Interview with former Husky great Lincoln Kennedy

By Kshell

I've never done this before but in this piece I sat down and conducted an interview with Husky great Lincoln Kennedy over the phone. Lincoln Kennedy is a former two time All-American offensive lineman while at the University of Washington. He has appeared in three rosebowls, won a national championship. Then in the NFL he went to the pro bowl and a Superbowl with the Oakland Raiders. He was also on NFL Network when it first began.

Seattle Sports Blog: Compare the games in Lincoln, Nebraska vs the night game in 1992?

Lincoln Kennedy:

Both games were electric. It was an electric game, prior to the Nebraska game I couldn't imagine how a small city could produce such a great atmosphere. I'm from a big city so flying into Lincoln, the biggest building in the entire region was the football stadium which was full of nothing but red and white. There was a sense of do we belong? Can we hold our own? This was a chance to answer those questions.

I was just blown away at the night game. This was the first night game I had ever played in at Husky Stadium. It was like God intended this day to be great any other day it might have been bad weather but today it was beautiful. Clear sky and blue sky you couldn't have asked for a more special place. You had the boats out there and the crowd was loud it was pretty special. After 1991, we had the swagger we knew what it took to win these type of games since we proved the year before we could do it. We lost some key players but we also returned plenty of talent from the year before plus a healthy Mark Brunell and Napoleon Kaufman was a year older.

SSB: Facing the 21-9 deficit in Lincoln, Nebraska where nobody wins ever how did you guys feel?

Lincoln Kennedy:

I felt we weren't out of it. I knew with our defense and our big hitters they would keep us in it. I was young and naive to realize how big of a moment this was and how hostile the crowd was. We could do some things on offense it's not like we were getting stuffed just stalling. We did a great job of overcoming adversity and penalties to regroup and get it all together. We just had to get over the initial crowd noise.

SSB: I noticed in 1991 you were right tackle and in 1992 you were the left tackle. Was that because Mark Brunell who is left handed was supposed to be the starting quarterback?

Lincoln Kennedy:

Yes that is correct I was always supposed to be the blind side. Then we were going to switch but with both quarterbacks they just left me at right tackle in 1991 anyways.

It helps to have a great teammate in Sup Malamala who was also first team all pac-10 at left tackle.

SSB: You have have had the great opportunity to play in a Rose bowl and a Superbowl can you compare the two? I know its Apples to Oranges.

Lincoln Kennedy:

The Rose bowl I went my sophomore year and we beat Iowa(46-34) and then with the rest of our team basically being sophomore's and juniors it was expected. I knew it was going to happen we all did that we'd be back my junior and senior season so it was more expectations than thrill.

Superbowl wow there is so much hype to begin with than a Rose bowl. Both are very special games. The Rose bowl you have the prestige of playing on January 1st but you share that day with other teams. The Super Bowl you are the only game on T.V. and everyone in the world is watching you. Its just so difficult to get into the Super Bowl. I didn't get there until late in my career and even after getting there it was hard getting back. The Super Bowl is just a special game.

SSB: You have been very fortunate to win a National Championship and then the AFC Championship. I know one was on paper and the other was on the field. Can you compare the two?

Lincoln Kennedy:

On the National Championship we felt that everything that we did from execution, to hitting to the scores that we put up that we did everything we could have done to win a National Championship.

At the Marriott Hotel the little wing off the side was all UW. From players, to boosters, to alumni, to reporters. After the win over #3 Michigan(34-14) nobody slept we all stayed up waiting to find out the results. I don't know what time it was but it was late in the morning when it was announced we were national champions. You could hear the entire hotel freaking out on every floor. People screaming outside their windows it was just crazy. It was crazier than the wildest frat party you could ever imagine that's how insane it was.

Winning the AFC championship was a feeling of relief. I was starting to doubt would I ever get to play in a Superbowl. I had been close a couple of times but when the clock ticked to zero I was just happy. Also helps celebrating in Oakland with the black hole craziness.

