Well done, Huskers and Bulldogs. It’s good to see that sportsmanship is still alive and well in some sports venues.
Via IJR:
On July 23rd, a car accident rocked the Nebraska community. Huskers star punter, Sam Foltz, lost his life just five weeks before his team would take the field in the home-opener against Fresno State.
Even before the game began, Big Red Today reported that there was something in the air. Sam Foltz’s parents were in attendance — his father Gerald explained: “You can’t go hide in a closet someplace.”
The stands were packed with Foltz jerseys, and banners in the stands were emblazoned with Foltz’s personal motto: “Dream big, work hard, stay humble.”
Before warm-ups started, kickers Drew Brown and Spencer Lindsay ran Foltz’s #27 game jersey onto the field. Brown said it just felt like the right thing to do:
“The kickers and punters and snappers are always the first ones on the field for warm-up. Me and Spencer just felt that his jersey should be out there with us just like he was watching over our head.”
But then the game began, and soon the Huskers found themselves in a position to punt. And that’s when the crowd really went wild. Instead of moving forward with the play, they took the field with just ten men — leaving Foltz’s position empty.Normally a “delay of game” penalty would give the advantage to the opposing team, but Fresno State declined to take the penalty. Head coach Tim DeRuyter explained his decision: “If we can’t teach our guys about (being) classy like that, what’s college for?”