ENGLEWOOD, Colo. --When Andy Janovich's alma mater, Nebraska, opened its season on Saturday, the team did so with heavy hearts.
During the Huskers' game against Fresno State, they sent just 10 men onto the field for their first punt to honor former punter Sam Foltz, who died in a car accident this summer.
In addition to the opening tribute, fans around Memorial Stadium held banners with Foltz's initials, the Huskers draped his jersey over their bench and the school awarded the inaugural Sam Foltz Scholarship.
Janovich was watching the emotional and "pretty special tribute."
"Kind of a last hurrah for him," Janovich said. "Ten guys on the field, leaving a spot for him at punter -- it's pretty special. I don't know many schools that do something like that, so it was pretty awesome."
Foltz and former Michigan State punter Mike Sadler were killed July 23 in a single-car crash. The two Big Ten players were in the car with LSU kicker Colby Delahoussaye when they lost control going around a curve on that Saturday night.
"He was probably one of the best teammates you could ever have," Janovich said in July. "He didn't expect to get anything unless he was ready and willing to work for it. Even when he got a scholarship, he said, 'I'm still a walk-on. It doesn't matter.' He was basically saying, 'I'm going to come to work every day. It doesn't matter whether my school is paid for or not.' That is just the type of guy he was."
