Demond Williams Jr. came off the bench in the fourth quarter and threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Chris Lawson with 1:30 remaining as Washington rallied to beat Nebraska 17-10 in a Big Ten Conference game Saturday night in Lincoln, Neb.
The Huskies’ Alex McLaughlin intercepted a pass and returned it 48 yards for a touchdown with 1:15 to go to extend the lead to 17-7.
Lawson made 12 catches for 155 yards, including a 24-yarder while falling backward along the sideline on a fourth-and-18 play to keep the winning drive alive. Two plays later, Williams found Lawson down the left sideline and he eluded a defender before diving into the end zone to give the Huskies a 10-7 lead.
Backup quarterback Elijah Brown started for Washington (5-3, 2-3 Big Ten), as Williams had been sidelined since suffering a fractured rib Oct. 9 against Iowa. Brown was 19-of-30 passing for 136 yards, with Williams making a brief appearance in the first half before coming back in the fourth quarter. Williams completed 7 of 13 for 99 yards and rushed for a team-high 28 yards on four carries.
The Cornhuskers (5-3, 2-3) suffered their third straight loss, surrendering fourth-quarter leads in each.
Nebraska’s John Hohl kicked a 42-yard field goal with 31 seconds left to make it a one-score game, but the Huskies’ Lawson recovered the ensuing onside kick to clinch the victory.
Anthony Colandrea was 24-of-44 passing for 255 yards for Nebraska, with one touchdown and three interceptions. Jamal Rule rushed 13 times for a game-high 72 yards with Jacory Barney Jr. making six catches for 65 yards.
Neither team ran a play in the red zone until the Cornhuskers got there with 11:07 remaining. The Huskies’ defense held and Nebraska’s Kyle Cunanan missed a 36-yard field-goal attempt.
Colandrea threw interceptions on Nebraska’s first two possessions before hitting backup tight end Carter Nelson with a 24-yard scoring strike into the back right corner of the end zone on third-and-2 with 1:40 left in the first quarter. That capped a 10-play, 95-yard drive.
The Huskies got on the board on Tyler Robles’ career-long 50-yard field goal with 41 seconds left in the half.