While many doubted Terence Crawford, his hometown football team never wavered in its support. The Nebraska Cornhuskers, led by head coach Matt Rhule, proudly rallied behind their local hero. Ahead of their commanding 59-7 win over Houston Christian at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, the entire team – including Rhule and his coaching staff – wore special red T-shirts featuring Crawford holding a Husker helmet. After the game, Rhule flew to Las Vegas to show his support for Crawford.

Meanwhile, Terence Crawford made history by dethroning Canelo Alvarez to become the undisputed super middleweight champion. With that victory, ‘Bud’ etched his name in boxing history as the only male fighter to achieve undisputed status in three different weight classes. Later, the official Nebraska Football X account changed its profile photo to an image of the boxer, signaling immediate congratulations. However, their support for Crawford didn’t end there. 

Terence Crawford leads Nebraska Football out of the tunnel

A week after his stunning win over Alvarez, Crawford—who has long been a proud member of Nebraska’s fandom—returned to Memorial Stadium to lead the Huskers onto the field for their key Big Ten matchup against No. 21 Michigan. Donning a custom No. 168 jersey, a nod to the super middleweight division, Crawford sprinted out in front of the team to thunderous cheers from more than 85,000 fans. He later shared a clip of the moment on Instagram, captioning it, “GO BIG RED‼️ Always reppin NEBRASKA.” 

The Cornhuskers themselves joined in the celebration, posting a picture of Crawford leading the charge with the caption, “UNDISPUTED.” It marked the second time Crawford had guided the team out of the tunnel, the first being before a 2024 win over Colorado. The posts quickly drew admiration from fellow fighters, with Claressa Shields commenting, “Hard 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥” and Andre Berto adding, “Tough 🔥🔥🔥.” As much as Crawford supports the Huskers, the Cornhuskers also proudly embrace him as one of their own. 

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Earlier this year, despite never attending the school, the University of Nebraska presented him with its inaugural Spirit of the Maverick award. The honor is described as recognizing those who “exemplify strength, resilience, curiosity, independent thinking and entrepreneurialism.” Recipients are “not formally part of the UNO family,” but are celebrated as Mavericks for their excellence, engagement, inclusion, discovery, and integrity. Regardless, after sharing the powerful moment with the football, Crawford had to watch them fall. 

Nebraska Cornhuskers lose 27-30 to Michigan Wolverines

The Nebraska Cornhuskers came up just short in their Big Ten opener, falling 30-27 to the No. 21 Michigan on Saturday in Lincoln. Even with an electrifying first-half Hail Mary touchdown from Dylan Raiola to Jacory Barney, Nebraska couldn’t overcome Michigan’s overpowering ground game and relentless pass rush. The Wolverines piled up 286 rushing yards, highlighted by a 75-yard touchdown from Justice Haynes and a 54-yarder from Jordan Marshall. 

Freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood added a 37-yard rushing score and managed the game effectively, finishing 12-of-22 for 105 yards. Michigan’s defense sacked Raiola seven times, disrupting Nebraska’s offensive rhythm and holding the Huskers’ run game in check. Raiola threw for 308 yards and three touchdowns but was under pressure throughout. The loss extends Nebraska’s streak to 28 straight defeats against ranked opponents, a drought stretching back to 2016. 

That being said, even though the Cornhuskers couldn’t replicate Crawford’s dominance of Canelo, Crawford leading the team out of the tunnel made for a great moment that fans will remember forever. What did you make of it?