Against No. 7 Texas Tech, Nebraska went from cloud nine to ground zero.
Not only did the Cornhuskers leave Lubbock with a 37-31 overtime loss, but they left with an emotionally drained team that will try to continue the rigorous Big 12 Conference schedule.
"We're still beating ourselves," Nebraska coach Bo Pelini said. "We're still doing some things penalty-wise, dropping coverage, busting assignments, things you can't do against a good football team. (Tech is) a good football team and a well-coached football team."
Penalties at the wrong time may have been one of things that hurt the Cornhuskers the most. Nebraska finished the game with eight penalties for 55 yards, but some of those penalties killed several crucial Nebraska drives.
Down 17-7 with a little under a minute left before halftime, quarterback Joe Ganz and the Nebraska offense were in position to gain momentum with a score. On Tech's 24-yard line, the Cornhuskers were called for two consecutive holding penalties, pushing them back to Tech's 44-yard line. The first half ended with a 53-yard field goal missed by Nebraska's Alex Henery.
Nebraska also had an opportunity to stop a Red Raider drive late in the fourth quarter on fourth down, but a 47-yard pass from Tech quarterback Graham Harrell to receiver Michael Crabtree took any momentum the Cornhuskers had at the time.
Nebraska defensive coordinator Carl Pelini said the past is now the past, and the real loss would be letting the missed opportunities stay in the back of players' minds.
"Now you gotta say tomorrow starts a new week of preparation for a new opponent," he said. "You can't wallow in self-pity. You gotta put it behind you and learn from it and move on. I think that's pretty much the attitude on this team and this coaching staff."
Although Nebraska had those missed opportunities, the Cornhuskers still had everything set up for an upset win.
After Ganz threw a 17-yard touchdown to receiver Todd Peterson with 29 seconds left in the game and Tech kicker Donnie Carona missed an extra point attempt in overtime, it seemed everything was going Nebraska's way. But Ganz's interception to Jamar Wall to end the game left the Cornhuskers speechless.
Ganz described the final few plays of the game as being on top of the world and then suddenly experiencing a demoralizing change, as he said the game had a deeper effect on him.
"You kind of go from the highest of high with that two-minute drill," he said. "You see (Wall's interception) - you hit the lowest of lows. It took a toll on me emotionally. It's tough. When you pour your heart and soul into preparation and giving everything you got, and to end it like that, it's heart breaking."
However, Nebraska did come out of this loss with some positive notes.
Ganz still came away with a solid performance going 36-of-44 for 349 yards and two touchdowns.
Players believe they saw Ganz grow from one week to the next, as Peterson said his quarterback did a solid job of getting this team in position to win the game.
Bo Pelini said without Ganz the Cornhuskers would not have been as close as they were.
Nebraska took a 52-17 loss to then-ranked No. 3 Missouri last week, only to bounce back to force overtime against No. 7 Tech. Against Missouri, Nebraska had 369 yards of total offense. At Tech, the Cornhuskers outgained the Red Raiders on offense with 471 total yards.
Although the improvement from last week is evident, the Cornhuskers have no belief in moral victories. Peterson said the only difference between the Missouri and Tech games is heartbreak.
"A loss is a loss," he said. "Obviously, it's not fun whether you lose in overtime or you get beat by five touchdowns like last week. There's a lot of guys in (the locker room) who are heartbroken right now."
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