1982 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team The 1982 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team represented the University of Nebraska – Lincoln in the 1982 NCAA Division I - A football season . The team was coached by Tom Osborne and played their home games in Memorial Stadium in Lincoln , Nebraska . Game notes . Iowa . Defending Big Ten Champion Iowa was down 28 - 0 by halftime , and was only able to muster a single 4th quarter touchdown against Nebraska reserves to avoid the shutout . New Mexico State . Records fell all over as Nebraska steamrolled New Mexico State 68 - 0 in Lincoln . Nebraska ' s total of 883 offensive yards , 645 consecutive yards without going backwards , 36 rushing first downs , and 43 total first downs were all new NCAA records . Penn State . Nebraska fought back from a 7 - 21 deficit and finally pulled into the lead on an 80 yard drive with 1 : 18 remaining , yet the Nittany Lions drove right back and handed the Cornhuskers their first and only loss of the season when Penn State completed a controversial pass deep into Nebraska ' s end zone with just 4 seconds left on the clock . Sixteen years later , Penn State TE Mike McCloskey , the receiver of the game winning catch , admitted he was out of bounds on the play and should have been ruled ineligible . If the catch had been flagged properly , Nebraska ' s position for National championship consideration would have been much stronger . [ Mike McCloskey did not make the game winning catch , Kirk Bowman made the game winning catch . The McCloskey catch happened earlier on fourth down . If that play was called correctly , Nebraska would have won by running out the nine seconds left on the clock . ] Auburn . The Cornhuskers , demoralized from the loss to Penn State a week earlier , struggled to come to life as Nebraska entered the locker room at halftime with a narrow 14 - 7 lead . By the end of the 3rd quarter , Nebraska had tacked on another 7 points , while Auburn had turned over the ball three times , and Nebraska finally ran off three straight scores in the 4th to put it away . Colorado . Nebraska LB Steve Damkroger only recorded two interceptions during his Nebraska career , both in this game , as new Colorado coach Bill McCartney had his Colorado Buffaloes gunning for Nebraska through his attempt to establish the Cornhuskers as their main rival to give his squad a target by which to measure their success . At one point , Colorado came within 6 points of the lead , but Damkroger ' s two interceptions helped put to bed any Colorado upset hopes as Nebraska posted 20 unanswered 4th quarter points for the easy win . Kansas State . Nebraska IB Mike Rozier became the second Nebraska back , after I . M . Hipp , to play back - to - back 200 yard games , and Cornhusker QB Turner Gill set a new Big 8 completion percentage record of 91 . 7 % , as Nebraska had little trouble with Kansas State in Lincoln . Missouri . Missouri was sniffing an upset after Nebraska QB Turner Gill was forced out by an injury in the 2nd quarter as the Tigers led 7 - 6 , and the pressure was mounting after the Cornhuskers fell behind 9 - 13 in the 4th quarter , but backup QB Bruce Mathison directed two touchdown drives with help from an interception by Nebraska LB Brent Evans , and although Missouri would score again , the 10 point lead with 2 : 36 to go was too much for the Tigers to overcome . Kansas . Nebraska cruised to their 14th win in a row over Kansas and their 2nd shutout of the season , piling up 546 yards of offense compared to 69 for the Jayhawks and giving up only one turnover while owning the ball for 34 : 27 . Five different players recorded touchdowns , as the Cornhuskers set out to protest their drop in the poll from # 5 to # 6 and prove that the previous close call in Missouri was not to be the norm . Oklahoma State . Oklahoma State runner Ernest Anderson , who later became the NCAA rushing record holder , was held to just 68 yards , while Nebraska IB Mike Rozier broke the Nebraska single season rushing record , held by Bobby Reynolds since 1950 , with his 251 yard performance . The Cornhuskers jumped out to a 21 point lead , and the Cowboys only came within 14 before Nebraska left them behind . Iowa State . Iowa State briefly held Nebraska to just a 7 point lead , long enough for the Cyclones to post a tying score at the end of the 1st quarter , but the Cornhusker offense proved to be impossible to hold back as Nebraska then ran off 28 unanswered points . Iowa State feebly posted a field goal in the 4th quarter , which Nebraska then punctuated with another 13 points to put this one away . Oklahoma . A hard - fought , statistically matched game of football powerhouses , Nebraska and Oklahoma traded the lead a few times before both offenses ground to a halt at the end of the 3rd quarter with the Cornhuskers clinging to a 4 point lead . Two 4th quarter Sooner drives crossed Nebraska ' s 35 yard line without producing points , yet the game remained in doubt until Nebraska DE Scott Strasburger intercepted Oklahoma with 26 seconds left to play and ended the Sooners ' hopes for the upset . Hawaii . Few , if any , could have predicted that unranked Hawaii would lead Nebraska 10 - 0 by halftime and 16 - 7 at the end of the 3rd quarter , but the Cornhuskers finally found their footing late in this rare , late - season non - conference game and ripped 30 straight unanswered points in the 4th quarter , amassing 479 rushing yards on the day , to escape Honolulu with a 37 - 16 win . LSU . Nebraska struggled to overcome six turnovers in a game that saw them behind 7 - 14 at the half , behind 17 - 14 by the end of the 3rd , and clinging to a 1 point lead after LSU was forced to settle for a field goal in the 4th . Nebraska only punted once compared to the Tigers ' six punts , had nearly double the total offensive yards , and a dominating rushing yardage lead , but the LSU ownership of the turnover battle demonstrated the importance of not giving away the ball as Nebraska barely escaped with the win . Rankings . Awards . < br > NFL and Pro Players . The following Nebraska players who participated in the 1982 season later moved on to the next level and joined a professional or semi - pro team as draftees or free agents . < br >