Bellevue West coach played a hand in 1978 Tiger win

Letdown (let-down), noun: a decrease in volume, force or energy; disillusionment, discouragement or disappointment; depression or deflation.

Any and all of the above terms could be used to define the events of Nov. 18, 1978.

That was the cold and blustery day an upstart Missouri football team rolled into Lincoln and handed the Cornhuskers a 35-31 loss just a week after Coach Tom Osborne's team slayed the Oklahoma dragon for the first time in his six-year tenure.

The win was the Tigers' third straight at Memorial Stadium and their last in the next 30 years.

John Faiman, now a successful head football coach at Bellevue West High School in Nebraska, was on the sidelines that day in Lincoln as Missouri head coach Warren Powers' offensive coordinator and offensive line coach.

With temperatures hovering around 30 degrees at game time, Missouri's James Wilder ran wild on the Huskers' that day, racking up 181 yards and four touchdowns. Future NFL Hall of Fame tight end Kellen Winslow grabbed nine balls for 132 yards and the Tigers scorched the Husker defense for 476 yards.

The loss knocked the Huskers out of a potential national championship shot against Penn State and into a rematch with the Sooners in the Orange Bowl.

The win put the 7-4 Tigers into the Liberty Bowl.

Faiman still can't put his finger on what was different about the Tigers' that day 30 years ago.

"I think Nebraska had a lot taken out of them beating Oklahoma the week before," Faiman said. "Nebraska was No. 2. And then (Rick) Berns goes 80-some yards for a touchdown on the first play. We came right back though and steadily moved the ball. We thought we could move the ball on them. We felt like the team that had the ball last would win."

The stat sheet from the game tells the tale of two teams with great offensives and questionable defenses. The two teams combined for 993 total yards, 52 first downs and 66 points.

Not to be outdone by Wilder's record day, Berns ran for a then-Nebraska record 255 yards and two touchdowns on 35 grueling carries.

The Missouri win in 1978 wasn't the first upset Faiman was a part of at Memorial Stadium. The year before, as offensive coordinator for Powers at Washington State, the Cougars came into Lincoln and stole a 19-10 victory.

"The 1978 game was a lot better played game but any time you can go into Lincoln and get a win, that's pretty big," he said.

Faiman knew his offense had prolific potential heading into that 1978 season and they finally showed it against Nebraska.

"Going into that year, we thought we could hang with anybody," he said. "We had some awful good players. Kellen Winslow, James Wilder and (quarterback) Phil Bradley was three times All-Big 8. We had some players. They just played well that day."

In the 0-15 streak since that fateful day, the Tigers have been outscored in Lincoln 601 to 207. Faiman had no idea at the time it would be the Tigers' lone win at Memorial Stadium in the next three decades but he did grasp how big of win it was at the time.

"It's been a long time (since that 1978 win.) It really sort of ages you," he said. "But it was a big win. That whole year is was Oklahoma and Nebraska, and we played Oklahoma tough too. It really propelled us into a bowl game.

"It was a just a well-balanced, well-played game. I think the kids ran pretty well and threw pretty good. It was a game that when it was all said and done, we really earned the victory."

An Omaha South product, Faiman played quarterback for the Huskers from 1960 to 1962 for Bill Jennings and then in Bob Devaney's first season. He's coached the Thunderbirds for almost 20 years, earning nine state playoff appearances.

He isn't sure if the Tigers can end their 30-year dry spell in Lincoln on Saturday, but he will be watching on ESPN. The 11-point favorite Tigers come into Saturday's 8 p.m. nationally-televised game ranked No. 4 in the Associated Press and No. 3 in the USA Today Coaches polls and averaging 595.5 yards per game and 53.7 points per game. Faiman does know their will likely be a lot of points scored in the game.

"To beat Missouri, you're going to just have to outscore them," he said. "You aren't going to shut them out. But anybody has a chance on any given Saturday, that's why they play the games."