Wynot Nebraska: Population 176. A sleepy village in Northeast Nebraska known for producing overly breaded chicken fried steak and rough and tumble men. What you may not know however is Wynot also produced a legendary 8 man football player simply known as Farnsworth. This is the story of a fictitious farm boy who through hard work and grit earned a spot on the roster and in our Husker Hearts.
The Farnsworth’s are a family of farmers. Five generations planted, plowed, and harvested the fertile soil in America’s breadbasket. The family lived by a strict code of Huskers, God, family, and country.
The love of Husker football started early for little Farnsy. Every Saturday the family would gather around the radio to listen to Kent Pavelka scream “Touchdown Tommie Frazier!” After each game he and his dad would light up a cigarette and play a light game of catch in the shadow of their barn.
Playing the game came naturally. Farnsworth dominated his flag football league as a 6 year old and quickly earned a name for himself. He idolized western Nebraska heroes Danny Woodhead and Don Beebe. Even wore the same protective helmet as Beebe in high school.
During his senior year Farnsworth developed a mean streak that college recruiters salivated over. Farnsworth took advantage of the oversized helmet and used the helmet as a weapon. His 22 spearing penalties set the all time Nebraska single season record.
After graduating from high school Farnsworth had a decision to make. He could take over the family farm and live a simple life or he could chase his dreams. Farnsworth was heavily recruited by South Dakota and SDSU but his heart was with the Huskers, so he walked on instead of taking a full ride.
The University of Nebraska was a much different beast then his one room K-12 school in Wynot. Back at home; Farnsworth could always get by with a wink and a smile or by performing certain “favors” for his teacher. Allegedly.
Unfortunately in the classrooms of UNL, Farnsworth quickly realized that a well-defined jawline and chiseled abs couldn’t solve complex mathematical equations.
As spring approached in Lincoln, Farnsworth’s excitement returned. Buckling the chinstrap of that helmet with the Red N was a dream come true. He was back in his comfort zone. Time to do what he did best. Play football!
On Day 1 of practice, Coach Held handed out the playbooks to the players and it might as well have been a quantum physics textbook for Farnsworth. “What on earth is a Double Y split Red banana sluggo?” He whispered to Ozigbo. He had the physical tools coming out of Wynot but just could not grasp the complex offensive scheme of Coach Frost.
Fast-forward 4 years to his senior year. In his first 3 seasons he never took a snap or even dressed for a game. Any other player would have transferred or quit but that’s not in the Farnsworth DNA! He kept grinding, fully bought in, and trusted the process! His patience was rewarded the Sunday after the Minnesota game when he learned he would dress for the Bethune Cookman game.
When I found out Farnsy would dress I tried to rally support for him in the Husker Power Group on Facebook. I wanted to start a chant of “We Want Farnsworth 👏👏👏👏👏 We Want Farnsworth” between the first and second quarter of the Bethune Cookman game to show our support. I figured 76k Husker fans in the group would rally behind this but needless to say, not everyone was a fan of Farnsworth!
Group member Faye had this to say:
“I have No idea who in hel Farnsworth is,,so googed to ask what position he plays..the response showed 141 players photos, numer and position,,Hoebver NO Farnsworth,,Loks like he is NOT opart of the teamm at thiis point,,so pease do NOT enbaress whomever plays his position by chanting at the game…Maybe at half time and NOT just b4 starting a new quarter..I don’t want us to lose whoomever plays his same posoition,,Enough trouble wiht this team getting their STUFF togther, and your terirble idea could just cause another problem….” Greatest fans in college football?
This negativity did not deter me. My long time friend Brad and myself attended the game Saturday and when the time came we started the chant that echoed throughout Memorial Stadium! Link to the live chant below!
Although Farnsworth didn’t see the field Saturday It was plain to see what this gesture from the fans meant to him. I saw him wipe away a few tears and give a simple nod of the head while waving to the crowd. Our support of Farnsworth will never waver!
He might not score on the field but those chiseled abs will endure he always scores with the co-eds.The
