SAN DIEGO » Jake Locker bounced back from an injury and scored on a 25-yard run in the third quarter, and tailback Chris Polk ran for 177 yards and a score to help Washington to a 19-7 victory over listless No. 17 Nebraska in the Holiday Bowl last night.

The Huskies (7-6) avenged a 56-21 loss to the Huskers (10-4) in Seattle on Sept. 18. The Cornhuskers piled up 533 yards of total offense in that game, including 383 rushing.

While Washington was a winner in its first bowl game since 2002, the Huskers came out flat in their second straight Holiday Bowl appearance. They were manhandled on both sides of the line and imploded under 12 penalties for 102 yards.

Washington outgained Nebraska 340 yards to 189, including 268 to 91 rushing.

"We just ran right at ’em," Polk said. "We knew we could win if we ran the way we know how to run. They couldn’t stop it. We whupped a team that didn’t respect us."

Locker, who passed up the NFL Draft last spring to return for his senior season, capped the opening drive of the second half with a 25-yard scoring run to give Washington a 17-7 lead. He faked a handoff and then ran right, bouncing off a defender and staying on his feet to score.

Locker ran 13 times for 83 yards. Polk had 34 carries.

The Huskies had to win their final three games to become bowl eligible. They got their first win in four trips to the Holiday Bowl.

Nebraska was coming off a 23-20 loss to Oklahoma in the Big 12 title game in which it blew a 17-point lead.

"I’m embarrassed," Nebraska coach Bo Pelini said. "I obviously didn’t get them ready to play. I thought we were ready to play. I liked our plan. We didn’t execute very well. Obviously we didn’t play our best football. It starts with me."