Nebraska football has a new tradition this fall.
“I got really tired of having a guy in my program who had spent three years at like No. 47, was getting ready to play and wanted to wear No. 1 or No. 3, and he’d earned it, and we would give it to a recruit,” head coach Matt Rhule said earlier this year. “So what we decided was that 1-9, or now 0-9, would go to the nine, or now ten, toughest guys on the team.
“When I say ‘toughest,’ we define that for the guys, but really, the guys who best exemplify what it means to be a Cornhusker, to be accountable, to be dependable, to be tough, hardworking, competitive every single day.”
The first players with single-digit jerseys were unveiled Wednesday.
Senior wide receiver Billy Kemp IV picked the No. 1, safety Isaac Gifford is wearing No. 2, Luke Reimer is wearing No. 4 and quarterback Jeff Sims is wearing No. 7.
𝘼 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙙𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣.#GBR x #WhatsNExt! pic.twitter.com/rZq5rLd3OA
— Nebraska Football (@HuskerFootball) August 10, 2023
The honor is voted on by the team.