Cornhuskers beat Michigan, even with a wild finish

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The Nebraska Cornhuskers gave Bill Callahan a celebratory shower on the sideline and reveled in their Alamo Bowl victory as the final seconds ticked off the clock.

The excitement began spilling onto the field, but there was one not-sosmall problem: The game wasn’t quite over.

In a wild and nearly miraculous ending, Michigan’s Chad Henne started the last play with a short pass to Jason Avant to the Wolverines 49. Seven laterals up and down the field followed before the play fizzled out with Titus Brothers shoving Tyler Ecker out of bounds at the Nebraska 13 _ finally securing the Cornhuskers’ 32-28 victory Wednesday night.

“I thought the game was over,” Callahan said, “but evidently it wasn’t.”

Extra players and some coaches from both teams were on the field as the play finished.

“I’m thankful we didn’t get penalized,” Callahan said. “We thought the game was over, but the ball was still going down on the field. We were very fortunate we stayed alert and made the play to end the game.”

The win over the 20th-ranked Wolverines gave the Cornhuskers (8-4) three straight wins to end a season for the first time since 1999.

“We’ve been through quite a bit of adversity this year, and to culminate this season with this type of victory feels very good,” Callahan said. “It feels good and it’s something we want to build on as we go into the offseason.”

If Nebraska returns to national prominence next season, the Cornhuskers will remember the Alamo — especially the frantic final play that was reminiscent of the ending of the 1982 California-Stanford game where the Cardinal band stormed the field as Cal lateraled its way to victory. Zac Taylor threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Terrence Nunn with 4:29 left, then Nebraska survived Michigan’s lateral-filled, game-ending play.

“This puts us back on the map,” said Cory Ross, who ran for 161 yards.

The Huskers are 13-10 in Callahan’s two seasons after beating Kansas State, Colorado and Michigan. They haven’t been in the Top 25 since the end of the 2003 season.

That year saw Frank Solich get fired with a 9-3 record amid athletics director Steve Pederson’s fears that the program was slipping into mediocrity.

Callahan was 5-6 last season, and the Huskers missed a bowl for the first time since 1968. After a 4-0 start this season against undistinguished competition, the Huskers found themselves 5-4 and in jeopardy of not making a bowl again.

Then came wins over Kansas State, Colorado and Michigan.

Henne threw three touchdown passes and also ran for a score. His 7-yard scramble with 11:40 left gave the Wolverines (7-5) a 28-17 lead.

But Nebraska used a long punt return and a turnover to end Michigan’s season with another disappointment. The Wolverines, ranked as high as No. 3 in September, finished 7-5, with their losses coming by a combined 21 points.