Photo Showcase: NU-WKU fans
Photo Showcase: NU-WKU game action
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LINCOLN — Next time Uncle Mo pays a visit to his Western Kentucky football team, Hilltoppers coach Willie Taggart would like his favorite relative to hang around a little longer.
Momentum spent a little time on Western Kentucky's side Saturday night, but it didn't stick around nearly long enough for the Hilltoppers to overcome a 35-3 deficit that eventually ended in a season-opening 49-10 loss to the Huskers.
Western Kentucky trailed 28-3 late in the third quarter and was tantalizingly close to making it 28-9 when junior running back Bobby Rainey broke free on a 46-yard sprint toward the NU end zone.
But Rainey needed to go one more yard with the ball. Husker safety DeJon Gomes stripped it from him, and nickel back Eric Hagg covered it in the end zone for a touchback.
Taggart, Rainey and the rest of the Hilltoppers were left to wonder what might have been.
“Uncle Mo jumped back on Nebraska's side,” Taggart said. “Hopefully that's his last fumble and he got it out of the way.”
Even after the fumble was reviewed by the replay officials, Rainey — who finished with career highs of 155 yards and 30 carries — wasn't convinced the call was correct.
“It doesn't matter what I think I did,” Rainey said. “I shouldn't leave the decision in the referee's hands.”
Despite that turnover and a slow start that gave Nebraska a quick 14-0 first quarter lead, the Hilltoppers said plenty of good came from the way they played in the second half.
If only they could forget how the first half unfolded and how they were affected by the Memorial Stadium crowd of 85,555.
“We weren't prepared as a whole defense for that atmosphere,” linebacker Thomas Majors said. “When we started to play better is when we got used to that.”
Quarterback Kawaun Jakes agreed that even though many of the Hilltoppers played in a similar atmosphere last season — at Tennessee's Neyland Stadium — this crowd was more intimidating.
“We weren't prepared for that crowd, I guess,” Jakes said. “If everybody executes and does the right thing, we'll be OK. We just tried to play Western football after that.”
Taggart, in his first game as a head coach after three seasons as running backs coach at Stanford, admitted the atmosphere was intimidating.
But he also said there is plenty the Hilltoppers can do to end their 21-game losing streak. At the top of that list is improved tackling and better execution on offense.
“We have to execute, and we didn't do that early,” Taggart said. “Once we got comfortable, we were able to do that. Our guys didn't quit. I wanted to see our guys competing until the end, and they did that.”
Contact the writer:
490-9714, alexsdad@mail.com
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• Video: NU postgame analysis by Mitch Sherman:
• Video: NU-WKU highlight reel:
• Video: NU coach Bo Pelini at the postgame press conference:
• Video: Taylor Martinez at the postgame press conference:
• Video: Rex Burkhead at the postgame press conference:
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