Editing Bob Devaney (section)

====National championships====
The [[1970 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team|1970]] Nebraska team returned most of the key offensive starters from the previous year, and added sophomore [[Johnny Rodgers]], an explosive [[punt returner]] and [[wide receiver]], who won the [[Heisman Trophy]] in 1972 as a senior.  Nebraska tied [[1970 USC Trojans football team|USC]] in [[Los Angeles]] early in the season and was ranked #3 going into the [[1971 Orange Bowl|Orange Bowl]] against [[1970 LSU Tigers football team|LSU]].

A late touchdown by [[quarterback]] [[Jerry Tagge]] gave the Huskers a 17–12 victory to finish the season {{nowrap|at 11–0–1.}} This secured a share of the [[College football national championships in NCAA Division I FBS|national championship]], after the other two undefeated teams in the nation, [[1970 Texas Longhorns football team|Texas]] and [[1970 Ohio State Buckeyes football team|Ohio State]], lost their [[bowl game]]s earlier in the day.<ref name=jn71>{{cite journal|url=https://www.si.com/vault/1971/01/11/554230/the-oneday-season|journal=Sports Illustrated|last=Jenkins|first=Dan|title=The one-day season|date=January 11, 1971|page=10}}</ref> The final [[1970 NCAA University Division football rankings|AP Poll]], conducted after the bowl games were played, picked Nebraska {{nowrap|as champion,<ref name=nwtvanb>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=aeVVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=5-ADAAAAIBAJ&pg=6696%2C868378 |newspaper=Eugene Register-Guard|location=Oregon|title=Nebraska wins the vote as nation's best college club|last=Thomas|first=Ben|agency=Associated Press|date=January 5, 1971|page=3B}}</ref>}} while the final [[Coaches' Poll|UPI Poll]], released in early December before the bowl games, had Texas first with {{nowrap|Nebraska third.<ref name=upitfif>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=S40jAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2ZkFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3439%2C5630420 |newspaper=Reading Eagle |location=Pennsylvania|agency=UPI |title=Texas first in final UPI poll |date=December 8, 1970 |page=30}}</ref><ref name=bbuptw>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=QgFYAAAAIBAJ&sjid=JfcDAAAAIBAJ&pg=1501%2C1231585 |newspaper=Bend Bulletin |location=Oregon|agency=UPI |title=Texas wins UPI grid crown |date=December 8, 1970 |page=8}}</ref><ref>[http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/national_championships/upi_poll.php?year=1970 1970 UPI college poll] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111211124213/http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/national_championships/upi_poll.php?year=1970 |date=2011-12-11 }}, cfbdatawarehouse.com; accessed June 28, 2015.</ref>}}

With most of its key players back and its defense vastly improved in [[1971 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team|1971]], Nebraska rolled through the first ten games. The top-ranked Huskers met unbeaten #2 [[1971 Oklahoma Sooners football team|Oklahoma]] in [[Norman, Oklahoma|Norman]] on [[Thanksgiving Day]] in the [[1971 Nebraska vs. Oklahoma football game|Game of the Century]], one of the most celebrated games in [[college football]] history.  A late touchdown by tailback [[Jeff Kinney (American football)|Jeff Kinney]] gave the Huskers a hard-fought {{nowrap|35–31}} victory.  When Nebraska crushed unbeaten [[1971 Alabama Crimson Tide football team|Alabama]] {{nowrap|38–6}} in the [[1972 Orange Bowl|Orange Bowl]] to finish {{nowrap|13–0,}} the Cornhuskers were said by many to be the greatest team in college football {{nowrap|history.<ref name=jn72>{{cite journal|url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1085677/index.htm|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130119120454/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1085677/index.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 19, 2013|journal=Sports Illustrated|last=Jenkins|first=Dan|title=All yours, Nebraska|date=January 10, 1972|page=8}}</ref>}} In fact, the Huskers defeated the teams ranked second, third, and fourth in the [[1971 NCAA University Division football rankings|final AP Poll]]: Oklahoma, [[1971 Colorado Buffaloes football team|Colorado]], and Alabama.<ref name="appoll">[http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/national_championships/ap_poll.php?year=1970 1970 College AP Poll] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121114044859/http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/national_championships/ap_poll.php?year=1970 |date=2012-11-14 }} ''cfbdatawarehouse.com''</ref>