Nebraska started with a false start penalty on their first play on offense. Their third play from scrimmage was a 33-yard run by Devine Ozigbo. On the fifth play, Adrian Martinez hits JD Spielman for a 42-yard touchdown reception. It’s a nice quick drive. Nebraska goes up 7 – 0. The ensuing kickoff goes out of bounds. Nebraska has two penalties within the 1:30 of play. Northwestern does not pick up their first attempt at third and long. Lamar Jackson let his receiver get behind him, but made an athletic play, tipping the ball up in the air just enough so the receiver could not catch it. It was a touchdown-saving moment for Jackson. Nebraska killed Northwestern on their first offensive drive with the downfield pass. It would only make sense that they then would go away from it. The next Husker Drive went for 12 plays in 52 yards but didn’t result in any points as Barrett Pickering missed a 45-yard field goal. Nebraska’s next drive was a three-and-out. It is as if we don’t know how to get a two-score lead. The fourth offensive drive was going fine until Jerald Foster got called for holding, which put Nebraska in a second and 20. The next play went to JD Spielman for 3 yards, resulting in third and 17. On third down, Martinez hit Ozibgo for 7 yards. Nebraska punted. At this point in the game, Nebraska had 181 yards – 85 rushing, 96 passing. Oh look, it’s nearly balanced. Granted, Martinez missed on a few downfield throws. He overthrew Stanley Morgan Jr when Morgan had a step on his defender. Northwestern’s first score the game came on a nine play, 80-yard drive that looked way too easy. The Wildcats finished it off on a third and seven when Clayton Thorson hit a wide-open Flynn Nagel for a 21-yard touchdown to tie the game. The Wildcats were gifted their second touchdown when Martinez was hit on a blitz, fumbling the ball which was then returned for a free touchdown. All the Nebraska fans across the world nodded as if knowing this had to happen sooner or later. Nebraska would appear to even the score on an eight-play, 83-yard drive, capped off when Ozigbo scored on a 12 yard run up the middle, untouched. Pickering missed the PAT. The good news is that Nebraska has scored a lot of points in the second half so far this season. Northwestern, not so much.<doc-sep>Nebraska is now 0-6 after a loss to Northwestern. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File) Nebraska is off to an 0-6 start for the first time in program history. And it reached that low in heartbreaking fashion. The Huskers, who haven’t won a game in 350 days (since Oct. 28, 2017), held a 31-21 lead with 5:41 to play, but blew that lead and eventually lost 34-31 in overtime. Nebraska got the ball to open the extra frame, but bungled away its possession. Instead of trying to go ahead with a field goal, the Huskers went for it on fourth-and-1 from the 16. But a bad snap doomed the play from the start, forcing Adrian Martinez to throw up a prayer. But the prayer went unanswered, falling into the arms of Northwestern’s Drake Anderson. (via ABC) From there, all Northwestern needed was a score of any kind for the win. The Wildcats kept it conservative and walked away with a win when Drew Luckenbaugh drilled a game-winning 37-yard field goal. The clutch kick delivered a brutal loss to the Huskers and put Northwestern back at .500 with a 3-3 record. Nebraska blew a 10-point lead in the final six minutes With Nebraska leading 28-21, it felt like Tre Neal made a potentially game-sealing play when he intercepted Northwestern quarterback Clayton Thorson. That interception set up a field goal that extended Nebraska’s lead to 31-21 with 5:41 to play. Aside from a 61-yard Thorson touchdown pass to Flynn Nagel, Northwestern’s offense hadn’t done much in the second half. But on the ensuing possession, the Wildcats were able to move the ball. That drive eventually stalled, but it did allow the Wildcats to cut Nebraska’s lead to 31-24 with a field goal with 2:27 remaining. From there, Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald curiously called for an onside kick. It failed, giving the Huskers the ball near midfield. The Wildcats forced a stop and used all three of their timeouts to keep time on the clock, but Nebraska punter Isaac Armstrong pinned the Wildcats at the 1-yard line with a brilliant punt. Northwestern forced overtime with a 99-yard drive Despite the awful field position, the Northwestern offense quickly marched down the field. A dumb roughing the passer penalty on Nebraska’s Carlos Davis certainly helped matters. Davis hit Thorson high and late as he delivered a pass from the end zone, giving Northwestern much-needed breathing room. Story