SSB: How was "sharing" the 1991 National Championship with Miami? And was the goal to win a national championship?

Lincoln Kennedy:

We wanted a crack at Miami. The system back then had bowl alignment so we couldn't play them. With that year and a few other situations after that(1994, Nebraska wins title, Penn state undefeated gets nothing. 1997, Nebraska and Michigan share) the BCS game was started because of that.

The National Championship never once came in discussion. The goal was to go to the Rose bowl and win the Rose bowl. We had to just worry about what we can control. We took things one week at a time. We had to because we got everyone best game. Look at California that was a close game(UW won at Cal 24-17, Cal was ranked 8th). We always won the close games under Don James. The only time we would lose is when adversity in the locker room hit. If it wasn't for that Billy Joe crap we go undefeated in 1992 I believe.

SSB: I don't want to get into the details as I respect Billy Joe greatly but can you describe the circus that surrounded the 1993 Rose Bowl? Instead of celebrating your third trip in a row you are answering non football related questions.

Lincoln Kennedy:

When all that junk came out I was even mentioned and I didn't do anything! When I recruited Napoleon Kaufman(all-time leading rusher in Washington Huskies history) all I had to do was stand with Sup[Malamala] and be like we are blocking for you. That was the selling point once he saw us two he was like oh it's done I'm going to Washington to run behind you two I'll never get touched.

We were all just confused as anyone else. They wanted to have a scapegoat and its sad that they would give in and allow such a great man to take the fall.

SSB: How did you guys all react to the aftermath of the sanctions?

Lincoln Kennedy:

When we all got wind of what was going down we were all upset that they would allow James to take the fall. I have no respect for Barbara Hedges(Then UW athletic director). I lost ties to the program because of that. How can you not admit the wrongs that you did and just pin it all on Don James?! That just isn't right at all.

Probation really hurts you. You have no idea how badly it hurts you. Oregon and Oregon State are successful because of our probation. It allowed all these schools to catch up. We not only lost scholarships but other schools were using that against us. When I played every Northwest kid went to UW. Don James had a fence around the Northwest. I said this under the Willingham years as well it just hurts you. Taylor Mays, Jonathan Stewart and Stephen Schilling would all be Washington Huskies instead of helping beat us.

Now all anyone cares about is the facility's. We had a weight room when I was there in 1991 and it was packed. Husky Stadium is a great place to play and the surrounding beauty you can't get anywhere else.

Its just a shame how they allowed such a great man to step down and take a fall. Hedges claims she did this to help the program but in fact she killed the program.

SSB: How was playing for the man you obviously have a ton of respect for Don James?

Lincoln Kennedy:

He had a funny way of getting the best out of you. First of all unless you were one of the main players like a senior captain he never talked to you. He coached you through his coaches. It was weird because I'm used to some one on one coaching from a head coach but he was very distant from you. At first you wonder why you would ever play for him but when you are older you realized why. His methods worked and he demanded a lot from us.

He was a little guy but he demanded fear. I'm a big guy and he scared me. He demanded fear. He was like the principal at school. If he was talking to you or you were called in his office it was never good. That means you screwed up and you were going to get your butt chewed out.

He had a great system all three phases of the game were stressed. We could score a touchdown on offense, score on an interception. One year it was Beno returning punts for a touchdown(Beno Bryant led the Nation in punt return yards in 1990) or in 1991 with Napoleon Kaufman on kickoffs. We had great hitters and great speed and you add it all up the sky was the limit.

SSB: Now I heard Don James coached from the Tower how intimidating was that?

Lincoln Kennedy:

He always saw everything. The tower was right in the middle so he could see every mistake you made. The worst was when he'd get really angry and come down the tower you didn't want to see him do that. If he ran down the tower we had to start practice all over again. We would start at the goaline and start our jog then our stretch and start all over.

These kids are spoiled now a days with the 20 hour a week practice rule. A couple of times James came down and we had to start all over. One practice we started at 3 p.m. and didn't get done til 9 p.m. because we had to start all over. It was terrible but it made it made us pay attention to details more.

SSB: Last question Lincoln when you were a freshman did you guys know that you were going to make history at Washington? I mean your class featured you, Dave[Hoffmann], Mark[Brunell] and even Steve[Emtman] was supposed to be a senior.

Lincoln Kennedy:

To be honest with you no I didn't. My redshirt freshman year we couldn't beat anyone(went 6-5). We lost WSU and I think Oregon came into our house and beat us as well. College football sucked that year, the coaches kicked our butts all year long as they weren't used to a season like that. I remember Jon Volpe of Stanford running up and down on us and that was just embarassing.

Then it just came down to Steven, Dave and myself saying to ourselves this is our future. This is not the way we want to have our college careers be where we are just average. Lets do something about it and work our tails off.

SSB: Then the next year vs Oregon State you put in Donald Jones and won that game. Went on to beat Florida and shut down this guy named....Emmitt Smith and the rest is history as they say.

Lincoln Kennedy:

Looking back its funny how that worked out. During recruiting I came to Washington because they were the only school who let me play defense. I came in with Emtman and Mike Lustyk. Well the defense had changed to a quicker defense and they told me to switch. It was either I don't play or I switch to offensive line.

I switched the offensive line and it worked out. During that run of three straight Rosebowls we were all spoiled. Jose the equipment guy who still works there started in 1989 so he just figured we would do it every year.

Its crazy in my years at Washington I spent every December in LA(1989-played in Anaheim vs Florida, 1990-1992 Rosebowl).

SSB: Hey Lincoln I'm going to the Nebraska game this Saturday are you going?

Lincoln:

No I live in Arizona I will not be going to the game. I went to the ASU game last year and I'll be going to the Arizona game this year.

SSB: Is there anything special going on next year for your guys 20th anniversity(I actually slipped and said 10, its been 20 already?) of the National Championship?

Lincoln:

I haven't heard anything from the school. We have all gotton together and we'll be up there don't worry. We have something planned amongst ourselves and we'll be there.

SSB: Well Lincoln that sounds great and thanks for the interview I appreciate it

Lincoln:

No problem and thanks for the interview I really enjoyed it and go Dawgs!

Washington Huskies-Nebraska Cornhuskers flashback to the 90's

By Kshell

When the 8th ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers come to Seattle to take on the Washington Huskies it will bring back memories to the 1990's when both programs were at their peaks. The Huskies took on the Cornhuskers during their prime run in the early 90's and then they squared off again during the Cornhuskers prime run. In the 90's these schools were often ranked in the top 10 and you would always find their games on ABC. The schools have faced off 7 times previously with the results being 3 wins for Nebraska, 3 wins for Washington and 1 tie. With all due respect to those earlier games I'm going to focus on the games that were played in the 1990's. Just like this Saturday this game will feature a top 10 ranked team. In the 1990's in three of the four games both teams were ranked in the top 10.

September 21, 1991: #4 Washington(1-0) at #9 Nebraska(2-0) This was the defining game of the season for the Huskies. Going into the 1991 season the Huskies were the defending Rosebowl champs and finished the previous year ranked 5th in the nation after defeating Iowa in the Rosebowl 46-34. The expectations were high for the Huskies then the spring game happened. Rosebowl MVP Mark Brunell busted his knee in the game. He was expected out for the season. Highly touted recruit but just a sophomore Billy Joe Hobert would take over as quarterback for the 1991 Huskies.

The Huskies began the season by thrashing Pac-10 rival Stanford Cardinal 42-7 on the road. The Huskies knew though this wasn't Stanford. This was Nebraska in Lincoln where nobody wins. It was a 5 p.m. PT kick off on ABC. The crowd was rocking as this was a huge game for both teams. Nebraska had something to prove as well. Going into the game the question was could Tom Osborne win the big game? He had never won fewer than 9 games at Nebraska to that point but hadn't beaten a top 10 opponent in over 3 seasons.

This game featured the nations top rushing defense from 1990 in the Huskies and the nations top rushing offense from 1990 in the Huskers. The Huskies gave up a long touchdown run to Derek Brown found themselves trailing at halftime 14-9. Then Beno Bryant set up near the 10 yard line to return a punt. He fumbled the punt at the 1 yard line. Setting up a Derek Brown touchdown to make the score 21-9. The crowd was pretty loud at that point in the ball game.

"It was an electric game, prior to the Nebraska game I couldn't imagine how a small city could produce such a great atmosphere. I'm from a big city so flying into Lincoln, the biggest building in the entire region was the football stadium which was full of nothing but red and white. There was a sense of do we belong? Can we hold our own? This was a chance to answer those questions," recalled two time all american offensive lineman Lincoln Kennedy.

"It was by far the loudest stadium I had ever played in. We had to use hand signals because we could not hear Billy in the huddle," reflected by two time all Pac-10 wide receiver and 1991 Pac-10 offensive player of the year Mario Bailey. On facing a 21-9 deficit Bailey recalled "We never sulked ever."

"I felt we weren't out of it. I knew with our defense and our big hitters they would keep us in it. I was young and niave to realize how big of a moment this was and how hostile the crowd was. We could do some things on offense it's not like we were getting stuffed just stalling. We did a great job of overcoming adversity and penalties to regroup and get it all together. We just had to get over the intial crowd noise," recalled Kennedy.

That's when the season changed forever. Up until that point the telecast and the fans were focusing on who was missing at quarterback in Mark Brunell but in the next 20 minutes everyone would learn the name Billy Joe Hobert. The Huskies had just 5:32 left in the 3rd quarter trailing on the road in front of 76,304 sea of red in Nebraska.

After the Huskies had a touchdown pass from Hobert to Orlando McKay taken away they were facing a 3rd and 27 from the Nebraska 49. Hobert felt outside pressure and stepped and ran for 19 yards to set up a 4th and 8. Then offensive coordinator who raced back to the booth called a perfect play call. He called three receivers to run straight down the field and for Orlando McKay to go underneath for a first down. It was a terrific pass from Billy Joe. On the next play Beno Bryant busted a run 15 yards for a touchdown to cut the lead to 21-16.

The Huskies after forcing a three out led by Steve Emtman and Dave Hoffmann. The Huskies marched 69 yards in just 6 plays. Hobert found McKay with an 8 yard strike to make it 22-21. Hobert was feeling it at that point. He was pumped up and gestering and oozing of confidence. The late great Jamie Fields forced a fumble giving UW the ball again.

The Huskies marched again in six plays with Hobert rushing for his 2nd touchdown of the game giving him three total touchdowns. The Huskies now lead 29-21. The game was put away once and for all. The Huskies on their own 19 called a draw to Jay Berry on a 3rd and 12. Berry made a tackler miss and was off the races scoring 81 yards. As the Huskies were celebrating Keith Jackson had said "That was the sound of the door slamming shut." The Huskies led 36-21.

"When Jay Berry busted that the whole sideline was freaking out. It was such a great feeling watching him run down the sideline knowing we were going to win," reflecting superbowl champion and Husky great defensive lineman D'Marco Farr.

The Huskies would go on to win 36-21 having scored 27 unanswered points in the final 20 minutes of the game. The Huskies amassed 618 yards of total offense. The Huskies had two 100+ yard rushers in Beno Bryant rushing for 139 yards on just 17 carries and a touchdown. Jay Berry had 110 yards on 11 carries and a touchdown. Billy Joe Hobert was 23 of 40 passing for 283 yards and a touchdown plus two rushing touchdowns.

This was a huge win for the Huskies to walk into Lincoln and come out with the win. As Mario Bailey recalled "Beating Nebraska in Nebraska was the signal to our team that we could and would win the national championship." He also described his quarterback Billy Joe Hobert as simply a winner.

