It was the sloppiest of seconds for Nebraska’s offense. A major crucible passed by Nebraska’s defense. And the arrival of a tough, smart kid from North Omaha.

With his 85-yard kickoff return for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter, sophomore receiver Niles Paul woke up the 84,146 fans at Memorial Stadium and gave NU the crucial cushion it needed in a 35-12 victory over a game, physical San Jose State.

Nebraska was clinging to a 14-12 lead when Paul caught a weak kickoff at his 15-yard line, identified a seam on the left side of the coverage, hit it, and bolted down the sideline, using true freshman cornerback Alfonso Dennard as an escort. Paul was mobbed in the end zone after scoring the first touchdown of his college career.

“It excited our offense and defense,” Paul said. “I’m proud of myself that I could do that and proud of the kickoff return team for executing…I want to take a return to the house every game.”

The Huskers, helped by SJSU kicker Jared Strubeck missing two field goals, finally seemed to exhale, immediately sacking Spartan quarterback Kyle Reed on the ensuing drive for a 12-yard loss (and a concussion), forcing a punt, and punching in two offensive touchdowns for the final margin.

“It gave us a boost of energy,” NU head coach Bo Pelini said. “They were hanging around, hanging around, so that gave us a little breathing room and that helped. (Paul) is a good football player. We feel good about the whole group we have on with our return game.”

Pelini was not so effusive about the Huskers’ offense, which amassed only 183 yards through three quarters before Paul’s kickoff return. While Nebraska offensive coaches insisted that it was in good shape to run the ball against the Spartans after a so-so performance against Western Michigan, such an attack never materialized, as the NU only finished with 99 yards on 30 carries.

Nebraska struggled with SJSU’s stunting, physical defense that featured twists, blitzes and quick shifts right before the snap. NU suffered three consecutive false start penalties and a number of missed assignments.

“Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong,” NU offensive guard Matt Slauson said.

Said Pelini: “We’re not all on the same page. In order to run the football, it has to be 11 guys doing their job. When you have a breakdown here and a breakdown there – it wasn’t executed very well.”

From his vantage point in the press box, offensive coordinator Shawn Watson saw play after play in which his players failed to execute, moments where “it wasn’t them, it was us” failing to make a play go.

Quarterback Joe Ganz, kept in the pocket by San Jose’s scheme of rushing its defensive ends wide, was sacked three times, threw a bad interception at the end of the first half, and generally seemed frustrated until the fourth quarter. The one time he did check into the perfect play, calling option when SJSU loaded the box to blitz, Quentin Castille blew a sure touchdown by fumbling the ball.

“I basically ran before I caught the ball,” Castille said.

Said Ganz: “It was just one of those days we couldn’t find it. We couldn’t find what makes us ‘us.’”

Enter the oft-maligned Nebraska defense, that unit with tread marks all over it last year.

The numbers don’t necessarily show it – SJSU had 353 total yards and 19 first downs – but the Huskers stopped the Spartans in key spots, and essentially shut them down in the second half, allowing 132 yards, almost half of it on one pass.

The Huskers picked off two passes – both on inside screens – and returned one for a touchdown. The turkey dinner winner? Junior defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, who caught a ball deflected by Zach Potter and rumbled 49 yards to the end zone.

Suh said his defensive coaches wouldn’t have forgiven him if he’d been caught, and he had enough speed to never really be threatened. Overall, it was one of the better games of Suh’s career, as he and Ty Steinkuhler held down the middle of line, closing off Reed’s many attempts at quarterback draws.

“If one unit is down, the other two units need to pick us up and make sure that we’re carrying the load and give the offense a chance to get in their our rhythm,” Suh said.

Potter himself intercepted the other pass inside the Huskers’ 10-yard line, when NU led 28-12. It effectively ended any chance the Spartans had of a major upset. SJSU occasionally caught Nebraska’s defense off guard with wide receiver sweeps and option passes, but NU’s safeties kept most of the game in front of them, forcing Reed into short, safe throws near the sideline.

Pelini effectively mixed blitzes with softer zone coverage, and did so without the help of senior defensive end Barry Turner, who suffered what Pelini called a “very significant” injury on the first drive of the game. Pierre Allen spelled Turner, and played well, pressuring the quarterback and making tackles in the backfield.

Afterward, Potter agreed that NU’s defense held up well, under the circumstances.

“We got put in some tough situations and we responded,” Potter said. “I was a little surprised (the offense) didn’t respond as well it should have.”

Thankfully, Paul helped pull them out of their doldrums with his touchdown. He wasn’t touched on the play, it was blocked so well, and it was ironically called “Spartan.” If Paul seemed to going a little slow toward the end zone, it was because he was pacing himself.

Drinking it in perhaps?

Nope. That actually happened on his subsequent return, when SJSU punted away from the Omaha kid, aiming the ball toward out of bounds.

“That’s the best feeling I’ve had in awhile,” Paul said, smiling. “…I felt like Devin Hester.”

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