Colt McCoy led the Longhorns through the snow flurries to the Nebraska 5. With less than a minute remaining, Nebraska leading by one point, and the Horns facing fourth down, Texas needed a field-goal to win. Johnson had already missed three kicks (two field goals and a blocked extra point) and he told Coach Brown late in the game that his leg was tightening up. Brown looked to walk-on sophomore Ryan Bailey to attempt the kick. Bailey was not listed on UT's depth chart and coach Brown later admitted he wasn't sure whether Bailey had even been on the team as a freshman. Bailey had made only 10 kicks as a high-school kicker from Anderson High School in Austin, Texas and he had never attempted a kick for the Longhorns. The trip to Nebraska was only the second time he had ever been included in the travel roster, which is limited to 64 players. Before the kick, Brown told him "You're the luckiest guy in the world. You've got a chance to be Dusty Mangum on your first kick." Mangum had scored the game-winning field goal as time expired to lift the Longhorns to victory over the Michigan Wolverines in the 2005 Rose Bowl.
