• Video: Postgame press conference:




ARLINGTON, Texas — Nebraska came within one second of costing Texas a shot at the national championship and making a big ol' mess of the BCS.

But one second — one second that had to be put back on the game clock — was all the Longhorns needed.

Hunter Lawrence kicked a 46-yard field goal as time expired Saturday night to give Texas a 13-12 win over Nebraska in the Big 12 championship game. It came after the Huskers had stormed the Cowboys Stadium field with the clock reading :00 in what initially appeared an improbable upset by NU and a colossal misuse of the last seconds by the quarterback with the most victories in NCAA Division I-A history.

And it triggered all kinds of fallout in what will be remembered as one of the best and most controversial finishes in the 14-year history of the conference championship game.

Among the highlights — or, from Nebraska's viewpoint, the lowlights:

• An angry and animated Husker coach Bo Pelini storming off the field, and later biting his tongue when asked about the final sequence, in which the game clock ticked down to zeroes after a pass from Colt McCoy sailed out of bounds.

• Nos. 2 and 3 Texas getting its spot alongside Alabama for the Jan. 7 BCS championship game in Pasadena, Calif.

• Walt Anderson, coordinator of officials for the Big 12, explaining the decision to review the last-second play and his crew's ruling that the game wasn't over.

• The Huskers being left to deal with another heartbreaking loss to Texas that denied them a possible Fiesta Bowl berth and instead likely sends them to the Dec. 30 Holiday Bowl.

“I hurt for them,'' Pelini said. “I hurt because of the effort they gave.''

The Husker defense might have outdone itself against high-powered Texas, limiting the Longhorns to a season-low 202 total yards while intercepting three McCoy passes and sacking the Heisman Trophy candidate nine times before a crowd of 76,211.

And a punt return by Niles Paul and two late plays by quarterback Zac Lee — on an otherwise brutal night for the Husker offense — set up two Alex Henery field goals in the final 11:34.

That left the outcome to the review and ruling by officials, which Anderson later explained was Rule 12:3, permitting use of replay when “an egregious clock error can be corrected.''

Pelini said “no comment'' to the first question in his postgame press conference about the call going UT's way. Pelini then said the only explanation he got was that it “came down from the replay booth.''

“I'm not going to answer any more questions about officiating, about that call,'' Pelini said. “Ask me about the football game. That was a hell of a football game.''

Texas coach Mack Brown said he knew there was a second left after McCoy flung the pass out of bounds on third down from the NU 29.

Brown said McCoy told him during the review that he thought two seconds remained when his pass hit a railing near the ground-level suites.

The Huskers weren't able to come to terms with it so easily.

“A lot of us were upset, but if the referees felt like there was a second left on the clock, then that was their decision,'' Paul said. “That's pretty much all I can say about that.''

Senior defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh sat on the back of a golf cart outside the Husker locker room trying to explain his emotions, especially hard considering his own astounding individual performance — 12 tackles, 4½ sacks and general terrorization of McCoy that surely will be noted by Heisman voters.

Suh also was asked about the officials' decision to restore a second on the clock.

“That's my own emotions and everything, and I'm going to keep that with myself and my teammates,'' Suh said. “For that question, I have no comment.''

After Henery kicked the go-ahead 42-yard field goal with 1:44 left, Nebraska hurt itself twice to help set up Texas' winning kick.

First, the kickoff by Adi Kunalic rolled out of bounds, allowing Texas to start from its 40-yard line. Next, a 19-yard pass from McCoy to Jordan Shipley on first down was followed by a 15-yard personal foul on safety Larry Asante for a horse-collar tackle.

The Huskers also hurt themselves throughout the game with an inability to move the ball. They produced just 106 total yards on 55 plays — their lowest total in more than a quarter century.

Otherwise, though, Nebraska got everything it wanted but the right result.

Early breaks. The first score. Field position. Amazing defense. And two fourth-quarter chances.

“Our formula was to hang in there and have a chance to win,'' Pelini said. “And we had a chance to win at the end.''

Contact the writer:

444-1042, rich.kaipust@owh.com

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