CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

1974 Nebraska

9–⁠3 (5–⁠2 Big Eight), coached by Tom Osborne, finished No. 9 in the AP poll.

Schedule and results

Nebraska in 1974, game by game: won vs. Oregon 61–7; lost at Wisconsin 20–21; won vs. Northwestern 49–7; won vs. Minnesota 54–0; lost vs. Missouri 10–21; won at No. 13 Kansas 56–0; won vs. Oklahoma State 7–3; won at Colorado 31–15; won at Iowa State 23–13; won vs. Kansas State 35–7; lost vs. No. 1 Oklahoma 14–28; won vs. No. 18 Florida 13–10+56−14Won 61–7 vs. Oregon+54OregonLost 20–21 at Wisconsin-1WisconsinWon 49–7 vs. Northwestern+42NorthwesternWon 54–0 vs. Minnesota+54MinnesotaLost 10–21 vs. Missouri-11MissouriWon 56–0 at No. 13 Kansas+56No. 13 KansasWon 7–3 vs. Oklahoma State+4Oklahoma StateWon 31–15 at Colorado+16ColoradoWon 23–13 at Iowa State+10Iowa StateWon 35–7 vs. Kansas State+28Kansas StateLost 14–28 vs. No. 1 Oklahoma-14No. 1 OklahomaWon 13–10 vs. No. 18 Florida+3No. 18 Florida
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 14vsOregonW 61–⁠785%
Sep 21atWisconsinL 20–⁠2172%
Sep 28vsNorthwesternW 49–⁠789%
Oct 5vsMinnesotaW 54–⁠080%
Oct 12vsMissouriL 10–⁠2179%
Oct 19at13KansasW 56–⁠051%
Oct 26vsOklahoma StateW 7–⁠375%
Nov 2atColoradoW 31–⁠1569%
Nov 9atIowa StateW 23–⁠1367%
Nov 16vsKansas StateW 35–⁠790%
Nov 23vs1OklahomaL 14–⁠2845%
Dec 31Bowls & playoffvs18FloridaSugar BowlW 13–⁠1067%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Florida 13–⁠10 in the Sugar Bowl; No. 9 in the final AP poll; tied for 2nd in the Big Eight.

In program history: The 22nd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 129 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 1: 7
  2. Wk 2: 7
  3. Wk 3: 4
  4. Wk 4: 10
  5. Wk 5: 6
  6. Wk 6: 5
  7. Wk 7: 12
  8. Wk 8: 9
  9. Wk 9: 9
  10. Wk 10: 9
  11. Wk 11: 6
  12. Wk 12: 6
  13. Wk 13: 9
  14. Wk 14: 8
  15. Final: 9

Players on this team

Before 2004 our records hold honors and the draft; these are the players whose college years here, from their Wikipedia articles or their honors, include 1974.

Heisman voteDavid Humm, fifth

Consensus All-AmericanMarvin Crenshaw, OT

Record
9–⁠3
Conference
5–⁠2 tied for 2nd in Big Eight
AP final
No. 9 peak No. 4
Points
373–⁠132
Coach
Tom Osborne
Elo
1736 +47 this season
SP+ rating
19.3 No. 14 of 124; offense No. 12, defense No. 24
SRS
21.5 No. 7 of 129 major-college teams
Recruiting class
—
Defensive coordinator
Monte Kiffin
Offense
I formation
Defense
5–⁠2

Drafted in 1975

The 1975 draft
Rd 1Tom Ruud LBBuffalo Bills
Rd 2Bob Nelson LBBuffalo Bills
Rd 4John Starkebaum DBNew Orleans Saints
Rd 5Dave Humm QBOakland Raiders
Rd 6Don Westbrook WRBaltimore Colts
Rd 6Mark Doak OTWashington Redskins
Rd 6Tom Alward OGNew York Jets
Rd 6Marvin Crenshaw OTPittsburgh Steelers

All-Big Eight

5 first team, 4 second team

First team

Second team

From Wikipedia’s 1974 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).

1974 Big Eight standings

TeamConf.OverallAP final
Oklahoma7–⁠011–⁠01
Nebraska5–⁠29–⁠39
Missouri5–⁠27–⁠4
Oklahoma State4–⁠37–⁠5
Colorado3–⁠45–⁠6
Iowa State2–⁠54–⁠7
Kansas1–⁠64–⁠7
Kansas State1–⁠64–⁠7

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.