Home Page | 1994 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team
The 1994 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team represented the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and was the national champion of the 1994 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was coached by Tom Osborne and played their home games in Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska. The Cornhuskers offense scored 459 points while the defense allowed 162 points.
1994Nebraska Cornhuskers football
Consensus national champion Big Eight champion Orange Bowl champion
There was much anticipation for the 1994 season. The 1993 Nebraska team compiled an 11–0 record in the regular season before narrowly losing to Florida State in the 1994 Orange Bowl on a last-second missed field goal. The 1994 offseason was dubbed "Unfinished Business" by the Huskers, in their quest to secure a national championship for the coming season.
Junior Tommie Frazier returned as the quarterback in Tom Osborne's vaunted option offense. Also returning were several key starters on defense that would prove to be a highly rated unit during the 1994 season.
Tom Osborne 22nd season 31st year at Nebraska Alma mater: Hastings College
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Charlie McBride 14th season as DC/DL coach 18th year at Nebraska Alma mater: Colorado
Turner Gill 3rd season as QB coach 3rd year at Nebraska Alma mater: Nebraska
Kevin Steele 6th season as LB coach 6th year at Nebraska Alma mater: Tennessee
Ron Brown 8th season as WR/TE coach 8th year at Nebraska Alma mater: Brown
Dan Young 12th season as OL/K coach 12th year at Nebraska Alma mater: Reed
Milt Tenopir 21st season as OL coach 21st year at Nebraska Alma mater: Sterling
Tony Samuel 9th season as OLB coach 9th year at Nebraska Alma mater: Nebraska
George Darlington DB coach 22nd year at Nebraska Alma mater: Rutgers
Frank Solich 12th season as RB coach 16th year at Nebraska Alma mater: Nebraska
Boyd Epley 26th season as S&C coach 26th year at Nebraska Alma mater: Nebraska
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
Injured
Redshirt
Roster Last update: January 17, 2011
Depth chart
Defense
FS
Tony Veland
Eric Stokes
Sedric Collins
WILL
MIKE
SAM
Ed Stewart
Phil Ellis Doug Colman
Troy Dumas
Ryan Terwilliger
Jon Hesse
Clint Brown
Jamel Williams
Lenord Alexander
Larry Arnold
ROVER
Kareem Moss
Octavious McFarlin
Jamel Williams
CB
Baron Miles
Darren Schmadeke
Trampis Wrice
DE
DT
DT
DE
Donta Jones
Terry Connealy
Christian Peter
Dwayne Harris
Grant Wistrom
Jason Pesterfield
Scott Saltsman
Jared Tomich
Jerad Higman
Jason Peter
Larry Townsend
Luther Hardin
CB
Tyrone Williams
Leslie Dennis
Michael Booker
Offense
WR
Abdul Muhammad
Clestor Johnson
Jon Vedral
LT
LG
C
RG
RT
Rob Zatechka
Brenden Stai
Aaron Graham
Joel Wilks
Zach Wiegert
Chris Dishman
Aaron Taylor
Bill Humphrey
Steve Ott
Eric Anderson
Kory Mikos
Jon Zatechka
Matt Vrzal
Steve Volin
Adam Treu
TE
Eric Alford
Mark Gilman Matt Shaw
Tim Carpenter
WR
Reggie Baul
Brandon Holbein
Riley Washington
QB
Tommie Frazier Brook Berringer
Matt Turman
⋅
RB
Lawrence Phillips
Clinton Childs Damon Benning
Todd Uhlir
FB
Corey Schlesinger
Jeff Mackovicka
Brian Schuster
Special teams
PK Tom Sieler
P Darin Erstad
Game summaries
West Virginia
Nebraska vs West Virginia [box score]
Team
1
2
3
4
Total
• Nebraska
3
21
0
7
31
West Virginia
0
0
0
0
0
Date: August 28
Location: Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
Game attendance: 58,233
The 1994 season started for the No. 4 Cornhuskers with a 31–0 win over No. 24 West Virginia in the Kickoff Classic. The game pitted two teams that had posted undefeated regular-season records in 1993. Quarterback Tommie Frazier was the game's MVP, rushing for 130 yards on 12 carries, including touchdown runs of 25, 27, and 42 yards. He also completed 8 of 16 passes for 100 yards and another touchdown. I-back Lawrence Phillips also ran 126 yards on 24 carries. In all, Nebraska gained 368 rushing yards and 468 total. The Nebraska defense dominated the Mountaineers, registering eight quarterback sacks and holding West Virginia to 8 yards rushing and 89 total yards. Todd Sauerbrun set a record for West Virginia with a 90-yard punt and averaged 60.1 yards on nine punts. The victory marked Nebraska's first shutout victory in two years. It was also Nebraska's first shutout victory against a ranked non-conference opponent since a 20–0 win over No. 19 Baylor in Lincoln 1939, and the first ever such win in a game played outside of Lincoln. The win vaulted Nebraska to No. 1 in the polls.
