2025 Nebraska Season Thread

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Greatest Husker to wear No. 62: Ken Mehlin, Offensive Guard, 1989 – 1993

Nebraska’s most famous offensive line is the “Pipeline,” the starting five from the 1994 National Championship team. They were the culmination of two decades of offensive line coaching and development.

Offensive line coach Milt Tenopir, along with assistant Dan Young (and Cletus Fischer before him), ran an offensive line factory that produced dozens of all-conference players, 16 All-Americans, five Outland Trophy winners and four College Football Hall of Famers.


How did they do it? Like any high-quality manufacturing process, they followed a consistent set of steps:

Step 1: Get good raw materials

It didn’t matter if it was a scholarship guy from a big high school or a walk-on from a tiny Nebraska town. As we’ll discuss next time, Nebraska didn’t require a specific set of measurables. Nebraska had an undeniable track record for finding kids they could develop, as well as kids willing to put in the work.

Step 2: Mold and shape them

With a few notable exceptions (such as Jake Young and Will Shields), most freshmen offensive linemen were not ready to play in their first year. Back when the freshman team existed, most offensive linemen would start their careers on the frosh squad. After that, a young offensive lineman would likely redshirt. That time was spent learning – and mastering – technique. Tenopir had a mastery of the fundamentals and understood that football really is a game of inches.


In an interview with the Omaha World-Herald, former tackle Doug Glaser talked about the attention to detail that made Tenopir’s lines so technically sound. “If you were an inch off on a step, he was all over us. That’s what we studied on film. Really every day we would spend our time on our technique and our footwork.” The disciplined and exacting approach would often carry over into other aspects of a lineman’s game (a low number of procedural and holding penalties) and often into his schoolwork and personal life.

A large part of a lineman’s underclassmen years was spent gaining size and strength. This is where legendary strength coach Boyd Epley would come in. He’d take these raw frames and teach them how to become strong, explosive and athletic. Nebraska’s training table, with help from the Husker Beef Club,* would nourish these hungry players.

*The Husker Beef Club would solicit Nebraska farmers and ranchers for donations of cattle, which would be served at the training table.


It was normal for an offensive lineman to gain 25 – 50 pounds over the course of his career, much of it muscle. Part of that was simple physical maturation (young men will continue to grow and mature between 18 and 21). Part was the development system Nebraska had in place. Add it up, and redshirt sophomores looked noticeably different than they did as true freshmen.

Step 3: Testing and Quality Control

As a sophomore – or even a junior – playing time might be tough to come by. The guy ahead of you is likely an all-conference or All-America caliber player. But don’t worry! Nebraska will likely blow out half of the teams on their schedule,* giving you the chance to gain valuable reps in a relatively low-pressure situation.

When tackle Doug Glaser was being recruited by Oklahoma in the 1980s, Barry Switzer tried to tell him he’d start as a true freshman. Glaser was smart enough to see through the lie. Tom Osborne told him the truth: “You’ll play freshman ball, then redshirt, get your strength up, and if you contribute for two years of those last three, you’ll have a successful career here.”

As you’ll recall, Glaser was an All-American.

Step 4: Finished products

Milt’s shiny road graders and bulldozers would roll off the assembly line… and roll over their opponent, gaining awards and accolades on their way to the NFL. Seven Cornhusker offensive linemen are in the college football HOF; four of them (Dave Rimington, Will Shields, Zach Wiegert and Aaron Taylor) were coached by Milt Tenopir.

Forty-two of Tenopir’s offensive linemen were drafted into the National Football League, and several more signed free agent deals. This was despite the nagging (and incorrect) assumption that Nebraska linemen couldn’t pass block.

How were NFL scouts and executives naïve enough to think that the greatest offensive line coach in the history of college football would forget to teach his players how to pass block? Of course, they could pass block. They just didn’t need to do it often, because Nebraska’s lines were so good at run blocking.


Ken Mehlin, an offensive lineman from the early 1990s, is one of many examples of Nebraska’s offensive line assembly line.

Step 1: Get good raw materials

Mehlin played offensive line and linebacker for Humboldt (Neb.) High. As a senior, his team won the Nebraska Class D-2 championship and Mehlin was a first team all-state honoree. For those unfamiliar with how Nebraska classifies their high schools, D-2 is the smallest. Humboldt High played 8-man football. Meylan’s graduating class had 17 people. Two of them, Meylan and teammate Jamie Weyers, walked on at Nebraska.


Step 2: Mold and shape them

Mehlin played on the freshman team in 1989 before redshirting in 1990. Listed at 255 pounds, Mehlin poured himself into the weight room, into learning the playbook, and into his academics. By his senior year, he would weigh 275.

Step 3: Testing and Quality Control

As a redshirt sophomore in 1991, Mehlin played in four games – and the Orange Bowl – as a backup guard. In his junior year (1992), Mehlin earned a starting job – and a scholarship! – with a strong performance in the spring. He was still on the smaller end compared to his teammates (practically scrawny at 265 pounds), but it was obvious he had bought into Epley’s strength and conditioning program. The Huskers once again led the nation in rushing offense (328 yards per game). Mehlin was academic All-Big Eight.


Step 4: Finished products

As a senior, Mehlin played center and guard for the 1993 team that nearly won the national championship. He earned first-team All-Big Eight honors and was a second-team Academic All-American.

It didn’t matter than Mehlin had walked on from an eight-man high school team. Heck, two of his fellow offensive line starters in 1992 (center Jim Scott and tackle Lance Lundberg) also played on eight-man teams. The assembly line – combined with his effort and determination – made him a valuable player.


There’s a quote in “The Assembly Line” – Milt Tenopir’s book about coaching, technique and more – that I love:

“Most young men aspire to be the best, but many don’t realize what it takes to get there. This is where older players become an influence. Their work habits and dedication to excel tends to rub off on the aspiring young players.”

