowl in San Antonio, Texas. With 2 seconds left in the game the Wolverines trailed the Cornhuskers 32-28 and set up the hook & lateral play for a miracle touchdown. In one of the wildest finishes ever, Michigan lateraled the football 9 times, fumbling once on their way to a 59 yard gain. In the midst of all this the entire Nebraska sideline stormed the field in celebration thinking the game was over when Michigan fumbled the ball (from their point of view they could not see that the ball was loose and assumed the Michigan player to be down). Many players thinking the play was over stopped playing entirely. This allowed the Michigan ball carrier to run by them, In all the confusion some Michigan players did not block for their carrier. Before the play was over the Cornhuskers, several Michigan players and coaches, and several other individuals along with the awards podium were on the field, and the game officials had left to submit their votes for the award winners. The Michigan ball carrier had been pushed out of bounds inside of the red zone. No penalties were awarded to either team because the officials had already left. When all was said and done, Nebraska came off with a victory and ended their season with an 8-4 record.

Rankings

Ranking Movement

Poll	Pre	Wk 1	Wk 2	Wk 3	Wk 4	Wk 5	Wk 6	Wk 7	Wk 8	Wk 9	Wk 10	Wk 11	Wk 12	Wk 13	Wk 14	Final
AP	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	24
Coaches	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	24
Harris	Not released				NR	NR	25	NR	24	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	N/A
BCS	Not released							23	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	N/A

After the season

Bill Callahan's

Bill Callahan (football coach)

William E. Callahan is the Assistant Head Coach for the New York Jets. He was formerly the head coach of the Oakland Raiders for the 2002-2003 seasons and for the University of Nebraska for the 2004-2007 seasons....

 second season as coach concluded with his Huskers finishing the season with an 8-4 record, an improvement over the 5-6 record of 2004.

Awards

Award	Name(s)
Freshman All American 1st team	Jordan Congdon, Barry Turner
All-Big 12 1st team	Adam Carriker Adam Carriker Adam Eugene Carriker, , is a professional American football defensive end for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League. He was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Nebraska.-Early years:Carriker attended Kennewick High... , Sam Koch Sam Koch Sam David Koch [pronounced Cook] is an American football punter for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Ravens in the sixth round of the 2006 NFL Draft... , Terrence Nunn Terrence Nunn Terrence Nunn is an American football wide receiver for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League. He was signed by the New England Patriots as a street free agent in 2009...
All-Big 12 2nd team	Daniel Bullocks Daniel Bullocks Daniel Bullocks is an American football safety who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the second round of the 2006 NFL Draft. He played college football at Nebraska.... , Jordan Congdon, Kurt Mann, Corey McKeon, Cory Ross Cory Ross Cory Ross is an American football running back for the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the United Football League. He was signed by the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent in 2006. He played college football at Nebraska.-Early years:Ross attended Thomas Jefferson High School. While in high...
All-Big 12 honorable mention	Titus Adams Titus Adams Titus Adams is an American football defensive end for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League. He was drafted by the New York Jets in the seventh round of the 2006 NFL Draft... , Seppo Evwaraye Seppo Evwaraye Seppo Evwaraye is a retired Finnish NFL offensive guard first signed by Carolina Panthers as a free agent in 2006., and also played for Minnesota Vikings as an international practice squad member.-Career:... , Cortney Grixby Cortney Grixby Cortney Grixby is an Indoor Football League cornerback who is currently playing for the Omaha Beef of the Indoor Football League. He was signed by the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent in 2008. He played college football at Nebraska.Grixby has also been a member of the St. Louis Rams... , Brandon Koch, Jay Moore Jay Moore -San Francisco 49ers:On September 1, 2007, Moore was placed on the San Francisco 49ers' injured reserve list after suffering a severe high-ankle sprain in the final game of the pre-season.... , Bo Ruud Bo Ruud Bo Ruud is an American football linebacker who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the sixth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He played college football at Nebraska.... , Nate Swift Nate Swift Nate Swift is an American football player who plays for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Nate was born in Hutchinson, Minnesota, on August 24, 1985. He played wide receiver for the University of Nebraska, where he set a school record for career receptions and finished second in season receiving yardage ,...
Freshman All-Big 12 1st team	Jordan Congdon, Nate Swift, Barry Turner

NFL and Pro Players

The following Nebraska players who participated in the 2005 season later moved on to the next level and joined a professional or semi-pro team as draftees or free agents.

