2004 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team

2004 Nebraska Cornhuskers football
Conference	Big 12 Conference
Division	North Division
Record	5–6 (3–5 Big 12)
Head coach	Bill Callahan (1st season)
Offensive coordinator	Jay Norvell (1st season)
Offensive scheme	West Coast
Defensive coordinator	Kevin Cosgrove (1st season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium

2004 Big 12 Conference football standings

	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
North Division
Colorado xy		4	–	4					8	–	5
Iowa State x		4	–	4					7	–	5
Nebraska		3	–	5					5	–	6
Missouri		3	–	5					5	–	6
Kansas		2	–	6					4	–	7
Kansas State		2	–	6					4	–	7
South Division
No. 3 Oklahoma xy$		8	–	0					12	–	1
No. 5 Texas  %		7	–	1					11	–	1
Texas A&M		5	–	3					7	–	5
No. 18 Texas Tech		5	–	3					8	–	4
Oklahoma State		4	–	4					7	–	5
Baylor		1	–	7					3	–	8
Championship: Oklahoma 42, Colorado 3
$ – BCS representative as conference champion % – BCS at-large representative x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

The 2004 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team represented the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in the 2004 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was coached by Bill Callahan and played their home games in Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska. This was Nebraska's first losing season since 1961.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 4	6:00 pm	No. 12 (I-AA) Western Illinois*	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE	PPV	W 56–17	77,471
September 11	11:00 am	Southern Miss*	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE	ABC	L 17–21	77,887
September 18	11:00 am	at Pittsburgh*	Heinz Field Pittsburgh, PA	ABC	W 24–17	40,133
October 2	6:10 pm	Kansas	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE (rivalry)	PPV	W 14–8	77,637
October 9	6:10 pm	at Texas Tech	Jones SBC Stadium Lubbock, TX	TBS	L 10–70	52,954
October 16	1:05 pm	Baylor	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE		W 59–27	77,881
October 23	1:10 pm	at Kansas State	KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS (rivalry)		L 21–45	52,234
October 30	11:00 am	Missouri	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE (rivalry)	FSN	W 24–3	77,616
November 6	1:00 pm	at Iowa State	Jack Trice Stadium Ames, IA (rivalry)		L 27–34	45,022
November 13	6:00 pm	at No. 2 Oklahoma	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium Norman, OK (rivalry)	FSN	L 3–30	84,916
November 26	11:00 am	Colorado	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE (rivalry)	ABC	L 20–26	77,661
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