Success breeds success. And established processes with excellent leadership will typically turn out superior products.

Milt Tenopir’s offensive lines were a cornerstone of Nebraska’s success under Tom Osborne.

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Greatest Husker to wear No. 61: John McCormick, Offensive Guard, 1984 – 1987

What made Tom Osborne’s option offense so good in the 1980s and 1990s? Nebraska regularly led the nation in rushing and was near the top in scoring. Nebraska seemingly replaced one amazing player with another, year after year after year. Once the Big Red machine started churning, it was hard to stop – let alone slow down.

There are a host of reasons why, some of which we’ve already touched on. The technical brilliance of Milt Tenopir’s offensive lines. Boyd Epley’s strength and condition program. Another key reason is coming up at #58.


Football coaches have been wanting players with specific measurements at certain positions since before the first 40-yard dash was timed. Picture a coach looking at a list of potential recruits holding a “you must be this tall to ride” sign. An offensive tackle must be 6’5″ or taller. Guards should be pushing 300 pounds. Wide receivers and defensive backs need to run 40 yards in 4.4 seconds or less. Wanting measurables works in reverse too: How many great running backs can you name that are taller than 6’3″?


There’s nothing wrong with coveting certain measurables. If ten players have the same height and weight, current Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule is likely to ask, “Who is fastest?” But part of the brilliance of Osborne’s system was it allowed him to have flexibility in who he signed.


In a passing or balanced offense, coaches covet taller offensive linemen. Tall bodies usually come with longer arms, which allows them to engage with defenders sooner, keeping defensive hands away from the lineman’s body. Taller frames can cover more ground and often have more leverage. But in a primarily run-based offense, linemen are going to be asked to drive defenders back instead of forming a protective pocket for the quarterback.


At “just” 6’1″, Aaron Taylor was considered too small for most big-time programs. The majority of his college offers came from I-AA schools. Tenopir and Nebraska saw a guy who could become a mauling road grader. Nebraska was right: Taylor was a two-time All-American.

The other factor was located in Nebraska’s backyard. During the 1980s and 1990s, how many Nebraska high schools ran an option-based, power running offense similar* to what Nebraska was doing?

As everybody knows, Nebraska’s in-state talent pool has always been shallower than almost every other major college team. I won’t say that having numerous teams in the state running your system was like Nebraska’s “farm system,” but it sure made it easier to find a fullback or guard who fit your system – and knew it because he ran it in high school.

The depth charts from Osborne-era teams were filled with Nebraska kids who maybe were a bit shorter than the mythical “standard” but who showed up in Lincoln familiar with what the offense was trying to do. From there, Osborne would need to find his quarterback,* a good I-back (often from Omaha Central High), and other skill position players wherever they might be.


*The biggest reason why Nebraska went away from – and has not gone back to – the option is the lack of difference-maker option quarterbacks. Even in the late 1990s and early 2000s, they were getting harder and harder to find. High schools – even in Nebraska – were shifting to passing offenses.

John McCormick, an offensive guard from Omaha, is a great example of this. At 6’0″ and 250 pounds, McCormick may have lacked the measurables some coaches required, but he did not lack for talent – he was a Parade Magazine All-American. I don’t know for sure what offense McCormick’s high school (Gross Catholic High in Omaha) was running, but let’s just say that I wouldn’t be shocked if it featured more fullback traps than trips formations.

McCormick followed the offensive lineman progression that should be very familiar by now: Freshman team, redshirt year, playing as a third-year sophomore. The notable difference is that McCormick was a starter.

I love this quote from Tenopir (in 1985) about his guards (McCormick, and fellow Gross alumnus Brian Blankenship (6’1″, 270)): “They’re stubby guys, but they’ve got a little punch in their hind ends. They’re kind of coach look-alikes – they’ve got little potbellies like coaches have.”

In 1986, McCormick’s junior year, he was second-team All-Big Eight and an honorable mention All-American. Instead of poking fun at his gut, his coaches were saying he was Nebraska’s best guard since Dean Steinkuhler.

As a senior, McCormick did his best to live up to such high praise, earning All-Big Eight and All-America honors in 1987. In the 1987 game at No. 12 Oklahoma State (a 35-0 Husker victory), McCormick graded out perfectly on his 65 snaps. He was named the Big Eight Offensive Player of the Week, the first time in 16 years that an offensive lineman won Player of the Week honors.

John McCormick served in the Omaha Fire Department for 30 years, rising to the rank of assistant chief. In a 2014 story by KETV in Omaha, they reported at least seven firefighters were former Huskers.

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Greatest Husker to wear No. 60: Tom Novak, Fullback / Center, 1946 – 1949

Tom “Train Wreck” Novak is one of the true legends of Nebraska football history. Out of the nearly 3,400 young men to play for Nebraska, Novak was the first – and still only – Cornhusker to earn first-team all-conference honors in each of his four seasons. Only 20 Huskers have been an all-conference pick three times.

As a freshman and sophomore, Novak played fullback and center on offense and linebacker on defense, earning All-Big Six honors. As a junior and senior, he moved to center and picked up All-Big Seven recognition. Novak was a first-team All-American in 1949.

Novak still holds the Nebraska record for career interceptions by a linebacker with 11. Those 11 picks are tied for fifth most in school history, with modern era cornerbacks (and NFL players) like Ralph Brown, Fabian Washington and Tyrone Byrd. Novak’s five interceptions in 1948 are still tied for the eighth most in a single season.

In addition to football, Novak lettered three times for the Nebraska baseball team. He was on conference championship baseball teams in 1948 and 1950. Unfortunately, he didn’t have nearly the same level of team success on the football field.

Despite Novak’s standout performances, the Huskers were downright dreadful during his career. The Huskers went 11-26 in his four years. Novak played for three different head coaches (Bernie Masterson, George “Potsy” Clark and Bill Glassford). Throughout it all, Novak was a fan favorite.


