UP NEXT: NU vs. Missouri Radio: FM, 1400 93.3 TV: AM, FM, none. 90.3 1110 FM AM, 98.1 HUSKER EXTRA Sunday, JOURNAL October 6, STAR 2002 F Kickoff: 11:30 a.m., Saturday Memorial Stadium Sports news tips? Call John Mabry, 473-7320 www.huskerfootball.com •Page Design: Kart Vogel NEBRASKA 38, McNEESE STATE 14 Lordy, Lordy Junior QB makes strong statement as NU rebounds ERIC GREGORY/Lincoln Journal Star 'The quarterback we saw on film was different than the one we saw today. On film, he made bad decisions. He was on fire today. He knew when to keep the ball, when to pitch the ball and when to scramble.' - McNeese State defensive tackle John Paul Jones on Husker quarterback Jammal Lord (10, above fighting off defender Tim Kenebrew) After wild week, Jammal rises above it all According to quarterbacks coach Turner Gill, the Nebraska football brain trust decided Friday morning to make Jammal Lord the starter for the McNeese State game. Let the record show that the decision about next week's starting quarterback was made at about 2:30 p.m. Saturday. Look at the stat sheet from NU's 38-14 victory, and you'll see why this case is closed. My Lord, it's impressive. The junior from Bayonne, N.J., ran for 218 yards, a school record for a quarterback. He totaled 369 yards of offense, also a school record. He averaged 12.8 yards per carry and ran for three. JOHN MABRY Journal Star Sports Editor touchdowns. He completed 12 of 18 passes. Lord looked nothing like the player we all had been ripping after his efforts at Penn State and Iowa State. Exciting finishes define the week in the Big 12 The Associated Press ran for 167 yards and two scores as There might be a question as to Colorado held on beat No. 13 whether the Big 12 is the best in the Kansas State in Boulder, Colo., country, but on Saturday there was knocking the Wildcats from the no doubt that the league's games ranks of the unbeaten. Kansas State were among the most exciting. rallied from a 35-14 deficit early in Two teams ranked in The Associ- the third quarter but was held to a ated Press Top 25 poll lost and the mere three points in their final three second-ranked team had to hold off drives, all of which stalled inside the an unranked division foe in the CU 20. waning moments at home. I In College Station, Texas, Kliff - Oklahoma used some trickery Kingsbury threw his fifth TD pass in to counter the play of Missouri's overtime and Robert Treece folBrad Smith, scoring a touchdown lowed with the extra point as Texas on a fake field goal with 6:33 re- Tech rallied from an 18-point deficit maining to beat the Tigers 31-24 in to upend 23rd-ranked Texas A&M. Columbia, Mo. Holder Matt Mc- A&M's Dustin Long threw seven Coy's perfect lob to Chris Chester, touchdown passes to set a Big 12 who caught the pass between two record. The last was a 3-yard strike defenders, kept the third-ranked to Terrence Thomas in the OT that Sooners unbeaten heading into put Texas A&M ahead 47-41. But next week's game against No. 2 John Pierson missed the PAT. Texas in Dallas. Daniel Andino kicked a 33- Chris Simms passed for 267 yard field goal with a half-second yards and a touchdown, and Rod left in Waco, Texas, giving Baylor a Babers' goal-line tackle on an Okla- 35-32 win over Kansas. It was the homa State two-point conversion Bears' first conference victory since try helped Texas escape with a 17-15 beating KU on Oct. 10, 1998, a loswin in Austin, Texas. ing streak of 29 games. Robert. Hodge threw three More Big 12, national coverage, touchdown passes and Chris Brown Pages 5F-7F BY STEVEN M. SIPPLE Lincoln Journal Star After struggling in back-to-back losses, Nebraska starting quarterback Jammal Lord faced possible demotion. In fact, Lord practiced with the second-string offense earlier this week. "He was quiet and low-key," Husker center John Garrison said. "At some points, he was so quiet I was kind of worried about him." Garrison no longer needs to worry, not after the noise Lord made Saturday at Memorial Stadium. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound junior broke the school's total offense record with 369 yards in the Huskers' 38-14 win against McNeese State, a team• from Lake Charles, La., that is ranked No. 2 in Division I-AA. Lord, before a -splashed crowd of 77,192, also set a school quarterback rushing record with 218 yards on 17 attempts, including touchdown runs of 5, 57 and 56 yards. In addition, the New Jersey native enjoyed his best career passing day, completing 12 of 18 attempts for 151 yards and another touchdown. Asked if he was relieved by Lord's performance, Nebraska Coach Frank Solich paused for about 10 seconds. When he finally spoke, his voice cracked, filled with emotion. "Jammal had a game I think everyone in the program is proud of," Solich said. Lord, in his first season as starter, opted not to talk to the media immediately after the contest, a reasonable choice considering the criticism he endured following back-to-back road losses to Penn State (40-7) and Iowa State-(36-14). Lord committed five turnovers in the defeats and could never get the Husker offense untracked. Following the setback to the Cyclones, Solich indicated the starting quarterback job was open. There was speculation this week that sophomore Mike Stuntz would take over. On Friday, however, Solich announced he was sticking with Lord, saying the quarterback was only part of the offense's problems. Solich's faith paid off. "Lord really ran their offense well," said McNeese State defensive tackle John Paul Jones. "He ran See HUSKERS, Page 4F N GAME STORY HUSKERS 38, COWBOYS 14 McNeese 0 7 7 - 14 Nebraska 7 14 17 - 38 0 One week after being benched at ISU, Jammal Lord answers NU's prayers with a record game. raises his another level CU's Hodge game to BOULDER, Colo. Teams aren't supposed to be able to win potential season-turning games such as Colorado did here Saturday with a quarterback like Robert Hodge. Hodge is a squatty senior recruited from the junior college ranks to be a backup. He looks about as impressive physically as he did while compiling the Big 12's 11th-best pass efficiency rating in his first two starts. On Saturday, he transformed himself into Johnny Unitas. OK, so he can't do anything about his build - but man, did he throw the ball like the NFL Hall of Famer while leading the Buffaloes to a 35-31 win against 13th-ranked Kansas State. Hodge, thrust into the spotlight when the oft-injured Craig Ochs announced last week he was leaving the Buffs, broke the huddle for the first time at Folsom Field Saturday thinking, "I don't know what people think of me out there." His 1-for-9, 20-yard passing performance here three weeks ago, when CU got clubbed by Southern A TRYING WEEK 55 SEE TED KIRK/Lincoln Journal Star SEPT. 28: Teammates surround Jammal Lord on the sidelines in Ames, lowa, after Lord was benched in the fourth quarter of a 36-14 loss against lowa State. Afterward, NU Coach Frank Solich says the QB race is wide-open. 0 THE ASSOCIATED PRESS TUESDAY: Amid speculation that sophomore Mike Stuntz (16) might get the start against McNeese State, Coach Solich puts off announcing his decision. On Friday, Solich announces Lord will start. He ran the offense with poise. He passed with precision. He ran with a purpose. Fill Eric Crouch's shoes? On this day, Old No. 7's cleats were a size too small. I know the performance came against a Division 1-AA school, but it was an amazing effort for a backup quarterback, which is exactly what Lord was during team practices last week. "He was with the (No.) 2s all week, working with the 2s," said senior cornerback DeJuan Groce. "He wasn't complaining. He wasn't upset at anybody. He was helping (Mike) Stuntz with the 1s. He showed some great character by doing that." So was Lord really the No. 2 guy last week, or was it just a ploy by the coaches to fire his engine? Gill said the staff wanted Lord to know that Stuntz was a real threat. "We just wanted to challenge him," Gill said. The quarterback mystery went on all week. Groce said he didn't know Lord was going to be the starter "until I looked at the paper" Saturday. Well, he's going to know for sure when he sees this paper. Welcome to Jammal Extra, and why not? He was tremendous. NU Coach Frank Solich was so moved by Lord's performance that he got choked up talking about it after the game. See MABRY, Page 4F THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Colorado's Brian Calhoun (2) pulls in a 71-yard touchdown pass in front of Kansas State defender Bobby Walker in the first quarter Saturday. 10 RANDY HAMPTON/Lincoln Journal Star SATURDAY: Lord runs for three touchdowns and 218 yards and sets the school record for total offense in a game with 369 yards. CURT McKEEVER Journal Star Staff Writer Cal 40-3, should have given him a clue. "I was just trying not to mess up, and that's not going to work,' Hodge admitted. "I knew I needed to be more aggressive." Two weeks ago, Hodge took steps in that direction, completing 11 of 22 passes in a huge rebound win at UCLA. But no one, not even Hodge, who claims matter-offactly that "you never know what's going to happen in games," could have imagined the performance he See McKEEVER, Page 4F