Dave Feit's Greatest Huskers by the Numbers: 60

Dave Feit is counting down the days until the start of the 2025 season by naming the best Husker to wear each uniform number, as well as one of his personal favorites at that number. For more information about the series, click here. To see more entries, click here.

Greatest Husker to wear No. 60: Tom Novak, Fullback / Center, 1946 – 1949

Honorable Mention: none

Also worn by: Richard Fischer, James Gilbert, William Kinnaman, Francis Leik, Gail O’Brien, and Charles Story.

Dave’s Fave: Novak

Tom “Train Wreck” Novak is one of the true legends of Nebraska football history. Out of the nearly 3,400 young men to play for Nebraska, Novak was the first – and still only – Cornhusker to earn first-team all-conference honors in each of his four seasons. Only 20 Huskers have been an all-conference pick three times.

As a freshman and sophomore, Novak played fullback and center on offense and linebacker on defense, earning All-Big Six honors. As a junior and senior, he moved to center and picked up All-Big Seven recognition. Novak was a first-team All-American in 1949.

Novak still holds the Nebraska record for career interceptions by a linebacker with 11. Those 11 picks are tied for fifth most in school history, with modern era cornerbacks (and NFL players) like Ralph Brown, Fabian Washington and Tyrone Byrd. Novak’s five interceptions in 1948 are still tied for the eighth most in a single season.

In addition to football, Novak lettered three times for the Nebraska baseball team. He was on conference championship baseball teams in 1948 and 1950. Unfortunately, he didn’t have nearly the same level of team success on the football field.

Tom Novak in a 1949 preseason publicity shot. | Nebraska Athletics

Despite Novak’s standout performances, the Huskers were downright dreadful during his career. The Huskers went 11-26 in his four years. Novak played for three different head coaches (Bernie Masterson, George “Potsy” Clark and Bill Glassford). Throughout it all, Novak was a fan favorite.

The 1949 Colorado game was the last of Novak’s career. It was also his 23rd birthday. As the Huskers came out of the locker room after halftime, the Cornhusker Marching Band spelled out “TOM” and played “Happy Birthday.” A simple, yet touching tribute to a beloved player.

After the game, the Beatrice Sun wrote: “Through all the years of tribulation, Tom was the light, the hardy engine and the soul of Nebraska football. He was the refuge and an undefeated element. He will be a legend.”

***

You probably know that Nebraska permanently retired #60 following Novak’s senior season (1949), making it the first number to be retired* by NU, and one of just three numbers to be permanently out of circulation.

*Let’s recap how Nebraska distinguishes between a retired number and a retired jersey. A retired number is just that – a number that is no longer issued to any player. There are three numbers currently retired at Nebraska (in order of retirement):

60 – Tom Novak. Nobody has worn #60 since Novak took it off for the last time in 1949.

20 – Johnny Rodgers. Originally, the Jet’s number was retired after the 1972 season, but Johnny allowed his son Terry to wear it when he played at NU (1986 – 1990). After Terry left, #20 was went back into a semi-retirement until 1995, when it was in regular circulation until it was officially re-retired in 2009. Jase Dean and Adi Kunalic were the last two Huskers to wear the #20 jersey in 2008.

64 – Bob Brown. Brown’s senior season at NU was in 1963, but his number stayed in circulation until it was retired in 2004. Kurt Mann was the last Husker to wear #64.

In addition, Nebraska also has 17 “retired jerseys.” This is a way for NU to honor Huskers who win major awards (Heisman, Outland, etc.) but still keep the number available for active players. Otherwise, there would not be enough numbers for offensive linemen, as a good chunk of the seventies (71, 72, 75, 79) would be unavailable. Some of these numbers (specifically 30, 50, 71, and 79) were not issued for 10 or more years after their greatest player graduated, but all have been back in circulation since the mid-1990s.

In addition to Novak, Rodgers and Brown, whose jerseys are retired along with their numbers, here are the14 other Huskers with a retired jersey:

7 – Eric Crouch
15 – Tommie Frazier
30 – Mike Rozier
34 – Trev Alberts
50 – Dave Rimington
54 – Dominic Raiola
67 – Aaron Taylor
71 – Dean Steinkuhler
72 – Zach Wiegert
75 – Larry Jacobson
75 – Will Shields
79 – Rich Glover
93 – Ndamukong Suh
98 – Grant Wistrom

But did you know that Tom Novak only wore 60 in his senior season? In his first two years at Nebraska, Novak wore 68. As a junior, he wore 61 (teammate Charles Story wore 60). Nobody knows why he chose to move to 60 for his senior season.

The “Also worn by” names above are a complete list of the players (other than Novak) to ever wear #60 for Nebraska. By comparison, five different Huskers have worn #0, a number that could not be worn before 2020.

No one – not even Novak – wore #60 for more than one season.

***

Every year, the Tom Novak Award is presented to a Husker who “best exemplifies courage and determination despite all odds.” The award was established in 1950, the first season after Novak’s legendary career.

Not surprisingly, many of the award’s recipients are also featured in this series.

More from Nebraska on SI

Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, subscribing to HuskerMax on YouTube, and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.