Not only one of the greatest teams not to win the national championship, the 1983 Nebraska Cornhuskers could be considered one of the best college football teams of all-time. Led by head coach Tom Osborne and Heisman Trophy winning running back Mike Rozier (who amassed a staggering 2,148 yards and 29 touchdowns), Nebraska dominated from the very beginning of the season.
Ranked No. 1 and facing fellow national championship contender Penn State in Week 1, the Cornhuskers beat the fourth-ranked Nittany Lions 44-6, which was a larger margin of defeat than any Joe Paterno-coached team had previously suffered. Nebraska would go on to outscore opponents by an average score of 50-17, and average more than 400 rushing yards per game. Though they came up one point shy of a national title and a spot among the greatest teams of all-time.
1983 Nebraska Cornhuskers Schedule
- No. 1 Nebraska 44, No. 4 Penn State 6
- No. 1 Nebraska 56, Wyoming 20
- No. 1 Nebraska 84, Minnesota 13
- No. 1 Nebraska 42, UCLA 10
- No. 1 Nebraska 63, Syracuse 7
- No. 1 Nebraska 14, Oklahoma State 10
- No. 1 Nebraska 34, Missouri 13
- No. 1 Nebraska 69, Colorado 19
- No. 1 Nebraska 51, Kansas State 25
- No. 1 Nebraska 72, Iowa State 29
- No. 1 Nebraska 67, Kansas 13
- No. 1 Nebraska 28, Oklahoma 21
- No. 5 Miami 31, No. 1 Nebraska 30 (Orange Bowl)
Had Osborne decided to kick the extra point after the Cornhuskers scored a last-minute touchdown against No. 5 Miami in the Orange Bowl, he would have secured a national championship. Ranked No. 1 and undefeated, all Nebraska needed was a tie to keep its top spot in the polls.
However, Osborne and the Huskers went for the win and instead came up short. Miami catapulted all the way from No. 5 to No. 1 to claim the first national title in school history.
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