Sou.thern Cal 31
Nebraska 21

Sept. 20, 1969 • 1:30 p.m. Central
Memorial Stadium •Lincoln, NE
1st2nd3rd4th F 
Sou.thern Cal7147331
Nebraska0701421
First Quarter
USC: Berry 1 run (Fred Ayala kick) 3:02
Second Quarter
USC: Chandler 45 pass from Jim Jones (Ayala kick) 14:42
NEB: Van Brownson 2 run (Paul Rogers kick) 5:09
USC: Evans 4 pass from Jones (Ayala kick) 0:17
Third Quarter
USC: Berry 1 run (Ayala kick) 5:13
Fourth Quarter
NEB: Jeff Kinney 12 run (Rogers kick) 6:31
NEB: Jerry Tagge 2 run (Rogers kick) 3:40
USC: Ayala 34 field goal, 0:23

                     USC      NEB
First Downs           18       24
Rushing Net       54-182   48-142
Passing Net          153      148
 Att-Comp-Int     8-15-0  16-31-1
Total Offense     69-335   79-290
Return yards          16       10
Punts-Avg           7-41     3-46
Fumbles lost           3        2

Attendance: 67,058

LEADING NU RUSHERS
 Frank Vactor 56 Larry Frost 44.
LEADING NU PASSERS
 Jerry Tagge 8 for 14—96; Van Brownson 7-11—61.

MORE INDIVIDUAL STATS

NU BACK OF THE GAME
 Larry Frost ... Five carries for 44 yards ... 36-yard run set up TD that got NU back in game, 14-7.
NU LINEMAN OF THE GAME
 Jerry Murtaugh. Led NU defense with 16 tackles.

Coverage

Recap

1969 Nebraska-Southern Cal football photo, Larry FrostLarry Frost is brought down by USC’s Charlie Weaver during the first quarter. &middot The Los Angeles Times · Newspapers.com

Rally falls short against Trojans

Nebraska’s Cornhuskers with a rebuilt squad and minus star Joe Orduna opened the Centennial Year against the mighty Southern California Trojans. Some 67,058 fans saw the Trojans strike for a 14-0 lead before the young Huskers regrouped and fought back to a 28-21 deficit before losing 31-21.

USC drove 80 yards to score, then hit a 45-yard TD pass to lead 14-0 in the second quarter. A 36-yard run by Larry Frost got Nebraska rolling, and soph QB Van Brownson tallied with 5:09 left in the half to get NU back in the game. However, a Husker fumble enabled the Trojans to lead 21-7 at halftime.

After USC opened the gap to 28-7 in the third quarter, Jerry Tagge came in to spark a fourth-quarter rally that had the fans roaring. The big NU soph skippered a 46-yard drive that ended with Jeff Kinney scoring with 6:31 left to play.

Nebraska recovered the onside kick and the Huskers drove 47 yards to score again, pulling up 28-21 with 3:40 left. The Huskers got one more chance, but Tagge’s pass was intercepted deep in NU territory and USC got an insurance field goal in the final seconds.

H’MAX NOTES: The Associated Press reported that Nebraska’s quarterbacks “threw well but were troubled by shaky protection in the backfield.” … Brownson started the game but was relieved by Tagge after being shaken up in the third quarter. … USC also started a soph at QB, Jimmy Jones.

Recap source: 1970 media guide.

Game stories
Omaha World-Herald
Lincoln Journal Star
Los Angeles Times
Photos/Audio/Video
Photos
Video
Pregame & team info
1969 schedule
05/10White 10, Red 8
09/20Southern CalL 21-31
09/27Texas A&MW 14-0
10/04@ MinnesotaW 42-14
10/11@ MissouriL 7-17
10/18KansasW 21-17
10/25Oklahoma St.W 13-3
11/01ColoradoW 20-7
11/08Iowa St.W 17-3
11/15@ Kansas St.W 10-7
11/22@ OklahomaW 44-14
12/20GeorgiaW 45-6
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