Holiday Bowl Final: Washington 19, Nebraska 7

Published on December 30, 2010 by T.C.     

Jake Locker and the Washington Huskies pulled off the biggest upset of the bowl season, beating heavily favored Nebraska 19-7 tonight in the Holiday Bowl – the same Nebraska team that handed the Huskies a 56-21 shellacking early this season in Seattle.

The Huskies, 0-12 just two seasons ago, had to win their final three games of the regular season to become bowl eligible. In the school’s first bowl game since 2002, the Huskies were 14-point underdogs to the Cornhuskers.

The Huskies forged a 10-7 in the first half, then Locker ran 25 yards for a touchdown on their first possession of the second half – one play after his first pass completion of the game, a 26-yarder to D’Andre Goodwin.

The Huskies’ final points came after they drove to a first-and-goal at the Nebraska 6-yard-line. Chris Polk was stopped for no gain on fourth down from the one on the first play of the fourth quarter, and the Huskies turned the ball over on downs.

But they soon got points out of the field position when Nebraska was called for a offensive holding penalty in the end zone, resulting in a safety.

Polk scored on a three-yard run to give the Huskies a 7-0 first-quarter lead. The Huskies needed only three plays to score after Alameda Ta’amu recovered a fumble by Nebraska’s Rex Burhead and ran 14 yards to set the Huskies up at the Nebraska 21.

The Huskies made it 10-0 on Eric Folk’s 39-yard field goal late in the first quarter. UW drove 34 yards in eight plays after a Nebraska punt.

The Cornhuskers got on the board with 10:24 to play in the second quarter when quarterback Taylor Martinez passed 15 yards to Kyler Reed for a touchdown, capping a 74-yard, 10-play drive

Tags: Amu, Bowl Eligible, Bowl Game, Eight Plays, End Zone, Field Position, Fourth Quarter, Fumble, Holiday Bowl, Nebraska Cornhuskers, Nebraska Team, Pass Completion, Point Underdogs, Punt, Three Games, Three Plays, Touchdown, Two Seasons, Washington Huskies, Yard Field Goal