Four more Husker football players were honored with single-digit jerseys Wednesday. Wide receiver Janiran Bonner received No. 4, linebacker Vincent Shavers, Jr., received No. 9, linebacker Javin Wright was given No. 0 and wide receiver Jacory Barney, Jr., will now wear No. 2.
They join defensive tackle Riley Van Poppel (No. 5) and wide receiver Dane Key (No. 6), who were given single-digit numbers earlier this week. Marques Buford, Jr. (No. 3), Malcolm Hartzog (No. 7) and DeShon Singleton (No. 8) had previously received single-digit numbers entering this season.
Coach Matt Rhule has held the single-digit numbers, usually the most sought-after, for the players who were voted by their teammates as the toughest on the team. He began the custom at Temple, then has carried it to head coaching stops at Baylor and Nebraska.
“I got really tired of having a guy in my program who had spent three years at like No. 47… wanted to wear No. 1 or No. 3, and he had earned it and we would give it to a recruit,” Rhule said before his first season. “What we decided was (numbers) 1-9, now 0-9, would go to the nine or now 10 ‘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, hard-working, competitive every single day.”
No. 0-Javin Wright, LB
No. 1—vacant—
No. 2–Jacory Barney, Jr., WR
No. 3–Marques Buford, Jr., DB
No. 4–Janiran Bonner, WR
No. 5–Riley Van Poppel, DT
No. 6–Dane Key, WR
No. 7–Malcolm Hartzog, Jr., DB
No. 8–DeShon Singleton, S
No. 9–Vincent Shavers, Jr., LB