Name	Team
Titus Adams Titus Adams Titus Adams is an American football defensive end for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League. He was drafted by the New York Jets in the seventh round of the 2006 NFL Draft...	New York Jets New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
Stewart Bradley Stewart Bradley Stewart Bradley is an American football linebacker for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft...	Philadelphia Eagles Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
Daniel Bullocks Daniel Bullocks Daniel Bullocks is an American football safety who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the second round of the 2006 NFL Draft. He played college football at Nebraska....	Detroit Lions Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
Adam Carriker Adam Carriker Adam Eugene Carriker, , is a professional American football defensive end for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League. He was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Nebraska.-Early years:Carriker attended Kennewick High...	St. Louis Rams St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are currently members of the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Rams have won three NFL Championships .The Rams began playing in 1936 in Cleveland,...
Seppo Evwaraye Seppo Evwaraye Seppo Evwaraye is a retired Finnish NFL offensive guard first signed by Carolina Panthers as a free agent in 2006., and also played for Minnesota Vikings as an international practice squad member.-Career:...	Carolina Panthers Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are currently members of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Panthers, along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined the NFL as expansion...
Joe Ganz	Washington Redskins Washington Redskins The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
Cortney Grixby Cortney Grixby Cortney Grixby is an Indoor Football League cornerback who is currently playing for the Omaha Beef of the Indoor Football League. He was signed by the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent in 2008. He played college football at Nebraska.Grixby has also been a member of the St. Louis Rams...	Carolina Panthers Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are currently members of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Panthers, along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined the NFL as expansion...
Brandon Jackson	Green Bay Packers Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
Sam Koch Sam Koch Sam David Koch [pronounced Cook] is an American football punter for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Ravens in the sixth round of the 2006 NFL Draft...	Baltimore Ravens Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional football franchise based in Baltimore, Maryland.The Baltimore Ravens are officially a quasi-expansion franchise, having originated in 1995 with the Cleveland Browns relocation controversy after Art Modell, then owner of the Cleveland Browns, announced his...
Jay Moore Jay Moore -San Francisco 49ers:On September 1, 2007, Moore was placed on the San Francisco 49ers' injured reserve list after suffering a severe high-ankle sprain in the final game of the pre-season....	San Francisco 49ers San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
Lydon Murtha Lydon Murtha Lydon J. Murtha is an American football offensive tackle for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the seventh round of the 2009 NFL Draft...	Detroit Lions Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
Terrence Nunn Terrence Nunn Terrence Nunn is an American football wide receiver for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League. He was signed by the New England Patriots as a street free agent in 2009...	New England Patriots New England Patriots The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
Chris Patrick Chris Patrick Chris Patrick is an American football offensive tackle for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League. He was signed by the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent in 2007...	New York Giants New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
Todd Peterson	Jacksonville Jaguars Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
Andy Poulosky	Sioux City Bandits Sioux City Bandits The Sioux City Bandits are a professional indoor football team, currently a member of the American Professional Football League. They play their home games at the Tyson Events Center....
Cory Ross Cory Ross Cory Ross is an American football running back for the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the United Football League. He was signed by the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent in 2006. He played college football at Nebraska.-Early years:Ross attended Thomas Jefferson High School. While in high...	Baltimore Ravens Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional football franchise based in Baltimore, Maryland.The Baltimore Ravens are officially a quasi-expansion franchise, having originated in 1995 with the Cleveland Browns relocation controversy after Art Modell, then owner of the Cleveland Browns, announced his...
Bo Ruud Bo Ruud Bo Ruud is an American football linebacker who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the sixth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He played college football at Nebraska....	New England Patriots New England Patriots The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
Andrew Shanle Andrew Shanle Andrew Shanle is an American football cornerback and safety currently a free agent. He was originally signed by the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent in 2007. He played college football at Nebraska....	Chicago Bears Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
Le Kevin Smith Le Kevin Smith Le Kevin Smith is an American football defensive lineman of the National Football League, who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the sixth round of the 2006 NFL Draft...	New England Patriots New England Patriots The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
Ty Steinkuhler	New York Jets New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
Nate Swift Nate Swift Nate Swift is an American football player who plays for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Nate was born in Hutchinson, Minnesota, on August 24, 1985. He played wide receiver for the University of Nebraska, where he set a school record for career receptions and finished second in season receiving yardage ,...	Denver Broncos Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver, Colorado. They are currently members of the West Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
Zac Taylor Zac Taylor Zac Taylor in an American football quarterback. From 2005 to 2006, he was the starting quarterback for Cornhuskers football team at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. He was recruited late in the 2004-2005 off-season by the Huskers, being a described "lucky break" due to the Huskers lack of...	Tampa Bay Buccaneers Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football franchise based in Tampa, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League – they are the only team in the division not to come from the old NFC West...