The 1949 Colorado game was the last of Novak’s career. It was also his 23rd birthday. As the Huskers came out of the locker room after halftime, the Cornhusker Marching Band spelled out “TOM” and played “Happy Birthday.” A simple, yet touching tribute to a beloved player.

After the game, the Beatrice Sun wrote: “Through all the years of tribulation, Tom was the light, the hardy engine and the soul of Nebraska football. He was the refuge and an undefeated element. He will be a legend.”

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You probably know that Nebraska permanently retired #60 following Novak’s senior season (1949), making it the first number to be retired* by NU, and one of just three numbers to be permanently out of circulation.


*Let’s recap how Nebraska distinguishes between a retired number and a retired jersey. A retired number is just that – a number that is no longer issued to any player. There are three numbers currently retired at Nebraska (in order of retirement):

60 – Tom Novak. Nobody has worn #60 since Novak took it off for the last time in 1949.

20 – Johnny Rodgers. Originally, the Jet’s number was retired after the 1972 season, but Johnny allowed his son Terry to wear it when he played at NU (1986 – 1990). After Terry left, #20 was went back into a semi-retirement until 1995, when it was in regular circulation until it was officially re-retired in 2009. Jase Dean and Adi Kunalic were the last two Huskers to wear the #20 jersey in 2008.

64 – Bob Brown. Brown’s senior season at NU was in 1963, but his number stayed in circulation until it was retired in 2004. Kurt Mann was the last Husker to wear #64.

In addition, Nebraska also has 17 “retired jerseys.” This is a way for NU to honor Huskers who win major awards (Heisman, Outland, etc.) but still keep the number available for active players. Otherwise, there would not be enough numbers for offensive linemen, as a good chunk of the seventies (71, 72, 75, 79) would be unavailable. Some of these numbers (specifically 30, 50, 71, and 79) were not issued for 10 or more years after their greatest player graduated, but all have been back in circulation since the mid-1990s.

In addition to Novak, Rodgers and Brown, whose jerseys are retired along with their numbers, here are the 14 other Huskers with a retired jersey:

7 – Eric Crouch
15 – Tommie Frazier
30 – Mike Rozier
34 – Trev Alberts
50 – Dave Rimington
54 – Dominic Raiola
67 – Aaron Taylor
71 – Dean Steinkuhler
72 – Zach Wiegert
75 – Larry Jacobson
75 – Will Shields
79 – Rich Glover
93 – Ndamukong Suh
98 – Grant Wistrom
But did you know that Tom Novak only wore 60 in his senior season? In his first two years at Nebraska, Novak wore 68. As a junior, he wore 61 (teammate Charles Story wore 60). Nobody knows why he chose to move to 60 for his senior season.


The “Also worn by” names above are a complete list of the players (other than Novak) to ever wear #60 for Nebraska. By comparison, five different Huskers have worn #0, a number that could not be worn before 2020.

No one – not even Novak – wore #60 for more than one season.


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Every year, the Tom Novak Award is presented to a Husker who “best exemplifies courage and determination despite all odds.” The award was established in 1950, the first season after Novak’s legendary career.

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Greatest Husker to wear 59: Josh Heskew, Center, 1995 - 1998

Previously, we covered the amazing career of Aaron Taylor: the only Husker to be an All-American at two different positions.  One of the reasons Taylor moved from center to guard was the development of Josh Heskew. Having studied under All-Americans Aaron Graham and Taylor, Heskew proved himself to be a worthy successor.  The switch occurred during the practices before the 1997 Orange Bowl against Virginia Tech.

A tough Oklahoman, Heskew helped anchor the offensive line for the 1997 national champions, averaging nearly 10 pancake blocks per game.  He earned all-conference honors as a senior in 1998. A team captain in 1998, Heskew was elected to the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame in 2012.

Ironically, Heskew came to Nebraska as a defensive player - and almost didn't come to Lincoln at all.

Josh Heskew came to Nebraska after being spurned by his home-state Oklahoma Sooners. / Nebraska Football Media Guide
In high school (Mustang, Okla.) he averaged two sacks per game. Heskew wanted to play for his beloved Oklahoma Sooners - young Josh once sported a Brian Bosworth haircut. But the Sooners told him he was too small to play for them. Oklahoma State had a scholarship available… only if their first choice didn't sign.

At an awards banquet in Oklahoma, Heskew's high school coach was chatting with legendary offensive line coach Milt Tenopir and brought up Heskew. His high school coach must have said the right thing. Tenopir called the following morning with a scholarship offer. Heskew went on to play in 47 games as a Husker, with 27 starts.

I forget how I learned that Tom Osborne was about to retire as Nebraska's head football coach.

Back in December of 1997, nobody had a cellphone… nobody I knew, at least. The internet was becoming more widely used,* but social media did not exist.

*I remember going into the college football chat rooms on AOL - via a dial-up modem - to argue with Michigan fans about why Nebraska should be the champions if they beat Tennessee in the Orange Bowl. Big Ten fans were insufferable about how strong their conference was.

I want to say I heard an announcement on the radio that Osborne was going to have a 3 p.m. press conference. This would have been before sports talk radio exploded in popularity. If there was a local show (other than "Sports Nightly") in Lincoln at that point, I was unaware of it. Maybe one of my friends called me.

I know it was a Wednesday. Dec. 10, 1997, to be exact. I was supposed to work at my part-time job (at Younker's in the Gateway Mall) that evening. I went into work early and watched it on the 19" TV in the breakroom as Tom Osborne stood in front of a throng of media and players to announce his retirement. It would be effective Jan. 3, the day after the Orange Bowl. I, like everybody watching, was stunned.