"In 1991, we started off ok but were surprised by a couple new formations they had. We always felt we were much more physical on defense than anyone we played. Although the Huskers were tough as nails....our hammers were bigger. We played smart and wore them down. We overcame a couple turnovers and really owned the last quarter and a half. This is all off of memory, but how can you forget such a great experience. Both my German Grandfathers were from Nebraska and were at the game.....they were proud men and it made me feel great. My brother Steve was a redshirt and got to come on the trip too because he had such a great week of practice. The whole thing couldn't have been better," recalled two time all american middle linebacker Dave Hoffmann.

"It was very loud in Lincoln. I remember walking off the field at half time and having sodas and waters being dumped and thrown at us by their fans. You actually had to walk through a roped off area to get from the locker room and the field.... Screaming fans were just a few feet away. I was thinking this place is nuts! They just poured fuel onto the fire. We came out and hit 'em the mouth. Walking off the field after the game we were met with cheer and applause. Many of those cheering were wearing red and white. I think we earn their respect," stated Shane Pahukoa remembering back. Pahukoa was the starting safety on that team and would enjoy some years in the NFL.

"I just remember the hostile crowd and the blinding sea of red (1991). We had to walk through their concession lines at half time.........we were boo'ed and talk about so bad. All in the spirit and passion of the game however, but man were we pissed off to the highest of pisstivity! I had just fumbled a punt on our end of the field and then came a Nebraska touchdown. I think we were losing 21-6 at half. I looked around the locker room and saw a "Sense of urgency" not panic! The coaches came to speak to us and I saw nothing but confidence. That's when I knew we had something special at the Dub! Steve and the defense shut the Cornhusker offense down and Billy Joe was like a surgeon out there. Our offensive line was incredible. I don't believe Billy was touched after the 2nd Quarter. Finally, J-Barry pop a 82 yard run which was like "Poetry in motion" the beauty of that run and Orlando Mckay sprinting 82 yards to shield Jay the rest of the way.............WOW, THEY DON'T MAKE EM' LIKE THAT ANYMORE! Or do they..."HINT"!" reflected by starting running back Beno Bryant who was a highlight film sensation.

The Huskies would finish this season ranked #1 in the coaches poll, #2 in the AP and would share a National Championship. They would also win their second straight Rosebowl highlighted by Mario Bailey's Heisman pose.

September 19th, 1992: #12 Nebraska(2-0) at #2 Washington(2-0) This big game marked the first time since 1985 that Husky Stadium would be played under the lights. The defending national champions were playing in a prime time game on ESPN. This game was also on my birthday. Nebraska wanted to get some revenge on the Huskies after blowing the game the year before.

"I was just blown away at the night game. This was the first night game I had ever played in at Husky Stadium. It was like God intended this day to be great any other day it might have been bad weather but today it was beautiful. Clear sky and blue sky you couldn't have asked for a more special place. You had the boats out there and the crowd was loud it was pretty special. After 1991, we had the swagger we knew what it took to win these type of games since we proved the year before we could do it. We lost some key players but we also returned plenty of talent from the year before plus a healthy Mark Brunell and Napoleon Kaufman was a year older," recalled two time all american Lincoln Kennedy.

There was some new faces for the Huskies as Mario Bailey, Orlando McKay, Ed Cunningham and Aaron Pierce had graduated on offense. On defense the Huskies also had to replace graduates Dana Hall, Shane Pahukoa, Donald Jones and most importantly lost Steve Emtman who had left early to be the #1 pick overall in the NFL draft. Ask to fill in his shoes were D'Marco Farr and Mike Lustyk. They were facing what Tom Osborne had described as his greatest offensive line he ever had.