continues From there, Thorson picked apart the Huskers’ secondary, completing six straight passes. His last three were the biggest. First he found Flynn Nagel for 32 yards to move the team into Nebraska territory. Next he hit Bennett Skowronek for 27 yards all the way down to the Nebraska 5 with 17 seconds to play. After stopping the clock with a spike, Thorson forced overtime by connecting with JJ Jefferson for a five-yard touchdown. Thorson made mistakes on Saturday, but came up in the clutch when his team needed him. He finished 41-of-64 for 455 yards on the afternoon. This is a new low for Nebraska Nebraska is one of the most-storied programs in college football history. Beginning with its first season in 1890, the Huskers had never started 0-6 — until 2018. The previous low was 0-5 in 1945, a mark tied with last week’s loss to Wisconsin. Nebraska controlled play for the duration of Saturday’s game and looked well on its way to making sure a new record was not set. Instead, the Huskers utterly collapsed and remain one of just four teams without a win in 2018. Perhaps next week’s visit from Minnesota will be the game to break the losing streak. More from Yahoo Sports: • 49ers apologize for Kaepernick photo snub • A-Rod pays the ultimate price after losing bet • Brewers pitcher’s stunning home run off Kershaw • NLCS Game 1 shows what baseball is in 2018<doc-sep>Advertisement Despite early lead, Huskers lose to Northwestern after OT, 34-31 Share Shares Copy Link Copy It's been more than 11 months since the Nebraska Cornhuskers last won a football game.Scott Frost and his team will face a Northwestern outfit coming off its biggest win of the season, a 29-19 road victory over then-No. 20 Michigan State. The Wildcats won despite rushing for 8 yards, a feat matched by just two other Big Ten teams in the past 18 years.LogisticsKickoff: 11 a.m.Televised: ABCLine: Northwestern by 3.5Big Red Zone Facebook LiveStart time: 9 a.m.Follow Sean Callahan and Andy Kendeigh for live analysis throughout the game. Callahan has covered the team since 1999 and is currently the publisher of HuskerOnline.com, which is a part of the Rivals.com network.Watch here if you missed it.In-Game UpdatesFollow Andy Kendeigh, Thor Tripp, Matt Lothrop, Sean Callahan and Josh Planos for updates on Twitter.Follow and like KETV’s Husker Football Page!Postgame Press ConferenceClick here to watch!Players to Watch ForNorthwestern: Clayton ThorsonThe senior's arm must be tired.Devoid of a rushing attack, the Wildcats' offense relied heavily on Thorson a week ago to pull off the upset in East Lansing. Thorson attempted 47 passes, five shy of a career high; he ranks No. 22 nationally in total pass attempts.It can't be overstated how one-dimensional Northwestern's offense has become since starting running back Jeremy Larkin retired from football due to cervical stenosis. The Wildcats rank outside of the top 115 in rushing attempts per contest (32.8), rush yards per attempt (2.36) and rushing yards per contest (77.4).Thorson, meanwhile, ranks 65th in adjusted total quarterback rating, which takes into account strength of opposition faced. And Northwestern ranks fourth nationally in pass completions per contest (27.6).Nebraska: JD SpielmanDespite playing in just five games this season, Spielman has racked up 275 yards after the catch, the 14th most of any player in the country. In total, only 39 players have accumulated more receiving yards than Spielman's 461. More than 56 percent of his receptions result in a first down or touchdown.Last week, Spielman broke his own Nebraska receiving record with 209 yards, giving him the only two 200-yard receiving performances in school history.How We Got HereWeek 1Northwestern 31, Purdue 27. Watch the highlights.Akron vs. Nebraska game postponed.Week 2Duke 21, Northwestern 7. Watch the highlights.Colorado 33, Nebraska 28. Watch the highlights. Read the recap.Week 3Akron 39, Northwestern 34. Watch the highlights.Troy 24, Nebraska 19. Watch the highlights. Read the recap.Week 4Northwestern: Bye weekNo. 