Osborne, who was just 60 when he retired, seemed to be in relatively good health. He had heart bypass surgery in 1984, and spent the night in the hospital with an irregular heartbeat after the October 1997 game against Iowa State. That said, Osborne would run laps around the field most days. "I'm in reasonably good shape," he said during the press conference. "I have no major problems where I'm going to keel over in front of you... It's important to walk away while you can still walk."

Officially, Osborne wanted to spend more time with his wife, children and grandchildren. He regularly worked 13-hour days and missed countless milestones and events over the years. He was not interested in becoming a Bobby Bowden-esque figurehead coach. If he was in charge, he would be the one breaking down film, drawing up the game plans and calling plays. Osborne didn't know any other way.

Several years later, Osborne acknowledged another reason for his retirement. He wanted to honor the promise he had made in 1991 - and amended in January of 1997 - to hand the Nebraska program over to Frank Solich. Continuity was extremely important to Osborne. James Moeser, then UNL's chancellor, recalled Osborne saying, "I don't want someone else coming in here and jerking my kids around by the facemask."


Solich was officially announced as Nebraska's head coach the same day. It was the clear and obvious choice. Maybe it was my naïveté as a fan, but I never even considered the idea of Nebraska conducting an external search* for a head coach. Of course, Frank would follow Tom.


*Bill Byrne, Nebraska's athletic director at time, had to seek permission from the Office of Affirmative Action to hire Solich without conducting an outsider search - as was required by university policy. 

Over the years, several names have been speculated on who Byrne might have hired if he had done his own search. It’s fun to consider those alternate universes, but the reality was that if Byrne did not honor Osborne's wishes and hire Solich one of two things would have happened: 1) Osborne would have kept on coaching, 2) Byrne would have been run out of town.

When Osborne announced his retirement, Josh Heskew was a junior starting center for the No. 2-ranked Cornhuskers. The team found out about Osborne's plans one hour before the press conference. During the event, many of them stood on chairs and tables with tears in their eyes.

To a man, they vowed two things: 1) they would move heaven and earth to ensure they sent Tom Osborne out with a victory in the Orange Bowl, 2) the team was confident in Frank Solich's ability to keep things going

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Greatest Husker to wear 58: Harry Grimminger, Offensive Guard, 1981 - 1984

In our unofficial quest to figure out why Nebraska football was so good for so long, we've touched on several key factors:

Two legendary head coaches and a fairly stable roster of assistants who were excellent technical instructors.
A gigantic walk-on roster, largely filled with in-state kids who would do anything to contribute to Nebraska's continued success.
A cutting-edge strength and conditioning program that was the envy of the sport.
(Today's topic)
Number four is where these things all tie together. Four is the unappreciated reason Nebraska was an absolute model of consistency that seemed to simply reload after graduation, an injury, or player going for the NFL.

Four.

Today, almost every school runs a two-station practice during the season: the offense practices against a scout team defense, and the defense faces a scout team offense. If a team runs 75 plays in a practice, the starters will likely get 80% or more of the snaps while the backups stand and watch.

Throughout the majority of the Osborne era, Nebraska usually had 150 (or more) players on the roster. And let's be clear: The guys at the bottom of the roster did more than collect free gear and use their status as Nebraska players to hit on coeds. During practices they didn't just stand around and watch. Osborne and his staff ran four practice stations.

In a four-station system, there is an additional offensive and defensive station working against a second platoon of scout teamers. The benefits were immense.

Let's start with the old "it takes 10,000 repetitions to master a skill" axiom. If the non-starters are only getting a handful of non-scout team reps, how long will it take them to replace an all-conference player? The extra set of practice stations doubled the number of reps the players on the roster received, giving them more experience and more opportunities to improve.

The extra stations increased the amount of daily competition within the roster. Iron sharpens iron regardless of where it occurs on the depth chart. Backups pushed the starters and third- and fourth-string players pushed the backups. And when you're practicing side-by-side with the same guys over the course of a season, you're going to build chemistry that carries over to game day.

When a player would get hurt, or struggle, or graduate, there was somebody else ready to step in. The talent level might drop off, but if the backup has been running the offense in practice for over a year, you know he'll have confidence.

So, why doesn't Nebraska - or any other school - run a four-station practice today? For all of the benefits, there are downsides as well. Mainly, logistics, costs and bodies.

Let's start with logistics and costs.

With 150+ players, everything becomes a logistics puzzle. Locker rooms,* practice fields, weight room, meeting rooms, training staff, equipment staff, graduate assistants, and on and on. That doesn't even account for the human element of trying to keep track of everybody, or the costs associated with equipment and other expenses.

*During the Osborne era, the top units dressed in the south stadium locker room. Freshmen, walk-ons and scout teamers were crammed into an older locker room in the Schulte Fieldhouse on the north side. Players from that era talked about making the move to the varsity locker room much like a minor league baseball player getting called up to the majors. It was a sign of hard work being recognized. 

Finding enough willing bodies is another reason four-station practices don't happen outside of spring ball. Setting aside roster limits, imagine trying to sell this to a high school kid today. "Son, for the next five years, you're going to get beat up every single day by NFL-caliber players. You will likely only play at the very end of 63-7 blowouts. And you won't be on scholarship, so you'll have to pay for college yourself." Where do I sign, coach?

And yet, dozens of walk-ons every single year willingly volunteered to do just that. I read an SEC blog post that dismissively referred to Nebraska's bottom-of-the-roster players as Cornhusker "cannon fodder." Expendable fuel to keep the Big Red Machine running. I find that an overly crass characterization of players who - even as seniors - may not have been above third string. It's easy to dismiss them as space fillers and human tackling dummies, but their role in the overall development and success of their teams should not be minimized.

For every player profiled in this Greatest list, there are dozens, if not hundreds, of players who were more than willing to literally take one for the team. Many of them earned championship rings. Most will tell you they made lifetime bonds, even if their game time was limited to a few snaps in the non-conference. They were Huskers. More than that, their hard work help define and set the program's culture.

