Editor’s note: Iowa State improbably beat No. 7 Nebraska in 1992 in one of the biggest upsets in Cyclone football history. Nebraska had beaten two top-15 teams heading into the match up, but couldn’t get past a 3-6 Iowa State team.

On Nov. 14, 1992, the Cyclones marched into the game with Nebraska in Ames with high hopes but realistic expectations.

The Huskers were ranked seventh in the nation and were leading the nation in rushing yards at 351 per game. They were also coming off blowout wins against then-8th ranked Colorado and 13th ranked Kansas State, 52-7 and 49-7, respectively.

Iowa State, on the other hand, held a record of 3-6, including a loss to 1-AA Northern Iowa, and was starting a fifth-year senior quarterback who had yet to start a game until that day — Marv Seller.

The Cyclones defense was the story of the first half as it didn’t let the Husker offense garner any sort of momentum and took a 12-10 lead into the locker room at halftime.

The key play came in the third quarter when Seller broke out for a 78-yard run and was brought down just short of the goal line. Seller found space on the right side of the line and made a cut back into the hole, eluding Husker defenders until a cornerback dragged him down at the 2-yard line.

The Cyclones punched it in from there, making the score 19-10, and the Huskers were never able to rally as that score remained intact when the clock hit zero, prompting the ISU crowd to rush the field and take down the goalposts at Jack Trice Stadium.

It was a game of unexpected heroes.

Seller, who now is a banker in Johnston, didn’t have that strong of an arm, so he ran the offense strongly out of a wishbone formation.  Since he wasn’t that fleet of foot either, the Huskers defense shouldn’t have had any trouble with him.

Seller ended up rushing for 144 yards, including that key play in the third quarter to put the game on ice.

Iowa State kicker Ty Stewart, an Omaha native, didn’t have a field goal post to warm up on until 48 hours before the game and had been criticized by then-ISU coach Jim Walden for missing short kicks.

Stewart responded by putting Iowa State’s first 12 points up on the board, making field goals of 37, 32, 45, and 30 yards.

The victory over the Huskers put ISU football in the spotlight and put a blemish in the Tom Osborne era at the storied Husker program.

The Cyclones handed Osborne his only loss to a team with a losing record, his first loss to a Big 8 Conference team not named Colorado or Oklahoma since 1978, and it gave Husker quarterback Tommy Frazier his only loss to a Big 8 team.