The Nebraska Cornhuskers were 16 yards from one of their biggest upset victories, but the bid fell short and into the arms of Texas defensive back Nathan Vasher.

With sixteen seconds left in the game and trailing 27-24 the Huskers were facing a third down at the Texas 16. Nebraska head coach Frank Solich decided to take one shot at the end zone for the win before trying a potential game-tying field goal.

Quarterback Jammal Lord dropped back and threw to wide receiver Mark LeFlore at the corner of th eend zone. Vasher outjumped the intended receiver and intercepted the pass sealing the win for the seventh ranked Longhorns.

Jammal Lord had a career game, rushed for a team record 234 yards on 23 carries, while completing 7-of-14 passes for 98 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Lord’s performance was overshadowed by Texas quarterback Chris Simms, who completed 29-of-47 passes for a career-best 419 yards and a pair of touchdowns to Roy Williams, who set a UT school record with 13 catches for 161 yards.

The loss snapped the Huskers’ nation’s best 26-game home winning streak dating back to 1998. The Longhorns are the only Big 12 team to win in Lincoln since the Big 12’s inception, also breaking NU’s 47-game home streak on Oct. 31, 1998. NU had won 73 of its previous 74 home games dating back to the 1991 season.

The thrilling finish came after the Huskers were down ten points with 3:24 left. Cedric Benson scored on a three-yard touchdown run to put the Longhorns up 27-17.

The Huskers responded by charging 60 yards in just 43 seconds. Darran Diedrick took the ball in from 2-yards out to narrow the lead to 27-24 with 2:34 remaining.

The Husker defense then stopped the Longhorns, forcing Texas to punt. Senior cornerback DeJuan Groce gave the Huskers a chance with a 44 yard punt return deep into Texas territory and setting up the dramatic finish.

Nebraska scored first in the contest on Josh Brown’s 48-yard career best field goal, giving the Huskers a 3-0 lead 4:14 into the contest.

The Longhorns mounted a lengthy drive that was capped by Dusty Mangum’s 25-yard field goal to knot the contest at 3-3 with 17 seconds left in the first quarter.

Texas got the game’s first turnover on the opening play of the second quarter when Lord’s pass was deflected and picked up by Vasher at the UT 48-yard line. The Longhorns turned the miscue into points, as Mangum connected on his second field goal of the game, this time from 41 yards, to give UT a 6-3 lead.

After Magnum missed a 44-yard field goal on the next drive, the Huskers came right back, driving 43 yards to the Texas 29-yard line. On fourth-and-one, Michael Huff and Derrick Johnson stopped Lord for no gain, giving the Longhorns possession. It was the second time in the half that the Huskers were stopped on a fourth-and-one situation, as NU was stymied on a fourth-and-one at the UT 18 midway through the first quarter.

On NU’s next possession, the Huskers drove into field goal range, but David Kolowski’s snap was high on Josh Brown’s 48-yard field goal attempt. Holder Joe Chrisman fell on the ball for a seven-yard loss and NU came away without points.

The Huskers got their first turnover in the waning seconds of the first half, as Philip Bland hit Simms as he threw and Josh Bullocks returned the interception 19 yards to the NU 46 with 39 seconds left before halftime. Josh Davis raced for 13 yards on NU’s first play before Lord found Ross Pilkington for nine yards to the Texas 32 to put the Huskers into field goal range.

Brown attempted to tie the game with a 49-yard field goal on the final play of the half, but Rod Babers blocked Brown’s kick out of bounds, sending the Huskers into halftime trailing 6-3.

The Huskers opened the second half going 79 yards on seven plays capped by Lord’s 2-yard touchdown pass to Jon Bowling to take a 10-6 lead. Lord set up the score, going 53-yards on an option keeper to the UT 3-yard line.

The Longhorns regained the lead at 13-10 on their opening possession of the half, as Simms found Roy Williams for a 16-yard touchdown pass to cap a five-play drive. Ivan Williams set up the score with a 49-yard reception down the sideline to the NU 20-yard line.

Texas extended the lead to 20-10, going 97 yards on 17 plays, as Simms found Williams for a 2-yard touchdown reception, his second score of the day. The Longhorns went 5-for-5 on third downs on the drive, as Simms completed 7-of-8 passes on the drive for 63 yards.

The Huskers came right back, driving 80 yards on four plays as Lord hit freshman tight end Matt Herian for a 60-yard scoring strike to trim the deficit to 20-17. On the previous play, Lord raced 14 yards on third-and-four to give NU a first down, while going over the 200-yard mark on the ground for the second time this season.