And finally, It takes an incredible amount of organization (and patience) to do what Osborne did. Keeping track of everybody, having practice plans, and working through injuries and other issues would be a full-time job. But when those in-state walk-ons turn into starters - or stars - that's where the magic happened.

Harry Grimminger was a mainstay – and a force – on the left side of some dominating offensive lines in the 1980s.

Offensive linemen arguably benefited the most from a four-station practice, as it gave them more opportunities to practice their technique in a gamelike setting.

In a 2018 interview with KETV, Grimminger said he was a "guy of average talent - at best - and I just worked really hard." He's being modest. An all-state guard on a Grand Island High team that won a state title, Grimminger brought plenty of ability to Lincoln.

But he, like so many of his teammates, understood what could happen if they put in the work on the practice field.

As a redshirt sophomore in 1982, Grimminger backed up Dean Steinkuhler. He broke into the starting lineup in 1983, helping to pave the way for the Scoring Explosion to set numerous offensive records. As a senior, Grimminger earned All-Big Eight and All-America honors.

Harry Grimminger, who was inducted into the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame in 2003. approached every Husker practice with a simple goal: "Try every day to be better than the day before."

With four practice stations, that goal was easier to obtain.

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Greatest Husker to wear 57: Mark Traynowicz, Offensive Line, 1981 - 1984

How would you like to be the guy who follows the greatest center in college football history?

In 1982, Dave Rimington's senior season, Mark Traynowicz was a backup right tackle. At 6'6" and a relatively slender 265 pounds, he seemed like a safe bet to stay at tackle. But offensive line coaches Milt Tenopir and Cletus Fischer saw something in Traynowicz to move him to center. Maybe it was his background as a state champion wrestler at Bellevue West. Maybe they wanted somebody with excellent intelligence (Traynowicz earned Academic All-Big Eight honors twice and eventually became an engineer who designed bridges for the Nebraska Department of Transportation).

By his own admission, the coaches didn't see somebody who could match Rimington's brute strength. In a 2015 interview with the Omaha World-Herald, Traynowicz humbly said, "I contend I was probably the weakest guy ever to start on the offensive line at Nebraska."

Whatever the coaches saw in Mark Traynowicz, they were spot on.

In his first year as a center, Traynowicz was the anchor for the offensive line for the 1983 "Scoring Explosion" offense. He regularly graded out as well as - or better than - Outland and Lombardi Trophy winner Dean Steinkuhler. He earned All-Big Eight honors and got Nebraska to the brink of a national championship (and was photographed telling a Miami player that he was #1)

As a senior, Traynowicz was All-Big Eight, a consensus All-American and a first-team Academic All-American.

Mark Traynowicz may have had some big shoes to fill as Dave Rimington’s replacement, but he left big shoes of his own.

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Greatest Husker to wear 56: Ed Periard, Middle Guard, 1968 - 1970

Do you want a good example of how much football has changed in the last 50+ years?

Ed Periard was a two-year starter at middle guard, earning first team All-Big Eight honors in 1970. He was listed at 5' 9" and 198 pounds, which by today’s standards is undersized for pretty much any position other than piccolo in the Cornhusker Marching Band.

Okay… that's not entirely true.

You see, even 55 years ago, everybody knew Ed Periard was undersized. A 1970 Lincoln Star article said "Let's face it… at 5-9, 201 Periard is too small to play middle guard for the No. 4 ranked Cornhuskers."

The problem was getting Periard to understand it. He simply refused to listen to the word "no."

Assistant Coach Mike Corgan was recruiting in Michigan when he first saw Ed Periard, a running back at a small high school with dreams of playing for Nebraska. Corgan passed. Too slow.

The Nebraska coaches received more film from Periard, which was watched by Bob Devaney. Devaney also passed.

Undeterred, Periard and his parents drove to Lincoln. They begged Devaney for a tryout. Fine. There would be no scholarship, but he could try out for the freshman team. Go get a physical and prove yourself on the field.

Periard failed his physical due to a bad knee. The doctors would not let him play.

Frustrated, Periard stormed into Devaney's office and barked "Look, I didn't come to Nebraska for a knee operation. I came to play football."

Devaney came to two realizations:

"We figured he deserved a chance with an attitude like that."
He knew he had to keep Periard on the team, because he sure as heck didn't want to play against him.
After playing linebacker in 1968, he was moved by assistant coach Monte Kiffin to middle guard. Despite being 40 pounds lighter than the average offensive lineman of the day, Periard started the next two years on the line.

"That's one time we were really wrong," Devaney said. "He's tough and quick."

Periard may have been too slow to be a running back, but on the defensive line, he earned the nickname "Fast Eddie" because - let's face it - offensive linemen are often the slowest guys on the field. Periard used his cat-like speed to go around blockers and make tackles. Eventually, teams started double-teaming Periard to a) keep him contained, and b) try to inflict some damage on his diminutive frame.

During the 1970 Colorado game, he got the wind knocked out of him. As he was lying on the field, teammate Jerry Murtaugh tried to call the trainers onto the field. Gasping for breath, Periard looked up at Murtaugh and said "I'll kick your ass if you allow me to go off this field. I'm not leaving. You shut your mouth." Laughing, Murtaugh helped Periard up, and they finished the game.

The following week, Murtaugh got the wind knocked out of him after a play. Periard came and stood over his linebacker. "Murt," he said wryly "you want us to call for a stretcher to get you off the field?" If you've ever lost your breath after a hit, you know it can be hard to get it back. It's even harder when you're laughing.

In his senior season (1970), Periard had 79 total tackles (second on the team behind Murtaugh) and a team-high 15 tackles for loss. I'd wager he is the one last first-team all-conference lineman from a power conference to weigh less than 200 pounds.