19 Michigan 56, Nebraska 10. Watch the highlights. Read the recap.Week 5Michigan 20, Northwestern 17. Watch the highlights.Purdue 42, Nebraska 28. Watch the highlights. Read the recap.Week 6Northwestern 29, Michigan State 19. Watch the highlights.Wisconsin 41, Nebraska 24. Watch the highlights. Read the recap.Big Red Zone SpecialMiss our special last month? We've got you covered.Post Game Press ConferenceScott Frost'I just feel bad for them, this is wearing on me'Luke Gifford'We have made a turning point, I think we are on our way up'Devin Ozigbo'Everybody had a good feeling, spirits were high and it just didn't work out'Adrian Martinez'Try not to panic, try to make something happen'<doc-sep>Gameday. Homecoming. Northwestern football. Let’s do this. Here’s what you need to know: Preview links -Here’s Northwestern’s depth chart for the week, its uniform combination and press conference notes from Pat Fitzgerald -Here’s the injury report for the week, which includes some key names -Here are three things to know about Nebraska -Here are three key matchups to watch -Here’s a look at what’s at stake Saturday -Here’s an analysis of Clayton Thorson’s game against Michigan State -Here’s why Northwestern will beat Nebraska...and why it won’t -PREDICTIONS Broadcast Information Game Time: 11:00 a.m. CT TV: ABC Radio: WGN Radio AM-720 Online: Watch ESPN Betting Line: Northwestern -3.5, over/under 60<doc-sep>
EVANSTON, Ill. — Somehow, someway, Northwestern beat Nebraska Saturday. In a game that Nebraska (0-6, 0-4 Big Ten) appeared to have won several times, a game with kicking miscues, turnovers and big plays on both sides, Northwestern (3-3, 3-1 Big Ten) found a way. With 2:02 to play trailing by seven at its own one-yard-line with no timeouts, Clayton Thorson and Northwestern led a near-perfect drive to tie the game at 31 and send the contest to overtime with 12 seconds to play. In overtime, Nebraska fumbled a bad snap on fourth down, leading to an Adrian Martinez interception in the end zone. Drew Luckenbaugh won the game for NU on a 37-yard field goal on NU’s first drive of overtime to win the game in his first game as the starting kicker. Forced to make up for the Wildcats’ non-existent rushing attack, Clayton Thorson threw the ball 64 times, finishing with 455 yards and three touchdowns while also tossing two interceptions. Flynn Nagel was his preferred target throughout the game, catching 12 passes for a season-high 220 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Defensively, Northwestern allowed 231 yards rushing Saturday, a season-high. The Cornhuskers relied on a combination of chunk gains from running back Devine Ozigbo and quarterback keepers from true-freshman Adrian Martinez. Martinez’s ability to scramble and extend plays burned the NU defense several times. Accumulating just eight total yards on the ground in last Saturday’s massive road win at No. 20 Michigan State, the Wildcats once again were one-dimensional, rushing for just 32 yards. Northwestern averaged under two yards a carry yet again, marking the third-straight time that’s happened in the three games since the departure of Jeremy Larkin. After giving up a touchdown on the opening drive of the game, the Wildcats’ defense came back with five consecutive stops. The defense also came up with a score of its own, when Trae Williams burst into the backfield on a blitz and forced an Adrian Martinez fumble, which Earnest Brown IV returned for a touchdown to give NU an 14-7 lead. Forced fumble + fumble recovery = @NUFBFamily TD. And ... the lead. pic.twitter.com/OZeyX1YshN — Northwestern On BTN (@NUOnBTN) October 13, 2018 Thorson, facing minimal pressure and mainly three- and four-man rushes, tossed Northwestern’s only offensive score of the first half, connecting on a 21-yard pass to Flynn Nagel to tie the game at seven a piece. Thorson looked good at times, but missed several deep throws, a few of which looked like they could’ve been huge gains with receivers open. One of his interceptions was a poor decision, and the other was a poor throw. Leading at the half for the fifth time this season, Northwestern was once again slow out of the gates to start the second half of play. On the opening drive of the third quarter, Thorson failed to connect with an open Kyric McGowan for a potential score before tossing his first interception of the game two plays later. Ozigbo and the Nebraska ground attack would punch one home on the following drive to take the lead. After another Cornhusker rushing touchdown, Thorson would connect with Nagel for a 61-yard touchdown to bring the game within a single score. Down 28-21 with 10 minutes left in the fourth, Thorson threw what looked like to be a back-breaking interception, giving Nebraska the ball back in plus territory. After pinning the Wildcats deep in Northwestern territory with two minutes left and with the game seemingly won, the Cornhuskers allowed Thorson to march 99 yards down the field for the game-tying score. Electing to defend first in overtime, the Wildcats forced an interception after a low snap eluded the hands of Martinez, leading to a wild throw into the front of the end zone. Needing just a field goal to keep its Big Ten season alive at 3-1, backup kicker Drew Luckenbaugh redeemed his earlier miss to give Northwestern the win.