Penn State also continued an annoying habit of poor play after the halftime break. The Cornhuskers (8-2, 5-1) scored a pair of touchdowns a little more than two minutes apart early in the third quarter to come all the way back from a 20-6 deficit.
In their four losses, the Nittany Lions have been outscored by 56-6 in the third.
"I think that we just struggled in the second half to get a rhythm," said wide receiver Allen Robinson, who tied the Nittany Lions' team record for most receptions in a season with 63. "The third quarter is a quarter that we've struggled in throughout the year. So we've got to practice and just try to get that better."
The Cornhuskers, who have come back from double-digit second-half deficits four times to win Big Ten games this season, outscored the visitors, 26-3, and outgained them, 250-136, in the final 30 minutes.
The Lions had no punch left offensively after the Lehman fumble, with zero first downs and 9 total yards on their final eight plays of the game. They also yielded a safety when Matt McGloin was called for intentional grounding in the end zone.
When it was over, Nebraska fans lined both sides of a pathway to applaud the Nittany Lions as they left the field.
Linebacker Michael Mauti said he had a brief but heartfelt conversation after the game with Huskers coach Bo Pelini.
"He was very respectful," Mauti said. "I've got a lot of respect for Coach Pelini. All the players came up to us just saying how proud they were of us and the way we stuck together throughout this season. There was a lot of respect there mutually. They're a class act."
Contact Joe Juliano at jjuliano@phillynews.com, or follow on Twitter @joejulesinq.