Location: Clifford B. and Audrey Jones Stadium, Lubbock, Texas
Game attendance: 32,768
Next up was a road victory that saw the Huskers cruise past the Texas Tech Red Raiders, 42–16, which remarkably saw the Huskers drop to #2 in the polls. Unfortunately, this victory came at a cost, as safety Mike Minter suffered a season-ending knee injury.
UCLA
UCLA at Nebraska [box score]
Team
1
2
3
4
Total
UCLA
0
7
7
7
21
• Nebraska
12
16
7
14
49
Date: September 17
Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
Game attendance: 75,687
Pacific
Pacific at Nebraska [box score]
Team
1
2
3
4
Total
Pacific
0
0
14
7
21
• Nebraska
28
21
14
7
70
Date: September 24
Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
Game attendance: 75,273
The next two weeks first saw a tough match-up, where the Huskers would dominate #13-ranked UCLA in Memorial Stadium, followed by a blowout against Pacific. Shortly after this victory, the 1994 season got a lot more interesting when Nebraska's field general Tommie Frazier was sidelined by a blood clot in his right knee.
Wyoming
Wyoming at Nebraska [box score]
Team
1
2
3
4
Total
Wyoming
14
7
3
8
32
• Nebraska
0
14
21
7
42
Date: October 1
Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
Game attendance: 75,333
Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State at Nebraska [box score]
Team
1
2
3
4
Total
Oklahoma State
3
0
0
0
3
• Nebraska
0
9
16
7
32
Date: October 8
Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
Game attendance: 75,434
Kansas State
Nebraska at Kansas State [box score]
Team
1
2
3
4
Total
• Nebraska
7
0
0
10
17
Kansas State
0
6
0
0
6
Date: October 15
Location: KSU Stadium, Manhattan, Kansas
Game attendance: 42,817
With Frazier sidelined, junior Brook Berringer answered the call to run Osborne's offense. Berringer, a pro-style QB from Goodland, Kansas, came off the bench and performed at his best in two straight victories against Wyoming and Oklahoma State, even at times with a partially collapsed lung. When it became too much for Berringer, walk-on QB Matt Turman stepped up to lead the Cornhuskers against Okie State and in a tough road game that pitched the Huskers against conference foe and neighbor Kansas State. This game proved to be a defensive battle, which saw the Huskers walk away with a 17–6 victory against the #16 Wildcats.
Missouri
Nebraska at Missouri [box score]
Team
1
2
3
4
Total
• Nebraska
0
14
14
14
42
Missouri
0
0
0
7
7
Date: October 22
Location: Faurot Field, Columbia, Missouri
Game attendance: 50,537
Colorado
Colorado at Nebraska [box score]
Team
1
2
3
4
Total
Colorado
0
0
7
0
7
• Nebraska
7
10
7
0
24
Date: October 29
Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
Game attendance: 76,131
Nebraska's homecoming game and 200th consecutive home sell out.
Kansas
Kansas at Nebraska [box score]
Team
1
2
3
4
Total
Kansas
3
7
0
7
17
• Nebraska
24
14
7
0
45
Date: November 5
Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
Game attendance: 75,543
Iowa State
Nebraska at Iowa State [box score]
Team
1
2
3
4
Total
• Nebraska
7
7
0
14
28
Iowa State
0
6
6
0
12
Date: November 12
Location: Cyclone Stadium, Ames, Iowa
Game attendance: 45,186
Oklahoma
Nebraska at Oklahoma [box score]
Team
1
2
3
4
Total
• Nebraska
0
3
3
7
13
Oklahoma
0
3
0
0
3
Date: November 25
Location: Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, Norman, Oklahoma
Game attendance: 70,216
The final five regular season games saw Nebraska beat #2 Colorado, where the defense shut down eventual Heisman winner Rashaan Salaam. Only Oklahoma provided any resistance for the Huskers, who escaped with a 13–3 victory in Norman, and another Big Eight Conference Championship.
Trent Jones 35-yard pass from Frank Costa (Dane Prewitt kick)
MIA 10–0
2
7:54
NEB
Mark Gilman 19-yard pass from Brook Berringer (Tom Sieler kick)
MIA 10–7
3
13:19
MIA
Jonathan Harris 44-yard pass from Frank Costa (Dane Prewitt kick)
MIA 17–7
3
11:35
NEB
Team Safety
MIA 17–9
4
7:38
NEB
Cory Schlesinger 15-yard run (Eric Alford 2-pt reception)
Tied 17–17
4
2:46
NEB
Cory Schlesinger 14-yard run (Tom Sieler kick)
NEB 24–17
Nebraska was #1 in the nation, and found themselves pitted against #3 Miami in the Orange Bowl, a setting very familiar to Tom Osborne and his Husker players. Osborne had been in this very stadium on three separate occasions playing for a national championship, and came away empty-handed each time, losing the previous year against Bobby Bowden's Seminoles of Florida State, to the Miami Hurricanes in the legendary 1984 Orange Bowl by the score of 31–30, and to the #1 Clemson Tigers in the 1982 Orange Bowl, a night game in which Nebraska entered #4 where the #2 and #3 teams lost their bowl games earlier in the day.