Roster and coaching staff

2004 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB 7 Jordan Adams So WR 27 Willie Amos Sr G 71 Jake Andersen Sr OL 65 Greg Austin So WR 38 Brandon Biodrowski Sr WR 19 Andy Birkel So OL 59 Brett Byford RFr OL 62 Andy Christensen Fr QB 12 Joe Dailey (C) So QB 15 Beau Davis Fr OT 67 Darren DeLone Sr WR 26 Dan Erickson RFr OL 78 Mike Erickson Sr OT 77 Seppo Evwaraye Jr WR 28 Isaiah Fluellen So OL 79 Cornealius Fuamatu-Thomas Jr QB 13 Joe Ganz Fr QB 17 Garth Glissman Jr QB 6 Ryan Goodman Fr IB 30 Tierre Green RFr OL 73 Jared Helming Jr TE 11 Matt Herian Jr TE 42 Sean Hill RFr IB 9 David Horne Jr OL 61 Mike Huff Fr RB 32 Brandon Jackson Fr WR 31 Joel Jackson Sr TE 47 Dusty Keiser Sr WR 89 Tyler Kenney So G 75 Brandon Koch Jr FB 45 Steve Kriewald Sr IB 36 Thomas Lawson Fr WR 10 Mark LeFlore Jr OL 74 Newton Lingenfelter So OL Chris Loos OL 64 Kurt Mann So WR 5 Shamus McKoy Jr WR 18 Mike McLaughlin Jr FB 33 Grant Miller So QB 8 Zach Miller RFr TE 81 Josh Mueller RFr WR 84 Grant Mulkey So OL 76 Lydon Murtha Fr WR 83 Terrence Nunn Fr WR 24 Jack O'Holleran Sr WR 80 Santino Panico Fr OL 54 Chris Patrick RFr WR 21 Todd Peterson Fr TE 85 J.B. Phillips RFr OL 56 Gary Pike Jr WR 2 Ross Pilkington (C) Jr IB 25 Kade Pittman RFr OL 69 Nick Povendo Sr IB 4 Cory Ross Jr IB 37 Mike Sampogna Fr TE 48 Andy Sand RFr WR 14 Matt Schroeder Jr TE 83 Chris Septak Sr TE 88 Clayton Sievers Fr QB 16 Mike Stuntz Jr WR 87 Nate Swift Fr OL 57 Cory Timm So FB 41 Dane Todd So WR 20 Kiffin Wigert Sr WR 3 Ben Zajicek Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DT 96 Titus Adams Jr CB 16 Cole Biodrowski Jr DE 48 Adam Blankenship Fr SLB 34 Stewart Bradley So LB 40 Lance Brandenburgh Fr CB 21 Titus Brothers RFr DT 65 Chris Bryant So SS 14 Daniel Bullocks Jr FS 20 Josh Bullocks (C) Jr FS 36 Dan Burrow Sr DE 90 Adam Carriker So LB 11 Ira Cooper Sr CB 6 Donald DeFrand Jr SS 46 Ben Eisenhart RFr FS 15 Tyler Fisher Jr SS 18 Travis Gingery RFr DT 99 Brandon Greeson So DB 26 Cortney Grixby Fr CB 29 Kellen Huston Sr LB 49 Adam Ickes Jr DT 95 Nathan Krug Jr CB 35 Chris LeFlore RFr LB 52 Tyler Lueck Fr DE 89 Kevin Luhrs RFr DT 50 Jeff McBride Sr LB 13 Corey McKeon RFr CB 1 Lornell McPherson Sr DE 44 Jay Moore So DE 55 Wali Muhammad Jr DT 58 Danny Muy Fr DE 56 Trevor Neemann RFr DT 63 Matt O'Shea Jr DE 86 Andy Poulosky RFr LB 53 Mitch Reeves So DE 85 Thomas Rice RFr SS 24 Brandon Rigoni So CB 30 Joey Robison Jr LB 51 Bo Ruud RFr LB 38 Barrett Ruud (C) Sr FS 8 Andrew Shanle So SS 23 Shane Siegel Jr LB 54 Chad Sievers Sr DT 66 Le Kevin Smith Jr DE 43 Ty Steinkuhler Fr DT 74 Brandon Teamer So DE 5 Benard Thomas Sr SS 25 Blake Tiedtke Jr CB 3 Fabian Washington Jr LB 91 Tyler Wortman Fr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class PK 22 Sandro DeAngelis Sr PK 27 David Dyches So P 90 Tyler Kester RFr P 37 Sam Koch Jr PK 91 Eric Lueshen RFr PK 92 Jared Nielsen RFr LS 94 Jake Peetz RFr P 97 Dan Titchener Fr PK 98 Jake Wesch Fr	Head coach Bill Callahan    1st season    1st year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Benedictine Coordinators/assistant coaches Jay Norvell    1st season as OC/QB coach    1st year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Iowa Kevin Cosgrove    1st season as DC/LB coach    1st year at Nebraska    Alma mater: UW-Oshkosh John Blake    1st season as DL coach    1st year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Oklahoma Bill Busch    1st season as OLB coach    5th year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Nebraska Wesleyan Scott Downing    2nd season as TE/ST coach    5th year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Sterling Phil Elmassian    1st season as Sec coach    1st year at Nebraska    Alma mater: William & Mary Turner Gill    1st season as WR coach    13th year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Nebraska Randy Jordan    1st season as RB coach    1st year at Nebraska    Alma mater: North Carolina Dennis Wagner    1st season as OL coach    1st year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Utah Michael Christianson    1st season as Special Assistant coach    1st year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Western Oregon Dave Kennedy    1st season as S&C coach    8th year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Nebraska Aaron Stamn    1st season as GA coach    1st year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Minnesota Mankato Dan McLaughlin    1st season as GA coach    1st year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Bellevue College Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: January 16, 2011