On the bus ride to the stadium before the 1971 Orange Bowl, Periard learned that No. 1 Texas and No. 2 Ohio State had both lost their bowl games. This meant No. 3 Nebraska now had a chance at a national championship. "We got a shot at winning this!" he said.

Never one to waste an opportunity, 198-pound Ed Periard had seven solo tackles from the middle guard position. The LSU Tigers rushed 45 times for 51 yards.

Nebraska won the game 17-12, and earned its first national championship.

Ed Periard refusing to take "no" for an answer had a lot to do with it.

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Greatest Husker to wear 55: Russ Hochstein, Offensive Guard, 1996 - 2000

There is a famous axiom in sports: You never want to be the guy who follows The Guy.

But nobody talks about the challenge of being the guy who follows The GOAT who followed The Legend.

That was Frank Solich's situation in 1998.

He was replacing Tom Osborne, who won 255 games and three national championships in 25 years. Osborne had replaced Bob Devaney (101 wins and two natties in 11 seasons).

No pressure. How are you feeling, Frank?

''I don't know if intimidation or fear are the right words,” Solich said on the day he was hired in 1997, ''but there's a lot of anxiety I have right now.''

The 1998 season had some opening-year bumps and blips. Tim Rattay and Louisiana Tech threw for 590 yards in the season opener (a 56-27 Nebraska win). The Huskers lost their first regular-season Big 12 game - ever - at No. 18 Texas A&M. On Halloween, the Texas Longhorns broke Nebraska's 47-game winning streak at Memorial Stadium (which dated back to 1991). The Huskers would drop two more games to top 5 teams (40-30 to No. 2 Kansas State and 23-20 to No. 5 Arizona in the Holiday Bowl) to finish 9-4. It was Nebraska's first four-loss season since 1968.

The season - especially coming off three national championships in four years - felt disappointing. But it was understandable. Starting quarterback Bobby Newcombe hurt his knee in the opener. When freshman Eric Crouch went down a few weeks later, former walk-on Monte Christo was called on to lead the offense. Ahman Green, the second-leading rushing in school history who would have been a senior in 1997, was in the NFL. Defensively, a lot of the talent from the championship teams left the program.

But the 1998 team did have budding stars like Crouch, Newcombe, Dominic Raiola and Russ Hochstein. A redshirt sophomore from Hartington, Neb., Hoch was an honorable mention All-Big 12 performer despite starting only the final four games of the season.

The remainder of Russ Hochstein's career (1999 and 2000) felt like the Nebraska of old.

1999 was a bounce-back year. Nebraska finished 12-1, winning the Big 12 Conference championship game (NU's most recent conference crown). A four-point loss at Texas, hindered by three Husker fumbles, was the Huskers' only blemish. Longtime defensive coordinator Charlie McBride retired after the season. As a junior in 1999, Hochstein started full time and averaged over 10 pancake blocks per game. He has a first-team All-Big 12 selection.

Before the 2000 season, Offensive line coach Milt Tenopir raved about Hochstein: "If you had to identify the ideal lineman, Russ would be that guy. His size, quickness, effort and love for the game would rank him as one of the outstanding linemen that have come through our program. He is a great leader on and off the field. In starting a team, Russ would be one of the first players you would pick."

Hochstein went on to back up his coach's glowing praise. He was a consensus first-team All-Big 12 choice and a first-team All-American in 2000. In Nebraska's overtime win against Notre Dame,* he set a school record with 23 pancakes.

*Let's do a quick sidebar on that Notre Dame game. Nebraska's first trip to South Bend since 1947 was THE road trip of a lifetime. Officially, Nebraska was allotted 4,000 tickets. An estimated 25,000 red-clad Husker fans begged, borrowed and bought their way into the 80,000-seat Notre Dame Stadium.

My buddies and I paid $300 each for tickets - about $550 in 2025 dollars - and it was worth every last penny. The Notre Dame fans were awesome, the tailgating was great, the game was tremendous, and the stories…. Oh, the stories will last a lifetime. Out of respect for the professionals and business owners I went with, those will remain offline. I will tell you that I have watched Nebraska play in 15 different stadiums and that was easily the most enjoyable experience I've had on the road.

Nebraska fans had a well-earned reputation for travelling well long before the 2000 Notre Dame game. But the takeover of the game in the shadow of Touchdown Jesus cemented Nebraska's legacy as one of the great - if not the best - fan bases in all of college sports.

In addition to the aforementioned overtime win at Notre Dame, the 2000 season was another strong showing. The Huskers finished 10-2 with the only losses coming at the No. 3 and No. 16 teams (Oklahoma and Kansas State).

When Russ Hochstein went off to the NFL to begin his long - and Super Bowl-winning - career, Frank Solich was 31-7 in his first three years. Most fans and pundits believed that would continue for years to come. As we'll discuss later, that was not necessarily the case.

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Greatest Husker to wear 53: Randy Schleusener, Offensive Guard, 1977 - 1980

In the 1971 Game of the Century between Nebraska and Oklahoma, Tom Osborne and Barry Switzer were the offensive coordinators for their respective teams. Osborne's I-formation attack scored 35 points that day, four more than Switzer's wishbone.

In 1973, both Switzer and Osborne became head coaches. Switzer dominated the early rounds, winning 27-0, 28-14, 35-10, 20-17 and 38-7 in their first five meetings.

Before the 1978 game, Tom Osborne was interviewed by ABC. Coach, what are your thoughts about playing OU?

"Every game against the Sooners takes on a great deal of importance for us," Osborne said on the telecast. "I think a lot of the people in Nebraska have narrowed it down to almost a one-game season where you can do pretty well, but if you don't beat Oklahoma, you've had a bad year. So, naturally, there's a lot of heat on us to win."

Osborne was 54-15-2 (.775) as Nebraska's head coach when he said those words.

