LUBBOCK, Texas — On its first road trip, Nebraska found itself in a strange place. There was a fake field goal, a blocked extra point, an extra point that bounced in off the post and a 47-yard pass on a late fourth-and-1 play.
In the end, which came in overtime, there was a scoreboard that flashed Texas Tech 37, Nebraska 31.
“It really was a strange game,” said Texas Tech coach Mike Leach, who contributed by ordering quarterback Graham Harrell to go long on fourth-and-4 from the Red Raiders’ 37-yard line on their final drive in regulation. “It was one of the strangest games I’ve been a part of.”
The Huskers (3-3, 0-2 Big 12) should have stayed at home. They more than doubled the Red Raiders’ time of possession and even outgained them. But they couldn’t match the Red Raiders’ points.
“It’s heartbreaking, going on the road against a ranked team and to come that close,” Nebraska wide receiver Todd Peterson said. “No way to describe it really.”
No. 7 Texas Tech seemed a little flat for spells. Maybe that’s because the offensive players had only so many crossword puzzles to pass the time, spending all but 19 minutes, 48 seconds on the bench.
But the Red Raiders (6-0, 2-0) scored on the possession that mattered most. Eric Morris ran for a 1-yard touchdown on the first drive of overtime, then after Nebraska blocked Donnie Carona’s extra-point attempt, Jamar Wall secured victory by intercepting Joe Ganz’s throw-away pass.
“It surprised me,” Wall said. “He basically just threw it right to me. I thought he was going to throw it over my head, and I just jumped and it hit me.”
Ganz orchestrated a 79-yard drive capped by his 17-yard touchdown pass to Peterson, which tied the score with 29 seconds left in the fourth.
In overtime, Baron Batch ran 24 yards on Texas Tech’s first play, setting up Morris’ 1-yard end around. After Carona’s low PAT was blocked, Texas Tech fans let out a collective moan. But Ganz threw incomplete on first down. On second down, he ran right to avoid pressure, then aimed for the sideline so he wouldn’t get sacked. The ball landed in Wall’s stomach.
“I was trying to throw it out of bounds and the guy pulled me down from behind and it went right to the kid,” said Ganz, who completed 36-of-44 passes for 349 yards and two touchdowns. “It’s just a sick feeling to end it like that after we played so hard. We had our chances. It shouldn’t have been that close.”