Depth chart

Defense
FS Josh Bullocks Andrew Shanle ⋅		WILL MIKE SAM Chad Sievers Barrett Ruud Stewart Bradley Mark Brungardt Ira Cooper Bo Ruud ⋅ ⋅ ⋅					SS Daniel Bullocks Shane Siegel ⋅
CB Fabian Washington Cortney Grixby ⋅		DE DT DT DE Benard Thomas Le Kevin Smith Titus Adams Adam Carriker Jay Moore Jeff McBride Brandon Teamer Wali Muhammad ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅						CB Lornell McPherson Kellen Huston ⋅
Offense
WR Ross Pilkington Willie Amos Z Grant Mulkey Matt Schroeder		LT LG C RG RT Mike Erickson Brandon Koch Kurt Mann Jake Andersen Seppo Evwarye Darren DeLone Greg Austin Gary Pike Jared Helming Nick Povendo ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅					TE Matt Herian Dusty Keiser J.B Phillips	WR Terrence Nunn Mark LeFlore ⋅
				QB Joe Dailey Ryan Goodman ⋅
		RB Cory Ross Tierre Green Brandon Jackson			FB Steve Kriewald Dana Todd ⋅		Special teams PK Sandro Deangelis P Sam Koch KR Tierre Green Brandon Jacson PR Santino Panico LS \

Game summaries

Western Illinois

Western Illinois at Nebraska [box score]

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Western Illinois	0	3	14	0	17
• Nebraska	14	28	7	7	56

• Date: September 4
• Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
• Game start: 6:00 p.m. CST
• Game attendance: 77,471
• TV announcers (PPV): Dave Armstrong (Play-by-Play), J. C. Pearson (Color), & Steve Taylor (Sideline)

Southern Miss

Southern Miss at Nebraska [box score]

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
• Southern Miss	6	3	6	6	21
Nebraska	0	3	14	0	17

• Date: September 11
• Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
• Game start: 11:10 a.m. CST
• Game attendance: 77,887
• TV announcers (ABC): Gary Gerould (Play-by-Play), Ray Bentley (Color), & Vince Welch (Sideline)

at Pittsburgh

Nebraska at Pittsburgh [box score]

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
• Nebraska	10	14	0	0	24
Pittsburgh	7	3	0	7	17

• Date: September 18
• Location: Heinz Field, Pittsburgh
• Game start: 11:00 a.m. CST
• Game attendance: 40,133
• TV announcers (ABC): Brent Musburger (Play-by-Play), Gary Danielson (Color), & Jack Arute (Sideline)

Kansas

Kansas at Nebraska [box score]

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Kansas	2	3	3	0	8
• Nebraska	0	7	7	0	14

• Date: October 2
• Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
• Game start: 6:10 p.m. CST
• Game attendance: 77,637
• TV announcers (PPV): Dave Armstrong (Play-by-Play), J. C. Pearson (Color), & John Kelly (Sideline)

at Texas Tech

Nebraska Cornhuskers at Texas Tech Red Raiders – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Cornhuskers	0	3	7	0	10
Red Raiders	7	14	21	28	70

at Jones SBC Stadium, Lubbock, Texas

• Date: October 9
• Game time: 7:00 p.m.
• Game weather: Temperature: 55 °F (13 °C) • Weather: Partly cloudy • Wind: N 6 MPH
• Game attendance: 52,594
• Referee: John Laurie
• TV announcers (TBS): Ron Thulin, Charles Davis, and Craig Sager
• Box score, Recap

