Tag: tom osborne

Nebraska to honor 1983’s “The Scoring Explosion” team with alternate uniform

Nebraska will remember “The Scoring Explosion” squad with new threads for one game this season.

The University of Nebraska has unveiled their football team’s alternate uniforms when they host the Oklahoma Sooners on September 17th. The Huskers will honor the 1983 team known as “The Scoring Explosion.”

The ’83 squad was the top scoring offense in college football that year, averaging an astounding 50.3 points per game, while the defense gave up an average of 16.7 points per game. They would also score an NCAA record 654 points on the season, a record now held by the 2019 LSU Tigers. In addition, the team would boast an impressive roster of talent, including the 1983 Heisman Trophy winner Mike Rozier. He would run for a school-record 2,148 yards and 28 touchdowns for an average of 7.8 yards a rush. Quarterback Turner Gill would finish fourth for the Heisman throwing for 1,516 yards, 14 touchdowns, and four interceptions. He would also run for 531 yards and 11 touchdowns. The team also had both the first and second overall picks in the 1984 NFL Draft in Wide Receiver Irving Fryar (No. 1 – New England) and Offensive Lineman Dean Steinkuhler (No. 2 – Houston).

The ’83 squad finished the season with a 12-1 record and No. 2 national ranking after losing 31-30 to Miami in the Orange Bowl. The game famous for seeing head coach Tom Osborne, late in the fourth quarter, go for two and the win rather than kick the extra point to more than likely preserve a tie and a probable national championship. Instead, Osborne would be forced to wait 11 more years until he won his first title.

And now Nebraska will honor “The Scoring Explosion” with throwback uniforms during this season’s matchup with longtime rival Oklahoma.

Nebraska kicks off the season on August 27th against the Northwestern Wildcats in Dublin, Ireland. Below is a photo gallery looking back at just a few moments of the 1983 Nebraska Football season.

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Sixty years ago a new head coach would change Nebraska Football forever

Three other coaches had to turn down the job for this future Hall-of-Famer to get the offer.

It was 60 years ago this season that the new head football coach for the University of Nebraska took the sidelines for the first time. The school had dismissed head coach Bill Jennings who accumulated a 15-34-1 record after five seasons on the job. He would be replaced as head coach by the man who would make Nebraska Football a household program. That man would be College Football Hall of Famer Bob Devaney.

Devaney would begin his career coaching high school football in Michigan at spots like Alpena, Big Beaver, Harbor, and Saginaw. His success at that level would lead to him being hired as an assistant coach at Michigan State under head coaches Biggie Munn and Duff Daugherty in 1953. Devaney would remain in East Lancing until 1956, when he would be hired to lead the Wyoming Cowboys. In five seasons, he would finish with a 35-10-5 record and would win a Skyline Conference title his last four years in Laramie.

Following the 1961 season, Devaney would leave Laramie to become the head coach at the University of Nebraska. The Wyoming head coach would only be offered the job after Utah’s Ray Nagel, Utah State’s John Ralston, and Devaney’s former employer, Michigan State coach Duff Daugherty turned down the job. Daugherty would recommend his former assistant to Nebraska athletic director Tippy Dye for the job.

In his first season as the head coach of the Cornhuskers, he would finish with a 9-2 record and a victory over the Miami Hurricanes in the Gotham Bowl. Devaney would finish with nine wins or more each of his first five seasons on the job. Then, after back-to-back, 6-4 seasons in 1967 and 1968, Devaney would promote one of his assistants, Tom Osborne, to become the team’s offensive coordinator. The next four years would see Devaney finish with 42 wins, four losses, and two ties. He would also secure a share of the 1970 National Championship and the outright title in 1971.

Devaney would retire as head coach in 1972 but would continue as Athletic Director, a position that he held since 1967. He remained the school’s AD until his retirement in 1992 and would serve as AD Emeritus until retiring from public life in 1996. His career record was 136-30-7 with a 7-3 make in bowl games. He would end his Nebraska career with a 101-20-2 mark with eight Big Eight titles (1963-1966, 1969-1972) and two National Championships (1970, 1971).

Below is just a small collection of some of Devaney’s big moments as Nebraska head coach.

Nebraska Alumni: The Cornhuskers’ most famous graduates

Who are the most famous Nebraska alumni and how many can you name?

The University of Nebraska may be known for its athletic programs but the school has a proud history of graduates that have played an important part in American Politics, American Military History, International Investing, and Tech Innovation. Throw in a couple of tv journalists and an Olympic Gold Medal winner and you’re just scratching the surface of what the school has to offer.

The following list is just a sample of all the different fields that have been impacted by graduates to come from the University of Nebraska.