was a wide receiver for the Raiders at that time, was quoted as saying, "I was very surprised that he waited till the last second and I think a lot of the players they were surprised also so in a way maybe because he didn't like the Raiders he decided 'Hey look maybe we should sabotage just a little bit and let Jon Gruden go out and win this one.'" Callahan has denied the allegations, stating that, "While I fully understand a competitive professional football player's disappointment when a game's outcome doesn't go his team's way, I am shocked, saddened and outraged by Tim Brown's allegations and Jerry Rice's support of those allegations made through various media outlets over the last 24 hours. To leave no doubt, I categorically and unequivocally deny the sum and substance of their allegations." Callahan further referred to the claim as "ludicrous and defamatory." Brown backtracked from his comments a day later, denying having said that Callahan sabotaged the game. Nebraska Cornhuskers Soon after being fired by the Raiders, Callahan was hired at Nebraska. This would mark the first time in over four decades (since the hiring of Bob Devaney in 1962) that the Cornhuskers would be led by a head coach with no direct ties to the university either as a player or an assistant coach. In his first season at Nebraska (2004), Callahan finished 5–6, giving the Cornhuskers their first losing season in more than 40 years. He had introduced the West Coast offense to a program that had traditionally relied on a strong option running attack. The Cornhuskers finished 8–4 during his second season and won the 2005 Alamo Bowl by defeating No. 20 Michigan, 32–28. The 7–4 Wolverines were the highest-ranked opponent that Nebraska had defeated since a 20–10 win over No. 2 Oklahoma in October 2001. The Wolverines also were the highest-ranked opponent defeated by Nebraska away from home since a 66–17 win over Northwestern in the 2000 Alamo Bowl. The 2006 team finished 9–5 and won the Big 12 North for the first time since 1999. The win over then No. 24-ranked Texas A&M marked Nebraska's first ever road win over a ranked Big 12 South team. Many expected that the 2007 season would be a breakthrough year for Nebraska. However, the team fell well short of expectations. Nebraska was beaten by USC 49–31 in a nationally televised September