Game information

First quarter TTU – Jarrett Hicks 22-yard pass from Sonny Cumbie (Alex Trlica kick), 6:23. Red Raiders 7–0. Drive: 11 plays, 74 yards, 4:11. Second quarter TTU – Taurean Henderson 3-yard run (Alex Trlica kick), 10:35. Red Raiders 14–0. Drive: 7 plays, 86 yards, 2:23. NEB – David Dyches 46-yard field goal, 4:53. Red Raiders 14–3. Drive: 4 plays, -2 yards, 0:53. TTU – Jarrett Hicks 80-yard pass from Sonny Cumbie (Alex Trlica kick), 1:14. Red Raiders 21–3. Drive: 2 plays, 85 yards, 0:50. Third quarter NEB – Mark LeFlore 74-yard pass from Joe Dailey (David Dyches kick), 14:07. Red Raiders 21–10. Drive: 3 plays, 80 yards, 0:53. TTU – Johnnie Mack 6-yard pass from Sonny Cumbie (Alex Trlica kick), 4:16. Red Raiders 28–10. Drive: 10 plays, 69 yards, 5:36. TTU – Bristol Olomua 3-yard pass from Sonny Cumbie (Alex Trlica kick), 2:24. Red Raiders 35–10. Drive: 4 plays, 41 yards, 1:23. TTU – Johnnie Mack 14-yard run (Alex Trlica kick), 2:03. Red Raiders 42–10. Drive: 1 play, 14 yards, 0:07. Fourth quarter TTU – Taurean Henderson 1-yard run (Alex Trlica kick), 11:16. Red Raiders 49–10. Drive: 14 plays, 64 yards, 5:37. TTU – Nehemiah Glover 2-yard pass from Sonny Cumbie (Alex Trlica kick), 9:36. Red Raiders 56–10. Drive: 3 plays, 8 yards, 1:27. TTU – Johnie Mack 6-yard run (Alex Trlica kick), 9:05. Red Raiders 63–10. Drive: 2 plays, 6 yards, 0:13. TTU – Taurean Henderson 6-yard pass from Cody Hodges (Alex Trlica kick), 7:14. Red Raiders 70–10. Drive: 1 play, 12 yards, 0:20. Top passers NEB – Joe Dailey – 14/34, 187 yards, TD, INT TTU – Sonny Cumbie – 44/56, 436 yards, 5 TD, INT Top rushers NEB – Cory Ross – 15 rushes, 49 yards TTU – Taurean Henderson – 7 rushes, 38 yards, 2 TD Top receivers NEB – Mark LeFlore – 5 receptions, 110 yards, TD TTU – Jarrett Hicks – 3 receptions, 107 yards, 2 TD

Texas Tech forced eight turnovers while only committing one and had 523 yards of total offense while Nebraska only had 292. The 70 points given up and the 60 point margin of defeat are both the largest in Nebraska school history. In 2020, the Omaha World-Herald ranked this game as the seventh most painful loss in the Cornhuskers' history since a 36–62 loss to Colorado in 2001.

Baylor

Baylor at Nebraska [box score]

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Baylor	3	0	21	3	27
• Nebraska	7	24	7	21	59

• Date: October 16
• Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
• Game start: 1:05 p.m. CST
• Game attendance: 77,881

at Kansas State

Nebraska at Kansas State [box score]

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Nebraska	7	7	7	0	21
• Kansas State	14	10	14	7	45

• Date: October 23
• Location: KSU Stadium, Manhattan, Kansas
• Game start: 1:10 p.m. CST
• Game attendance: 52,234

Missouri

Missouri at Nebraska [box score]

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Missouri	0	3	0	0	3
• Nebraska	3	7	7	7	24

• Date: October 30
• Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
• Game start: 11:00 a.m. CST
• Game attendance: 77,616
• TV announcers (FSN): Joel Meyers (Play-by-Play), Dave Lapham (Color), & Jim Knox (Sideline)

