Updated September 4, 2026.
Nebraska has won 46 conference championships, second most of any FBS program behind Oklahoma, but none since 1999, the longest drought of any school with more than 20 titles. The count spans four leagues: three in the Western Interstate University Football Association in the 1890s, 12 in the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association, 29 in the Big Six, Seven and Eight, and two in the Big 12. Nebraska has never won the Big Ten.
Championships by Year
| Year | League | Coach | Overall | Conf. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1894* | WIUFA | Frank Crawford | 6-2 | 2-1 |
| 1895* | WIUFA | Charles Thomas | 6-3 | 2-1 |
| 1897 | WIUFA | Edward N. Robinson | 5-1 | 3-0 |
| 1907* | MVIAA | William C. Cole | 8-2 | 1-0 |
| 1910 | MVIAA | William C. Cole | 7-1 | 2-0 |
| 1911* | MVIAA | Jumbo Stiehm | 5-1-2 | 2-0-1 |
| 1912* | MVIAA | Jumbo Stiehm | 7-1 | 2-0 |
| 1913* | MVIAA | Jumbo Stiehm | 8-0 | 3-0 |
| 1914 | MVIAA | Jumbo Stiehm | 7-0-1 | 3-0 |
| 1915 | MVIAA | Jumbo Stiehm | 8-0 | 4-0 |
| 1916 | MVIAA | E. J. Stewart | 6-2 | 3-1 |
| 1917 | MVIAA | E. J. Stewart | 5-2 | 2-0 |
| 1921 | MVIAA | Fred Dawson | 7-1 | 3-0 |
| 1922 | MVIAA | Fred Dawson | 7-1 | 5-0 |
| 1923 | MVIAA | Fred Dawson | 4-2-2 | 3-0-2 |
| 1928 | Big Six | Ernest Bearg | 7-1-1 | 4-0 |
| 1929 | Big Six | Dana X. Bible | 4-1-3 | 3-0-2 |
| 1931 | Big Six | Dana X. Bible | 8-2 | 5-0 |
| 1932 | Big Six | Dana X. Bible | 7-1-1 | 5-0 |
| 1933 | Big Six | Dana X. Bible | 8-1 | 5-0 |
| 1935 | Big Six | Dana X. Bible | 6-2-1 | 4-0-1 |
| 1936 | Big Six | Dana X. Bible | 7-2 | 5-0 |
| 1937 | Big Six | Biff Jones | 6-1-2 | 3-0-2 |
| 1940 | Big Six | Biff Jones | 8-2 | 5-0 |
| 1963 | Big Eight | Bob Devaney | 10-1 | 7-0 |
| 1964 | Big Eight | Bob Devaney | 9-2 | 6-1 |
| 1965 | Big Eight | Bob Devaney | 10-1 | 7-0 |
| 1966 | Big Eight | Bob Devaney | 9-2 | 6-1 |
| 1969* | Big Eight | Bob Devaney | 9-2 | 6-1 |
| 1970 | Big Eight | Bob Devaney | 11-0-1 | 7-0 |
| 1971 | Big Eight | Bob Devaney | 13-0 | 7-0 |
| 1972 | Big Eight | Bob Devaney | 9-2-1 | 5-1-1 |
| 1975* | Big Eight | Tom Osborne | 10-2 | 6-1 |
| 1978* | Big Eight | Tom Osborne | 9-3 | 6-1 |
| 1981 | Big Eight | Tom Osborne | 9-3 | 7-0 |
| 1982 | Big Eight | Tom Osborne | 12-1 | 7-0 |
| 1983 | Big Eight | Tom Osborne | 12-1 | 7-0 |
| 1984* | Big Eight | Tom Osborne | 10-2 | 6-1 |
| 1988 | Big Eight | Tom Osborne | 11-2 | 7-0 |
| 1991* | Big Eight | Tom Osborne | 9-2-1 | 6-0-1 |
| 1992 | Big Eight | Tom Osborne | 9-3 | 6-1 |
| 1993 | Big Eight | Tom Osborne | 11-1 | 7-0 |
| 1994 | Big Eight | Tom Osborne | 13-0 | 7-0 |
| 1995 | Big Eight | Tom Osborne | 12-0 | 7-0 |
| 1997 | Big 12 | Tom Osborne | 13-0 | 8-0 |
| 1999 | Big 12 | Frank Solich | 12-1 | 7-1 |
* Shared title. Shaded rows are national championship seasons. The MVIAA became commonly known as the Big Six in 1928, the Big Seven in 1948 and the Big Eight in 1958, officially in 1964. The 1972 title came when Oklahoma forfeited eight wins for ineligible players; both schools now claim it.
By Coach
| Coach | Titles | Seasons |
|---|---|---|
| Tom Osborne | 13 | 25 |
| Bob Devaney | 8 | 11 |
| Dana X. Bible | 6 | 8 |
| Jumbo Stiehm | 5 | 5 |
| Fred Dawson | 3 | 4 |
| Biff Jones, William C. Cole, E. J. Stewart | 2 each | |
| Crawford, Thomas, Robinson, Bearg, Solich | 1 each |
Division Titles and Championship Games
Nebraska won nine Big 12 North titles between 1996 and 2010 and one Big Ten Legends Division title in 2012, and is 2 and 5 in conference championship games. The wins were 54 to 15 over Texas A&M in 1997 and 22 to 6 over Texas in 1999. The losses: 37 to 27 to Texas in the first Big 12 title game in 1996, 21 to 7 to Oklahoma in 2006, 13 to 12 to Texas in 2009 on a clock review that put one second back for Hunter Lawrence’s field goal, 23 to 20 to Oklahoma in 2010, and 70 to 31 to Wisconsin in the 2012 Big Ten game. Three other North titles, in 2000, 2001 and 2008, were shared and lost on tiebreakers.
The Drought
Nebraska has not won a conference championship since Frank Solich’s 1999 team, and has not played in a title game since 2012. The Big Ten dropped divisions in 2024, so the path now runs through finishing in the league’s top two in a 18 team standings. Among the programs with 20 or more conference titles, none has waited longer.
Related Reading
Most conference championships ranks every program. National championships and rivals cover the Oklahoma years when the Thanksgiving game decided the Big Eight. Compare with Oklahoma, which leads with 50.