Nebraska 21
Colorado 19

Oct. 22, 1966 • 2:30 p.m. Central
Folsom Field •Boulder, CO
1st2nd3rd4th F 
Nebraska7001421
Colorado6130019
First Quarter
NU: Ben Gregory 14 pass from Bob Churchich (Larry Wachholtz kick) 10:26
CU: Wilmer Cooks 2 run (kick failed) 4:41
Second Quarter
CU: Cooks 1 run (Farler kick) 9:29
CU: Larry Plantz 29 pass from Dan Kelly (run failed) 3:39
Fourth Quarter
NU: Dennis Morrison 11 pass from Churchich (Wachholtz kick) 10:42
NU: Pete Tatman 2 run (Wachholtz kick) 0:53

                           NU       CU
First downs ............   21       18
Rushing net ............   68      265
Passing net  ...........  236       99
  Comp-Att-Int ...... 20-34-0   6-17-2
Total offense ..........  304      364
Punts ................ 8-43.5   8-32.7
Fumbles lost .............. 1        1
Yards penalized ........... 5       55

RUSHING
NU: H.Wilson 8-30; B.Gregory 10-29; P.Tatman 8-26; C.Winters 3-20; D.Davis 3-6; B.Churchich 8-minus-35.

CU: D.Kelly 25-115, W.Harris 12-68; W.Cooks 15-57; L.Plantz 1-13; D.O'Dell 2-8; E.Banks 1-4.

PASSING
NU: B.Churchich 20-34-236 0 INT, 2 TD
CU: D.Kelly 6-17-99 2 INT, 1 TD

RECEIVING
NU: D.Morrison 8-108; T.Penney 5-63; B.Gregory 3-26; M.Kimmel 1-20; H.Wilson 3-19

CU: L.Plantz 5-81; J.Farler 1-18

Attendance: 46,112

1966 Nebraska-Colorado game ball
Game ball, 1966 Nebraska vs. Colorado.

Coverage

Recap

Huskers rally past Buffaloes in 4th quarter

Nebraska spotted Colorado a 19-7 lead, then tore back in the final minutes to pull out a 21-19 victory and remain undefeated.

It was one of the great Cornhusker comebacks. Bob Churchich went on a pitching spree and fired the Huskers on drives of 63 yards and 65 yards in the final 13 minutes as a crowd of 46,112 (including more than 15,000 Nebraska fans) went wild.

Denied a TD at the end of the third period when the officials ruled Churchich failed to get in the end zone after a 72-yard drive, Churchich roared back.

churchich (1K)
Churchich

He hit three passes, then a TD strike to end Dennis Morrison with 10:42 left, making it 19-14. The Huskers couldn’t move the next time, but three times the NU defense forced Buff punts.

With 2:32 left, NU got the ball again and Churchich hollered “Charge!” He hit passes of 8, 6, 12, 5 and a 16-yarder to Tom Penney at the CU 9 to set the stage. Three plunges sent Pete Tatman in for the game-winning TD with 53 seconds left.

Churchich set Nebraska records with 20 of 34 passes for 236 yards.

Nebraska scored first on a 14-yard pass to Ben Gregory, but the Buffs roared back late in the first quarter. Although the Buffs missed the PAT kick, they took the lead 13-7 in the second period as little QB Dan Kelly gave the Scarlets fits. Kelly hit a 29-yard pass to Larry Plantz for another TD with 3:39 left in the half.

It looked like a kayo for the Huskers, but they regrouped and came through like the champions they were in a magnificent final effort.

    H’MAX NOTES:

  • Nebraska didn’t need to go far for its first TD. Colorado’s Charlie Greer muffed Joe Armstrong’s punt, and NU’s Dick Davis recovered the ball at the CU 16.
  • Colorado quarterback Dan Kelly had a terrific first half, collecting 98 of his 115 rushing yards and 71 of his 99 passing yards.
  • Needing a field goal to win, the Buffs drove to the Nebraska 38 in the final seconds, but Husker defensive end Bob Weinman sacked Kelly for a 14-yard loss, and then Larry Wachholtz intercepted a Kelly pass on the 28 with five seconds left.
  • By the Denver Post’s estimate, 20,000 Husker fans were in attendance.
Pregame & team info
1966 schedule
05/14Whites 28, Reds 10
09/17TCUW 14-10
09/24Utah St.W 28-7
10/01@ Iowa St.W 12-6
10/08@ WisconsinW 31-3
10/15Kansas St.W 21-10
10/22@ ColoradoW 21-19
10/29MissouriW 35-0
11/05@ KansasW 24-13
11/12Oklahoma St.W 21-6
11/24@ OklahomaL 9-10
01/02AlabamaL 7-34
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