But it would be much different this year. Frazier had returned from his injury, and Nebraska would not back down, even after trailing 10–7 at halftime and 17–7 with less than two minutes to go in the third quarter.
During his halftime speech, Coach Osborne had predicted the eventual meltdown of Miami late in the game. He told his players that if they maintained their composure, that Miami would slip up and earn a costly penalty. Osborne's prediction rang true, and the physically dominant Huskers scored 15 unanswered points in the 4th quarter on two key TD runs by FB Corey Schlesinger to earn Tom Osborne his first national title, by the score of 24–17.
Rankings
Ranking movements Legend:██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
Week
Poll
Pre
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Final
AP
4
2
1
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
Coaches
1
After the season
The successful season saw Nebraska lead the nation in rushing, with talented but troubled sophomore Lawrence Phillips rushing for 1,722 yards and finishing 8th in Heisman voting. The offensive line, which was arguably the best in the country as well, was affectionately known as "The Pipeline" and included Outland Trophy winner and All-American Zach Wiegert at tackle, fellow All-American Brendan Stai at guard, along with Rob Zatechka, Joel Wilks, and Aaron Graham. The vaunted 4–3 defense, led by All-American linebacker Ed Stewart, limited conference opponents to a mere 55 points.
The Huskers were treated to a warm welcome, despite the freezing temperatures, when they returned to Lincoln as National Champions. An estimated 15,000 fans were on hand at the Lincoln Airport to welcome home their Big Red heroes.
Awards
Award
Name(s)
Outland Trophy
Zach Wiegert
UPI Lineman of the Year
Zach Wiegert
All-America 1st team
Terry Connealy, Donta Jones, Brenden Stai, Ed Stewart, Zach Wiegert, Rob Zatechka
All-America 2nd team
Lawrence Phillips
All-America 3rd team
Barron Miles
Big Eight Coach of the Year
Tom Osborne
Big Eight Defensive Player of the Year
Ed Stewart
Big Eight Defensive Newcomer of the Year
Grant Wistrom
Big Eight Male Athlete of the Year
Rob Zatechka
All-Big Eight 1st team
Troy Dumas, Aaron Graham, Donta Jones, Lawrence Phillips, Barron Miles, Brenden Stai, Ed Stewart, Zach Wiegert, Tyrone Williams
All-Big Eight 2nd team
Brook Berringer, Terry Connealy, Dwayne Harris, Kareem Moss, Christian Peter, Rob Zatechka
All-Big Eight honorable mention
Eric Alford, Reggie Baul, Darin Erstad, Abdul Muhammad, Cory Schlesinger
NFL and pro players
The following Nebraska players who participated in the 1994 season later moved on to the next level and joined a professional or semi-pro team as draftees or free agents.
Name
Team
Eric Anderson
Amsterdam Admirals
Mike Anderson
Amsterdam Admirals
Michael Booker
Atlanta Falcons
Doug Colman
New York Giants
Chris Dishman
Arizona Cardinals
Troy Dumas
Kansas City Chiefs
Jay Foreman
Buffalo Bills
Tommie Frazier
Montreal Alouettes
Aaron Graham
Arizona Cardinals
Jon Hesse
Green Bay Packers
Sheldon Jackson
Buffalo Bills
Vershan Jackson
Kansas City Chiefs
Donta Jones
Pittsburgh Steelers
Bill Lafleur
Barcelona Dragons
Joel Makovicka
Arizona Cardinals
Barron Miles
Pittsburgh Steelers
Mike Minter
Carolina Panthers
Kareem Moss
BC Lions
Christian Peter
New York Giants
Jason Peter
Carolina Panthers
Lawrence Phillips
St. Louis Rams
Mike Rucker
Carolina Panthers
Cory Schlesinger
Detroit Lions
Brenden Stai
Pittsburgh Steelers
Ed Stewart
Carolina Panthers
Eric Stokes
Seattle Seahawks
Jared Tomich
New Orleans Saints
Larry Townsend
Berlin Thunder
Adam Treu
Oakland Raiders
Tony Veland
Denver Broncos
Zach Wiegert
St. Louis Rams
Jamel Williams
Washington Redskins
Tyrone Williams
Green Bay Packers
Jason Wiltz
New York Jets
Grant Wistrom
St. Louis Rams
Jon Zatechka
Berlin Thunder
Rob Zatechka
New York Giants
Additionally, starting junior punter Darin Erstad also played baseball for the University of Nebraska, and was selected as a First Team All-American by Collegiate Baseball. He chose to forego his college career to enter the MLB draft and was selected as the first pick overall in the 1995 Major League Baseball draft. He would go on to have a distinguished career in Major League Baseball (particularly with the Anaheim Angels). Erstad would later be the head coach of the Nebraska Cornhuskers baseball from 2012 to 2019.
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