• Source: ESPN

Scoring summary

1	11:14	NEB	Sandro DeAngelis 41 yard field goal	NEB 3–0
2	14:46	MIZZ	Joe Tantarelli 39 yard field goal	Tied 3–3
2	9:42	NEB	Adam Ickes 16 yard blocked punt return (Sandro DeAngelis kick)	NEB 10–3
3	1:34	NEB	Cory Ross 15 yard run (Sandro DeAngelis kick)	NEB 17–3
4	2:56	NEB	Cory Ross 86 yard run (Sandro DeAngelis kick)	NEB 24–3

at Iowa State

Nebraska at Iowa State [box score]

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Nebraska	0	7	13	7	27
• Iowa State	10	14	10	0	34

• Date: November 6
• Location: Jack Trice Stadium, Ames, Iowa
• Game start: 1:00 p.m. CST
• Game attendance: 45,022

at Oklahoma

Nebraska at Oklahoma [box score]

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Nebraska	0	0	0	3	3
• Oklahoma	3	20	7	0	30

• Date: November 13
• Location: Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, Norman, Oklahoma
• Game start: 6:10 p.m. CST
• Game attendance: 84,916
• TV announcers (FSN): Kevin Eschenfelder (Play-by-Play), Gary Reasons (Color), & John Rhadigan (Sideline)

Colorado

Colorado at Nebraska [box score]

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
• Colorado	10	10	6	0	26
Nebraska	0	7	0	13	20

• Date: November 26
• Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
• Game start: 11:10 a.m. CST
• Game attendance: 77,661
• TV announcers (ABC): Terry Gannon (Play-by-Play), Terry Bowden, Tim Brant (Colors), & Suzy Shuster (Sideline)

Rankings

See also: 2004 NCAA Division I-A football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: — = Not ranked

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Coaches	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Harris	Not released				—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Not released
BCS	Not released							—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Not released

After the season

Nebraska finished tied for 3rd place in the Big 12 North Division and tied for 7th conference-wide, with a final record of 5–6 (3–5), its first losing season since 1961. Head Coach Bill Callahan's overall career record was established at 5–6 (.455) and 3–5 (.375) in conference. Nebraska did not play in a bowl game for the first time since 1968, ending their consecutive bowl streak at 35.

Awards

Award	Name(s)
All-America 3rd team	Barrett Ruud
All-Big 12 1st team	Barrett Ruud
All-Big 12 2nd team	Josh Bullocks
All-Big 12 honorable mention	Daniel Bullocks, Mike Erickson, Matt Herian, Kurt Mann, Cory Ross, Le Kevin Smith, Fabian Washington

NFL and pro players

The following Nebraska players who participated in the 2004 season later moved on to the next level and joined a professional or semi-pro team as draftees or free agents.

Name	Team
Titus Adams	New York Jets
Stewart Bradley	Philadelphia Eagles
Daniel Bullocks	Detroit Lions
Josh Bullocks	New Orleans Saints
Adam Carriker	St. Louis Rams
Sandro DeAngelis	Calgary Stampeders
Mike Erickson	Berlin Thunder
Seppo Evwaraye	Carolina Panthers
Joe Ganz	Washington Redskins
Cortney Grixby	Carolina Panthers
Brandon Jackson	Green Bay Packers
Sam Koch	Baltimore Ravens
Jay Moore	San Francisco 49ers
Lydon Murtha	Detroit Lions
Terrence Nunn	New England Patriots
Chris Patrick	New York Giants
Todd Peterson	Jacksonville Jaguars
Andy Poulosky	Sioux City Bandits
Cory Ross	Baltimore Ravens
Barrett Ruud	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Bo Ruud	New England Patriots
Andrew Shanle	Chicago Bears
Le Kevin Smith	New England Patriots
Ty Steinkuhler	New York Jets
Nate Swift	Denver Broncos
Fabian Washington	Oakland Raiders