NU Notes, 11/7
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Wild and wacky North could come down to wire
AMES, Iowa — It seemed like a fair question to the commissioner of the Big 12 Conference.
So, Kevin Weiberg, who's going to win the Big 12 Conference's North Division football title?
"I don't think I can predict that," Weiberg said, laughing.
Of course, Weiberg, who attended Saturday's football game at Jack Trice Stadium, knows sorting through this muddled mess might not be so funny.
Iowa State's 34-27 victory against Nebraska leaves the Cyclones and Huskers tied for first place in the North with 3-3 league records, with Iowa State holding the head-to-head tie-breaker.
Colorado, Missouri and Kansas State all have 2-4 records. Only Kansas, which is 1-5 in Big 12 play, has been eliminated from contention.
All league teams have two regular-season games remaining, and the possibilities seem endless.
"It's probably going to come down to some sort of tie-breaker the way it almost looks at this point, with maybe more than two tied teams," Weiberg said. "That's certainly possible."
What's also possible — almost likely — is that a 6-5 team from the North will play in the Big 12 title game in Kansas City, Mo. A loss would leave that team with a 6-6 record, which technically isn't an eligible record to qualify for a bowl, per NCAA rules.
Weiberg said the Big 12 would apply to the NCAA for a waiver to that rule to get the 6-6 team bowl-eligible, "assuming we're going to need that for the purposes of having enough eligible teams to fill our spots."
The Big 12 has five bowl-eligible teams, all from the South Division. The Big 12 has eight bowl spots, and potentially nine, if a non-league champion qualifies for a BCS game.
"We'd probably prefer to have a couple of these North teams with a couple more wins," Weiberg said.
"Every year is different. These things kind of go in cycles. We're just happening to catch a year where we've got several teams with young players and sort of rebuilding their programs and those kinds of things. That can happen."
Time wasted
Nebraska was burning timeouts left and right. Or so it seemed.
One of the timeouts in the first half actually wasn't called. Nebraska lost a timeout because receiver Grant Mulkey — get this — was wearing his knee pads too high.
"There's a new rule where they don't warn you," Mulkey said, "and one of my knee pads was rolled up too high, so they charged me with a timeout."
That came with 3½ minutes to go in the first quarter, and was Nebraska's second timeout. The Huskers took their last timeout of the first half on defense, with 12:33 remaining before halftime.
Nebraska had used all of its second-half timeouts by the 6:36 mark of the fourth quarter.
Costly fouls
Nebraska was penalized 11 times for 84 yards. Four of those penalties came on first-down plays — three false starts and one holding call.
The Huskers overcame two of those penalties in their 15-play touchdown drive in the third quarter.
"When you're on the road, you've got to overcome the officiating, you've got to overcome bad plays, you've got overcome circumstances," Nebraska coach Bill Callahan said.
Callahan, by the way, earned an unsportsmanlike penalty for arguing a completed Iowa State pass on the first play of the game. It appeared that Todd Blythe, as he caught the ball, fell out-of-bounds on his 40-yard catch from Bret Meyer.
The ensuing penalty pushed Iowa State to the NU 16, and the Cyclones managed a field goal.
Ouch
The turf toe problems for I-back Cory Ross aren't getting any better.
Ross returned to the locker room during the game to get extra padding put in his shoe. He's been battling a turf toe problem on his left foot since the Baylor game.
"It's pretty sore," Ross said. "But no excuse. I was out there playing football, doing the best I can."
Ross persevered, running 19 times for 126 yards. He's 63 yards shy of becoming the 27th 1,000-yard rusher in Nebraska history.
Etc.
Daniel Bullocks intercepted his Big 12-leading fifth pass of the season and the seventh of his NU career. He returned the second-quarter interception 32 yards into ISU territory. … Freshman Terrence Nunn had a career-high five receptions. … The Huskers' two fourth-quarter TDs marked their first points in the fourth quarter of a road game this season. … Joe Dailey's first six completions were to six different receivers.
Reach Brian Rosenthal at 473-7436 or brosenthal@journalstar.com.
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