"Individually this was the pinacle of my career. The year before my job was easy, just sit on the sidelines watch Steve Emtman dominate then come in and be a role player. This year Steve wasn't there anymore it was on me and Mike Lustyk. Steve was like a big brother to me and he wasn't there anymore so it was my turn. I was also blessed to have the greatest defensive line coach in Randy Hart. Randy always had us well prepared for the games and it was great playing for Randy.It was always a line of succession back then and this was my turn," recalled defensive tackle D'Marco Farr.

Farr's thoughts on the game, "The atmosphere was great. It was a night game and the crowd was amazing I couldn't believe how loud our crowd was that game. Going into the game I was a bit intimated because Steve was gone so it was on me. I also had to face a tough Nebraska offensive line which featured future NFL hall of famer offensive guard Will Shields. He was a great player and it was a great challenge. I felt our defense played really well that day."

The game was a defensive struggle to start the game off. With Nebraska having the ball on their own six-inch line with the crowd going crazy they decided to have quarterback Mike Brandt drop back and pass. Tommie Smith on a safety blitz came in untouched and just smashed Brandt into the end zone turf giving the Huskies a 2-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

In the 2nd quarter the Huskies erupted for three touchdowns. Napoleon Kaufman had a long run setting up a 1 yard touchdown run and Beno Bryant who hadn't played in the first two wins over Arizona State on the road and Wisconsin at home scored on a 1 yard touchdown run. Then right before halftime leading 16-7 Billy Joe Hobert had hit former high school teammate Joe Kralik for a long touchdown catch which Kralik had to dive at the back end of the of the end zone. That was set up by an interception by Walter Bailey. Eric Bjornson who had served as the backup quarterback in the 1991 Nebraska game had 3 receptions for 72 yards. He was moved to receiver due to graduation and later moved to tight end in the NFL.

"The following year was fabulous! To see Nip run (look so fast) in black shoes was incredible. The offense line dominated the Cornhuskers at the FIRST EVER night game in Husky Stadium. The Cornhuskers were to have a One-Two punch that year, however we still had the stifling defense whom I loathed to compete against Monday thru Thursday! The crowd was so loud I sometimes had to focus extremely to hear the calls. The most interesting thing about the game was that we knew what Nebraska was going to do before they did. Our coaches had us well prepared from SPECIAL TEAMS down to how they tied their shoes. It was always like that! I will always remember those days......and most importantly that first night! U don't come in our home and leave without being scrapped and bruised. Most importantly..........BEAT THE HECK UP!" recalled senior tailback Beno Bryant.

"People might not have realized that game was when Jim Lambright started a new era in college football. Lambright always stressed to us to get the second quarterback in the game. Well we had knocked the quarterback out of the game. They had brought in Tommie Frazier. You can tell even though he was just a freshman that he was a stud. He was unbelievable and he was better than the first string quarterback," recalled Farr.

The Huskies would go on to win this game 29-14 and on that following Monday would rise to #1 in the AP poll. The Huskies would run their winning streak to 22 games before falling to Arizona. The Huskies were 8-0 at the time. The Huskies would win the Pac-10 and go to the Rosebowl for the third straight year. The Cornhuskers were on the verge of going on a run themselves. The next season Nebraska led by Tommie Frazier who played in the 4th quarter of this game would play for the national championship. Then in 1994 and 1995 they would win the national championship.

September 20th, 1997: #7 Nebraska(2-0) at #2 Washington(2-0) In another big game for both schools which was featured on ABC. The Huskies fresh off of killing #19 BYU on the road and beating up San Diego State at home were taking on the big boys. The Huskies had returned most of their team from 1996 which finished 2nd in the Pac-10 and went 9-3. The Cornhuskers featured future NFL pro bowl running back Ahman Green and Scott Frost who had defeated the Huskies in 1994 when he was at Stanford.

