| 1961 Nebraska Cornhuskers football | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Big Eight Conference |
| Record | 3–6–1 (2–5 Big 8) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive scheme | Wing T |
| Home stadium | Memorial Stadium |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 7 Colorado $ | 7 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 11 Missouri | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 2 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kansas | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 3 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oklahoma | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Iowa State | 3 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oklahoma State | 2 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nebraska | 2 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kansas State | 0 | – | 7 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 1961 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team was an American football team that represented the University of Nebraska (now known as the University of Nebraska–Lincoln) as a member of the Big Eight Conference (Big 8) during the 1961 college football season. In their fifth and final year under head coach Bill Jennings, the Cornhuskers compiled a 3–6–1 record (2–5 in conference games), tied for sixth place out of eight teams in the Big 8, and were outscored by a total of 135 to 119.[1]
Fullback Bill "Thunder" Thornton led the team in both rushing (618 yards) and scoring (30 points).[2]
The team lost six of its last seven games, including losses to rivals Missouri (0–10), Kansas ( 6–28), Colorado (0–7), and Oklahoma (14–21). On November 30, 1961, five days after the team's loss to Oklahoma, Jennings was fired as Nebraska's head coach. Nebraska had a losing record each of its five years under Jennings, compiling an overall record of 15–34–1 (8–24 in conference games). [3] Bob Devaney was hired as Nebraska's 25th head football coach in January 1962.[4] After the 1961 season, Nebraska did not have another season with a losing record until 2004.
The Cornhuskers played their home games at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska.