LINCOLN, Neb. — This was the kind of game Nebraska would have lost last year.
Joe Ganz, Nate Swift and a defense that got better as the game went on weren’t going to let that happen, not against Baylor at Memorial Stadium on Saturday.
Ganz and Swift teamed up for touchdowns on consecutive series in the second half, wiping out a three-point halftime deficit and carrying the Cornhuskers to a 32-20 victory.
The defense, meanwhile, shut down Robert Griffin after Baylor’s star freshman quarterback had gouged the Huskers for 99 yards rushing in the first quarter alone. Griffin netted just 22 yards on the ground from the second quarter on, and Baylor was held scoreless the second half.
Ganz, 32-of-46 for 336 yards and three touchdowns, said the locker room was spirited at halftime. That was different than last season, when the Huskers crumbled under pressure and lost five straight under former coach Bill Callahan.
The Huskers won for the first time in 23 games after trailing at halftime, since the Frank Solich-coached 2003 team did it against Penn State.
“People were getting fired up, talking about how we’re not going to let ourselves go into a fall again, like we had,” Ganz said. “Everyone was real positive, and the guys did a great job coming from behind.”
The Huskers (5-3, 2-2 Big 12) took a 24-20 lead on Ganz’s 9-yard pass to Swift. The catch allowed Swift to pass Johnny Rodgers on the Nebraska career receptions chart. Swift ended up with a career-high 11 catches for 121 yards, running his four-year reception total to 147. Rodgers, the 1972 Heisman Trophy winner, made 143 catches in three seasons.
After scoring touchdowns on three of its five first-half possessions, Baylor (3-5, 1-3) punted three times, missed a field goal, turned over the ball on downs and surrendered a safety on six second-half series. The Bears generated just 124 of their 350 total yards in the second half and converted none of their 10 third downs in the game.
Baylor gave Nebraska its most competitive game in Lincoln since the Bears won here in 1956. In six meetings as Big 12 opponents, Nebraska had outscored the Bears 277-69, scoring 48 or more points five times.
“We felt like we were going to come up here and win the football game,” Baylor coach Art Briles said.