The Huskies found themselves in the hole quickly. Led by Scott Frost rushing for two long touchdowns the Huskies were trailing at home 21-0. Making things even worse was when future NFL Superbowl champion Grant Wistrom injured sophomore phenom quarterback Brock Huard. The team had to turn to true freshman quarterback Marques Tuiasosopo. Tuiasosopo found Pathon early and often. Pathon would finish the game with the 9th best receiving game in NCAA history to this point with 195 yards receiving. Tuiasosop would find Cam Cleeland for a touchdown right before halftime to make it 21-7.

"The 1997 game at home was a huge game. We were both ranked in the top 5 and both teams had great athletes all over the field. I remember struggling with both of their defensive ends. Grant Wistrom ended up rolling up Brocks ankle after Brock got rid of the ball on one play and Marcus had to come in I believe. That was a tough loss against a really good football team and was a momentum changing game for us," recalled former three year offensive line starter Tony Coats.

In the third quarter Tuiasosopo would find senior fullback Mike Reed for a short score to make the game 21-14. The Huskies crowd was loud at that point. Then Jim Lambright the head coach at the time decided to onside kick the ball despite UW having all the momentum. Nebraska recovered the ball and would score a field goal. The Cornhuskers would tack on another field goal and win the game 27-14.

Former Pac-10 defensive player of the year Jason Chorak reflects on the Nebraska game. "Yes a big game think we were Number 1 and they(big red) had a great team. Brock went down and Marcus came in the game and lit it up. Shows that if you just play the game at a high speed you can do things. The whole game they ran away from me and rolled the QB away from me out coached and schemed that game."

The difference in the game was rushing. Nebraska had held first team all Pac-10 running back Rashaan Shehee to just 43 yards rushing. Nebraska's Ahman Green and Joel Makovicka rushed for 129 yards each. The bright spot was the passing game of Marques Tuiasosopo who passed for 270 yards and two touchdowns.

Nebraska used this win to roll the rest of the season to win a share of the National Championship with Michigan. Osborne had rid himself of that can't win the big one label by winning three national championships in a four year period. He would retire at the end of the season.

The Huskies remained in the top 10 most of the season and were 7-1 at one point. Then Shehee went down and the Huskies finished the regular season losing their last three games. The Huskies despite being ranked in the top 10 all year long finished the year just 8-4. "If we had good coaches 96 and 97 would of been a lot more different than what was," reflecting by Jason Chorak.

September 26th, 1998: #8 Washington(2-0) at #2 Nebraska(3-0) The Huskies were supposed to be in a rebuilding season having lost 13 guys to the NFL. The defending national champions Nebraska with a new coach Frank Solich also lost some key people. The Huskies began the year with a miracle win over 8th ranked Arizona State in Tempe, Arizona.

This was another big game on ABC which featured ESPN's game day crew.Brock Huard decided to come back this season after flirting with the idea of going into the NFL draft. This game was a joke for Husky fans. Which appeared to be the theme for the Huskies in the mid 1990's they Dawgs got blown out on the road 55-7.

"The 1998 game in Lincoln I went in much better prepared for both mentally and physically. Unfortunately we just couldn't match up against them my Senior year. We lost 55-7 I think and had a standing ovation from the crowd as we left the field. One of the most humiliating feelings I've ever felt leaving that field," reflecting offensive lineman senior captain Tony Coats.

The Huskers ran for 434 yards on the ground led by 146 by DeAngelo Evans. The Huskies were held to just 273 yards of offense. This was a humiliating loss for the Dawgs. This was when Husky nation had finally turned on Jim Lambright.

After finishing the year with a 6-6 record and a blowout loss to Air Force with the Oahau bowl Lambright was fired. The Cornhuskers finished the year 9-4 and suffered a home loss to Heisman trophy winner Ricky Williams for the first time since the 1991 Washington Huskies had beat them.

This Saturday once again a top 10 team will be playing in this game. Nebraska appears to be back to where they belong with a running quarterback in Martinez. The Huskies meanwhile have a chance to make a statement that they are back. If the dawgs win this Saturday they could find themselves in the rankings. This game is also huge for Jake Locker and his heisman chances.