Nebraska overcomes 21-point deficit, shocks OSU

The fans who criticized Taylor Martinez all week and booed him before halftime were cheering wildly for him by the end of the biggest comeback in Nebraska history.

Martinez ran for a touchdown and passed for two others while bringing No. 14 Nebraska back from a 21-point second-half deficit, and the Cornhuskers defeated Ohio State 34-27 Saturday night in the first Big Ten game at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Neb.

Rex Burkhead scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 17-yard run with 5:10 left.

“Everyone wants to doubt him,” coach Bo Pelini said. “You can write what you want. You can attack him, the fans. Now you’ll praise him.”

Ohio State (3-3, 0-2 Big Ten) built a 27-6 lead behind freshman quarterback Braxton Miller, who sprained his right ankle in the third quarter and did not return. The Buckeyes’ offense went dormant with backup Joe Bauserman.

Miller ran for 91 yards and went 5 of 8 passing for 95 yards before he got hurt. Bauserman completed only one of his 10 passes.

Huskers star linebacker Lavonte David stripped the ball from Miller in the middle of third quarter to start the rally.

“That was the turning point of the game,” Pelini said.

Soon after, Martinez went 18 yards for a TD. He threw a 36-yard TD pass to Quincy Enunwa to pull the Huskers to 27-20 and tied it with a 30-yarder to Burkhead.

Martinez ran for 102 yards and was 16-of-22 passing for 191 yards for Nebraska (5-1, 1-1). Burkhead ran 26 times for 119 yards.

The biggest deficit Nebraska had overcome previously was 17 points, most recently against Texas A&M in 2002.

(1) LSU 41, (17) Florida 11: Spencer Ware rushed for 109 yards and two scores, each of LSU’s quarterbacks passed for TDs, and the Tigers (6-0, 3-0 SEC) comfortably defeated the Gators (4-2, 2-2) in Baton Rouge, La.

Jarrett Lee gave the Tigers the lead for good on their second offensive play, hitting Rueben Randle deep over the middle for a 46-yard touchdown. Jordan Jefferson used a jump pass to Mitch Joseph for another score.

(2) Alabama 34, Vanderbilt 0: AJ McCarron passed for career-highs of 237 yards and four TDs and the Crimson Tide (6-0, 3-0 SEC) blanked the Commodores (3-2, 1-2) in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Trent Richardson rushed for 107 yards and a TD in his fifth straight 100-yard effort for Alabama.

(3) Oklahoma 55, (11) Texas 17: Landry Jones threw three TD passes, Dominique Whaley ran 64 yards for another score and the Oklahoma defense scored three more TDs, carrying the Sooners (5-0, 2-0 Big 12) to a lopsided victory over the Longhorns (4-1, 1-1) in Dallas.

The Sooners wound up with their most lopsided win in this series since 2003, when they won by a series-record 52 points.

(6) Oklahoma State 70, Kansas 28: Brandon Weeden threw for 288 yards and five TDs before being pulled out of a lopsided game before halftime, and the Cowboys (5-0, 2-0 Big 12) matched their highest scoring total from the last 94 years in a rout of the Jayhawks (2-3, 0-2) in Stillwater, Okla.

Oklahoma State scored TDs on all eight of its possessions before halftime against the nation’s worst defense.

(8) Clemson 36, Boston College 14: Tajh Boyd threw for a TD and ran for another before leaving with a hip injury and the Tigers (6-0, 3-0 ACC) rolled over the Eagles (1-5, 0-3) in Clemson, S.C.

The severity of Boyd’s injury wasn’t immediately known. He came in leading the ACC in total offense and has been the catalyst for the Tigers’ first 6-0 start in 11 years.

(10) Arkansas 38, (15) Auburn 14: Tyler Wilson threw for 262 yards, completing 19 straight passes at one point, leading the Razorbacks (5-1, 1-1 SEC) over the Tigers (4-2, 2-1) in Fayetteville, Ark.

Joe Adams had a 92-yard TD run on Arkansas’ first play of the second half to push its lead to 28-14.

(12) Michigan 42, Northwestern 24: Denard Robinson threw for two TDs and ran for two more, helping the Wolverines (6-0, 2-0 Big Ten) come back from a 10-point halftime deficit to beat the Wildcats (2-3, 0-2) in Evanston, Ill.

Robinson matched his season-high by throwing for 338 yards and ran for 113 as Michigan scored on its first three possessions of the second half.

(13) Georgia Tech 21, Maryland 16: Tevin Washington ran for 120 yards and two TDs and Yellow Jackets (6-0, 3-0 ACC) held off the Terrapins (2-3, 1-1) in Atlanta.

Tech has already matched its wins total from 2010.

(16) West Virginia 43, Connecticut 16: Geno Smith threw for 450 yards and four TDs and the Mountaineers (5-1, 1-0 Big East) cruised past the Huskies (2-4, 0-1) in Morgantown, W.Va.

West Virginia struggled to a 10-9 halftime lead before erupting for 23 points in a 7:35 span of the third quarter to take control.

(18) South Carolina 54, Kentucky 3: Connor Shaw threw for 311 yards and four TDs to lead the Gamecocks (5-1, 3-1 SEC) to a romp over the Wildcats (2-4, 0-3) in Columbia, S.C.

Shaw, a sophomore who took over as starter this week from fifth-year senior Stephen Garcia, completed 26 of 39 passes with no interceptions.

(19) Illinois 41, Indiana 20: Nathan Scheelhaase and A.J. Jenkins hooked up on two long TD passes to lead the Fighting Illini (6-0, 2-0 Big Ten) to a victory over the Hoosiers (1-5, 0-2) in Bloomington, Ind.

Illinois is off to its best start since the 1951 team was 7-0.

(20) Kansas State 24, Missouri 17: Quarterback Collin Klein rushed for three TDs and the Wildcats (5-0, 2-0 Big 12) held off the Tigers (2-3, 0-2) in Manhattan, Kan.

Klein finished with 157 yards of total offense and John Hubert added 126 yards on the ground for the Wildcats, who had lost the last five matchups between the Big 12 rivals.

(21) Virginia Tech 38, Miami 35: Logan Thomas ran 19 yards for a TD with 56 seconds to play to lift the Hokies (5-1, 1-1 ACC) over the Hurricanes (2-3, 0-2) in Blacksburg, Va.

Virginia Tech rallied less than two minutes after Lamar Miller scored on a 30-yard burst for the Hurricanes, giving them a 35-31 lead.

Wake Forest 35, (23) Florida State 30: Tanner Price threw three TD passes, Josh Harris rushed for 136 yards and the Demon Deacons (4-1, 3-0 ACC) upset the Seminoles (2-3, 0-2) in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Price was 21 of 35 for 233 yards to give Wake Forest its best start to ACC play in school history.

(24) Texas A&M 45, Texas Tech 40: QB Ryan Tannehill ran for two TDs and threw for another to lead the Aggies (3-2, 1-1 Big 12) over the Red Raiders (4-1, 1-1) in Lubbock, Texas.

Seth Doege threw for three TDs and 391 yards to lead Tech.

(25) Baylor 49, Iowa State 26: Robert Griffin ran for a season-high 107 yards, Terrance Ganaway rushed for a career-high 200 yards and three scores and the Bears (4-1, 1-1 Big 12) defeated the Cyclones (3-2, 0-2) in Waco, Texas.