The pressure to beat the Sooners and get back to the championship ways of the Devaney era was a big reason why Osborne gave serious consideration to becoming Colorado's head coach.*

*Osborne was offered the Colorado job - and a sizable pay raise - a few weeks after the 1978 OU game. Osborne and his wife, Nancy, went to Boulder in December 1978 to meet with CU officials and consider the offer. Colorado had a lot to offer: more money, less pressure to win, and Osborne - an avid fisherman - would have enjoyed the mountain streams.

In the end, Osborne declined the offer. He realized that success only boosts expectations, which would increase the pressure - and decrease his fishing time. Money is nice, but it was never a core motivator for Osborne, who often shared his raises with his staff. 

Most importantly, he could not imagine coaching against his former players.

So, yeah… there was a little bit of pressure in 1978 to beat Oklahoma for the first time since the Game of the Century, even if the Sooners came in as the No. 1 team in the country.

The 1978 game is one of the greatest games in school history.  The 99th consecutive sellout crowd is still mentioned as one of the loudest ever, despite it being an 11 a.m. kickoff in weather that - in a words of ABC's Keith Jackson - was "cold enough to make a brass monkey clank, I'll tell you that." John Ruud's punishing hit on an Oklahoma kickoff is likely in the five most-watched Husker highlights. Another big hit - Jeff Hanson on Heisman winner Billy Sims - caused a fumble that secured a 17-14 win.

It is the only time Nebraska has beaten a No. 1-ranked team in Memorial Stadium. Randy Schleusner, a sophomore guard from Rapid City, played on special teams.

Osborne's reward for finally knocking off the Sooners? A rematch with them in the Orange Bowl after the Missouri Tigers upset NU in the regular-season finale. Nebraska lost the rematch 31-24.

So it was for Osborne against Switzer. He had to work for everything he got and often felt the need to dig into his bag of tricks for an edge. Late in the 1979 game, NU was trailing 17-7 and was facing third-and-14 from the OU 15. Osborne called his first fumblerooski, where the quarterback took the snap and placed the ball on the ground for a guard pulling to the side opposite of the play fakes being carried out by the backs.*

*The fumblerooski did not come from the football genius brain of Tom Osborne. The Huskers were watching film of a Texan they were recruiting and saw the play.

Randy Schleusner, now a starting guard, scored a touchdown on the fumblerooski to make it a 17-14 game. Nebraska would get two more possessions in the last three minutes of the game, but a Jeff Quinn interception and a turnover on downs sealed Nebraska's fate. The 1980 game, another one-score loss, would be decided by another Osborne nemesis: Sooner Magic, as Buster Rhymes scored with 56 seconds left in the game.

The 1979 and 1980 teams both finished 10-2 and ranked in the top 10. But Nebraska fans do not look as fondly upon those teams as some of the others in Osborne's tenure - mainly because they did not beat Oklahoma. That's a shame, because they were good teams with great players.

Randy Schleusener was an excellent guard on those Nebraska teams at the end of the 1970s.  He was a team captain as a senior in 1980 and earned All-Big Eight and All-America honors. Equally impressive in the classroom, Schleusner was a two-time academic All-American and a winner of the prestigious NCAA Today's Top Eight.


He was a ninth-round draft pick of the Cleveland Browns, but he never played in the NFL. Instead, he chose to come back to school to earn his medical doctorate. He is a practicing spinal surgeon in his native Rapid City, South Dakota.

After the 1980 game, Osborne was now 1-8 against Switzer, but the tide was about to turn.

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Greatest Husker to wear 52: Tom Davis, Center, 1974 - 1977

The original plan was for Tom Osborne to become Nebraska's head football coach in 1972.

But then the 1971 team - one of the greatest college football teams of all time - rolled to a national championship, Nebraska's second in a row. With a ton of talent coming back in 1972, Bob Devaney chose to delay his coaching retirement and try for a three-peat.

Despite having two of the program's all-time greatest players (Johnny Rodgers and Rich Glover), the 1972 team finished 9-2-1. The two losses were by a total of six points. In the two losses and tie, Nebraska had a total of 19 turnovers. The Huskers dismantled Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl 40-6 and ended the season ranked fourth. Afterward, Devaney focused on his role as athletic director, and Osborne took over as Nebraska's head coach.*

*As you likely know, Osborne was Devaney's hand-picked successor.  But not everybody was 100% convinced Osborne was the right choice - including some coaches on the staff.  Several of Devaney's assistants - Monte Kiffin, Warren Powers, Carl Selmer and Jim Walden - had head coaching aspirations of their own.  Kiffin and Powers were Nebraska grads, and all four had been on Devaney's staff longer than Osborne.  I think it is fair to say there was some disappointment from these men when they were passed over in favor of the young hotshot offensive coordinator.

Kiffin and Powers, the two Nebraska alums, coached on Osborne's staff for four seasons.  They both moved on after the 1976 season.  Kiffin was defensive coordinator at Arkansas before spending three years as North Carolina State's head coach.  Kiffin went onto a Super Bowl winning career as a defensive coordinator with Tampa Bay.  Powers became the head coach at Washington State and Missouri.  Twice, his teams upset Osborne's Huskers.

Selmer and Walden left after the 1972 season for Miami (Fla.).  Selmer was the offensive coordinator for two seasons (with Walden as an offensive position coach).  In 1975, Selmer was promoted to Miami's head coach, and he made Walden his defensive coordinator.  The Hurricanes played at Nebraska in 1975 and 1976.  Osborne's Huskers won both of those meetings.  Selmer was fired after the 1976 season.  Walden succeeded Powers as the head coach at Washington State and later coached at Iowa State.  Walden was the coach for the Cyclones' 1992 upset of Nebraska.

