Greatest Husker to wear 1: Clarence Swanson, End, 1918-1921
Nebraska's 1921 game at Pittsburgh was a notable affair. It was one of Nebraska's earliest trips east of Minnesota. The game marked the start of a recurring series with Pittsburgh, who would become one of Nebraska's most-played nonconference opponents. The Cornhuskers defeated Pop Warner's Panthers 10-0, one of just six NU wins over Pitt in 24 tries.
And, notable to our purposes today, the Nov. 5, 1921, game was the first live radio broadcast of a Nebraska Cornhuskers football game. (The first commercial radio broadcast of any college football game happened four weeks earlier.)
Unfortunately, that didn't matter much to the folks in Nebraska. Pittsburgh station KDKA aired the game, but the signal didn't reach the Midwest. Even if it had been possible to simulcast the game locally, there were no commercial stations in Nebraska in 1921, and very few citizens owned radios. But it was the genesis of bringing the sights and sounds of Nebraska football to fans throughout the country.
Aside from an early stretch in the late 1920s and 30s when schools selfishly restricted radio broadcasts to protect in-person attendance, radio has been a constant.
For a long time, multiple stations would broadcast Husker games with their own announcers. KFOR (Dick Perry), KLIN (Bob Zenner, Don Gill, Tim Moreland, Tom Hedrick, Ray Scott) and WOW (Russ Baldwin).
But KFAB was the most notable. It had the strongest signal, and it had Lyell Bremser, who called Nebraska games for 42 seasons. Eventually, KFAB would obtain sole rights and create a network of syndicates across the state and region that would air Nebraska games.
When Bremser retired, Kent Pavelka took over behind the microphone. A change in the KFAB contract led to Pavelka being replaced by Warren Swain, and then Jim Rose. When Rose was unable to call a game in 2007, Greg Sharpe, a broadcaster with Kansas State ties, was brought in. Sharpe held the coveted "Voice of the Huskers" title until he passed away in 2025.
In the 2025 season, Kyle Crooks will take over as Nebraska's "Voice." Crooks has previously worked on broadcasts with the Florida Gators.
One other notable tie-in to that 1921 Pitt game: Nebraska's lone touchdown was scored by Clarence Swanson, who caught a 63-yard pass from fullback Harold Hartley. Swanson scoring the game-winning points makes sense. He predicted the victory at the train station before the team left for Pittsburgh. "We are going into the game to win and will win," the team captain said. "The East will recognize us as the 'Fighting Nebraskans.'"
Clarence Swanson was one of the first Cornhusker superstars. Few - if any - former players can match his impact on the program or simply being there for milestone events. There are so many ties, it's hard to know where to start.
We'll begin in tiny Wakefield, Nebraska, Swanson's hometown. Swanson - 5'7" and 167 pounds - was a standout on the football, baseball and basketball teams. In his first two seasons at Nebraska, the Cornhuskers played as an independent team. As a junior in 1920, Swanson earned third-team All-America honors.
In 1921, Swanson's senior season, Nebraska joined the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MVIAA), the predecessor of what would become the Big Eight. The 1921 squad went 7-1, with the only loss to 10-1 Notre Dame. In his final game, against Colorado State, Swanson caught three touchdown passes, setting a record that still stands (now tied with eight other players).
Swanson set numerous school receiving records, many of which stood for 50 years until Johnny Rodgers came along. Swanson is still tied for fifth in touchdown receptions in a season (nine) with Maurice Purify and Trey Palmer and is fifth all time in career TD receptions (18), tied with Jordan Westerkamp. Swanson earned All-MVIAA honors and was a second-team All-American.
After graduation, Swanson served as an assistant coach for one season. But he was not done impacting the program.
Fast-forward 40 years to 1961. Head coach Bill Jennings has been fired, and a search for his replacement is ongoing. Clarence Swanson - now president of the University of Nebraska Board of Regents - is being kept up to date on Athletic Director Tippy Dye's search. With a couple of Dye's preferred candidates unavailable, Dye expressed interest in hiring the head coach from Wichita State,* who had previously reported to Dye.
Swanson felt that Nebraska could - and should - do better and find a coach with more experience. He went to Nebraska Chancellor Clifford Hardin and said that unless Nebraska made a better hire, they were doomed to keep repeating the misery of the 1940s and 1950s. Hardin called his friend - and Michigan State head coach - Duffy Daugherty. Daugherty was not interested in the Nebraska job, but he did recommend one of his former assistants who was doing a fine job out in Wyoming: Bob Devaney.
*The Wichita State coach Dye was interested in hiring - Hank Foldberg – ended up at Texas A&M job. In his three seasons in College Station, he went 6-23-1 and never coached again.
It is safe to say that without Clarence Swanson stepping in and lobbying for Daugherty's recommendation, Bob Devaney does not become Nebraska's head coach. In 1966, Devaney said Swanson was "one of the important reasons I came to Nebraska. And he's one of the big reasons I have stayed in Nebraska. He has an understanding of the athletic problems and has been a big help to us."
"(Swanson) should go down as one of the greatest men in the history of the University of Nebraska."
Clarence Swanson died in December 1970, less than a month before Devaney won Nebraska's first national championship.
But Swanson's impact on the program was still not done.
His children - a son and daughter - were adding branches to a Husker family tree that has spanned generations.
Jaime Swanson - one of Clarence's granddaughters - married Husker all-conference linebacker Tom Ruud. Their two sons - Barrett and Bo - were standout linebackers in the 2000s, with Barrett also serving as an assistant coach.
Another granddaughter - Sheri - married former Husker All-American Bob Martin. Their son Jay also played in the 2000s.
Today, the Clarence E. Swanson Memorial Award honors individuals "for outstanding contributions to the University of Nebraska and the Husker athletic department through personal service, personal support of athletic department programs and dedication to the Husker football program and intercollegiate athletics."
Clarence Swanson was inducted posthumously into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1973.
