Year-by-Year: 1998

Osborne Ends Career on Top

Nebraska     42
Tennessee   17

The Cornhuskers rolled up 534 yards of offense, including 409 on the ground, to send legendary head coach Tom Osborne into retirement with his third national title.

The Huskers 42-17 domination of third-ranked Tennessee would vault Nebraska to the top spot in the USA Today/Coaches poll. The win gave Nebraska its fifth national title, four of which have been claimed in the Orange Bowl.

Senior Terry Fair fumbled a Nebraska punt and it was quickly pounced on by Lance Brown at the Tennessee 15-yard line. Five plays later, Shevin Wiggins scampered in from 10 yards out to give Nebraska a 14-0 lead with 11:28 remaining in the first half.

Tennessee, however, refused to surrender. The Volunteers threatened when Lewis, who broke the Tennessee freshman rushing record with 1,364 yards on the year, ripped off a 23-yard gain down to the Husker five-yard line. On the next play, Manning hit wideout Peerless Price with a touchdown strike to cut the deficit to 28-9.

Nebraska closed things out with a touchdown drive consisting of nine consecutive running plays. The victory closed out the Osborne era in grand style.

                           &nb​sp;   Nebraska            Tennessee

First Downs                    30                      16

Rushing Plays                  68                     21