Six months before coaching his first game, Osborne spoke at a Fellowship of Christian Athletes banquet in Omaha. The audience gave him a standing ovation. "I wish you wouldn’t do that to me," Osborne said. "I haven’t won a single game yet."

Osborne would win his debut on Sept. 8, 1973, beating UCLA 40-13. His first loss would come a month later, by one point, at Missouri. Oklahoma State played NU to a 17-17 tie. Oklahoma, who also had a first-year head coach (Barry Switzer), shut out Nebraska 27-0.* Osborne closed out his first season with a Cotton Bowl win over Texas.

*That was the first of three shutout losses in Osborne's 25-year career. The others: the 1992 Orange Bowl against Miami and the 1996 Arizona State game. That's it. Kirk Ferentz's Iowa Hawkeyes were shut out three times in the 2023 season.

The 1974 season played out in a similar fashion. Eight regular-season wins, a close loss to Mizzou, another road clunker (this time, a loss at Wisconsin*), and a no-doubt loss to the Sooners. A bowl game win (over Florida in the Sugar Bowl) secured nine wins and another top-10 finish.

*This was Wisconsin 16 years before Barry Alvarez. The 1974 Badgers finished 7-4, which was their best record between 1962 and 1993. 

At most schools, two straight top-10 finishes would be a reason for parades. At Nebraska, where Devaney had just taken the Cornhuskers to unprecedented heights, it led to some grumbling. Some fans wondered if Devaney should have promoted Kiffin.

Robert Allen, a University of Nebraska regent and retail store owner from Osborne's hometown of Hastings, wrote a letter to Osborne after the 1974 OU loss. The key point: Allen thought Osborne's offense was too predictable. Osborne wrote back, "I think I know more about retail than you know about football."

Such was life for the young coach tasked with replacing a legend. It took a while for Tom Osborne to find his footing.

The 1975 season was better. NU started 10-0 before dropping back-to-back games against Oklahoma and Arizona State in the Fiesta Bowl.*

*This was the first of six times Osborne would lose back-to-back games. Tom Osborne never lost three games in a row as a head coach. Although, the first game of the 1976 season was a tie, meaning Osborne did have one three-game winless stretch in 25 years.

In 1976, Tom Davis, a standout athlete from Omaha North, got his chance to be the starting center. He had been with Osborne from the beginning, playing on the freshman team in 1973, redshirting in 1974, and backing up two-time All-American Rik Bonness as a sophomore.

In 1976, Bonness was off to the NFL, and it was Davis's turn.  Davis was an honorable mention All-Big Eight player at center, providing protection for quarterback Vince Ferragamo to put up one of the greatest passing seasons in Nebraska history. Nebraska finished 9-3-1. Osborne, unhappy with the direction of his offense, made some changes (which we'll talk about in more depth at #49).

That set up the 1977 season - Davis's senior year. Davis was a first team All-Big Eight pick and earned first-team All-America honors. Osborne called Davis "the best center Nebraska has ever had" which was very high praise considering NU's history at the position and the two-time All-American Davis replaced. Davis was elected to the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame in 2003.

The 1976 Huskers were once again 9-3, but there was a palpable shift going on. Osborne's offense was evolving. More importantly, he was becoming comfortable as Nebraska's head coach.

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Greatest Husker to wear 51: Mick Tingelhoff, Center, 1958 - 1961

At the start of this project, I said that a player's NFL success would not be the primary selection criteria. I want this countdown to be about what a player accomplished while wearing the scarlet and cream, not what he did after leaving Lincoln.

But Mick Tingelhoff is the exception to that rule. His résumé - and story - is just too strong to ignore.

He started 259 consecutive games for the Minnesota Vikings. That is still the longest streak for an offensive lineman and is tied for 12th longest in NFL history. Ironically, Tingelhoff did not become a starter at Nebraska until his senior season.

Tingelhoff grew up on the family farm outside Lexington, Nebraska. His German immigrant parents thought football was "a waste of time." They may have been right: as a high school sophomore, his Lexington High team went 0-9. His parents never attended one of his games - they were too busy on the farm.

But by his senior season, Tingelhoff and his Lexington teammates - including Monte Kiffin, a future Husker and NFL legend in his own right - went 9-0, winning a state title and allowing just one touchdown all season.

1957-58 was a year of change for the Tingelhoff family: They got electricity for the first time, and despite his parents' wishes that he would stay on the farm, Mick went to Lincoln on scholarship.

Mick Tingelhoff didn't have a stellar career at Nebraska. He lettered three years, backing up Don Fricke in his first two seasons. As a senior, he was named a team captain but did not earn all-conference honors as NU's starting center. The Bill Jennings-led teams he played on won a total of 10 games in his three varsity seasons.

The biggest highlight from his playing career was the Halloween 1959 game against Oklahoma. The Sooners had won 74 consecutive conference games. Nebraska had not beaten Oklahoma since 1942. The Memorial Stadium goal posts were torn down for the first time and paraded down to the Governor's Mansion. Classes were canceled the following Monday. Tinglehoff was pictured carrying coach Jennings off the field.

Tingelhoff received invites for the Senior Bowl and All-American Bowl but did not get selected in the 20 rounds of the 1962 NFL Draft. He signed as a free agent with the Minnesota Vikings. That's where his career took off.

He started for the Vikings as a rookie - the first of his 259 consecutive starts over 17 seasons. He played in four Super Bowls and six Pro Bowls, and he earned All-NFL honors seven times. His NFL number (53) was retired by the Vikings, who inducted him into their Ring of Honor. Two of his Husker teammates (Pat Fischer and Ron McDole) also had lengthy pro football careers. Fischer played 17 seasons and McDole had 18 between the NFL and AFL.

Mick Tingelhoff was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2015, just the fourth Cornhusker to reach the pinnacle of professional football. (Will Shields, who was also inducted in 2015, is the fifth).

Not too shabby for a farm kid from Lexington.