LINCOLN, NEB. – Briean Boddy-Calhoun credited a message drilled into him by a youth football coach after he made a game-saving play on Saturday.

"My coach taught me that the play isn't over until the ref blows the whistle," Boddy-Calhoun said, "so that's been something that's been grounded in me since I was younger. I'm always going to try and fight for the ball until the ref blows his whistle."

That mantra helped the Gophers avoid a late-game heartbreak in a 28-24 victory against Nebraska at Memorial Stadium.

Boddy-Calhoun ripped the ball out of the hands of receiver De'Mornay Pierson-El after a catch near the goal line with 1 minute, 23 seconds remaining.

Pierson-El had leapt over Boddy-Calhoun and safety Cedric Thompson to make the catch and backed his way toward the end zone. But Boddy-Calhoun pulled the ball from Pierson-El at the 2-yard line for a fumble ­recovery. The Gophers ran out the clock for the win.

"It just happened so fast," Boddy-Calhoun said. "I saw I'm sticking a guy and the next thing I know it's in his hands. It's right there in front of me, and the first thing I thought about was, get the ball."

Defensive backs Briean Boddy-Calhoun and Eric Murray had plenty to celebrate in the fourth quarter.

Once he realized the magnitude of his play, Boddy-Calhoun described his reaction on the sideline. "I'm just speechless when moments like that happen," he said. "You kind of don't think to remember it. I was just welcomed by a whole lot of my ­teammates."

Boddy-Calhoun atoned for an easy interception that he dropped in the first half that could have resulted in a long return.

"I knew I had to regroup and get myself back together because I had another half to play," he said. "Whenever I make a mistake, I try to make up for it. I kind of carried that as motivation throughout the game."