Road Race An Opportunity For Huskers To Give Back

Ryan Schommer grew up attending Nebraska football games and sitting with his father on the 50-yard line at Memorial Stadium, week after autumn week. Like any die-hard Husker fan, Schommer also came to the Red-White Spring Games, and remembers one, in particular, making an impact.
 
It happened in 2013, when Schommer, then 13, saw 6-year-old Jack Hoffman run 69 yards for a touchdown. The scripted play generated awareness for pediatric brain cancer, which Hoffman was battling. The event went viral.
 
"It was the best," Schommer said. "When he ran into that end zone, I was just so excited for him."
 
Fast forward to present day. Schommer, a Norfolk native, is a redshirted sophomore walk-on at Nebraska, and he's among three Huskers with a leadership role in helping organize the annual Nebraska Football Road Race, which raises funds for pediatric brain cancer research.
 
"I didn't even think at that time – of course I had dreams to be on the team – let alone be a part of the same thing that Jack was running for," Schommer said. "Right now, I'm very blessed, very appreciative."
 
Schommer joins junior quarterback Adrian Martinez and junior tight end Austin Allen on the leadership committee for the Nebraska Football Road Race, on Sunday, June 28, outside Memorial Stadium in Lincoln. Registration for the event -- $30 for the 5K run, $25 for the 1-Mile Fun Run – has already begun.
 
"I love having a leadership type role, being able to take charge and trying to navigate the different things that have to go on to promote such an amazing event," Schommer said. "But the event itself has such a great cause."
 
More than 900 runners participated in last year's event. Former Husker offensive lineman Spencer Long donated $10,000, part of the $30,000 total amount raised for the cause. In all, more than $100,000 has been raised since the inaugural race, with 100 percent of funds directed to pediatric brain cancer research at the Buffett Cancer Center at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
 
Also included in the registration is a race T-shirt, bracelet and exclusive passes for a Husker football preseason practice/scrimmage for the first 1,000 registrants. On-line registration is open until June 26; individuals can register in person at the Lincoln Running Company after June 26, with a late registration fee.
 
"It's such a huge cause, and everyone is behind it," Schommer said. "I just love all the energy that comes with it."
 
He's also come to appreciate the personal interaction with participants, something that makes the event extra special to Schommer. All players attend and interact with participants while also posing for pictures and signing autographs, especially with younger runners in the mile race. 
 
"My freshman year, they have all of the freshmen run the mile," Schommer said. "I went with this one kid. I remember him, and I saw him once when I was handing out fliers once I was on the leadership team a year later. I saw him running in another local race. He was like, 'Hey, can I run with you again?' And I said, 'OK, sweet.' And I saw him again and I ran with him again at the road race.
 
"I love the kids. Hopefully I'll be able to run with him every year. The cool thing is, I'm not the only one who has the same kid. I'm sure there's a bunch of other football players. You develop relationships, and it's huge for those kids. We have such a high platform, it'd be foolish to not use it to the max level, you know?"
 
Among Schommer's roles on the leadership team are going out in the community and distributing fliers, talking to clubs and attending other race events. He'll also appear on radio and television to promote the race. Seems a perfect fit for someone majoring in advertising and public relations – and for someone with a true passion in helping out a worthy cause.
 
"It means everything, because this university has a multitude of resources, and it's cool the football team, which is such a huge platform, for us to be able to use it for such an amazing cause," Schommer said. "That's the standard that Nebraska is. One team, one state. We are behind every cause that we can be because of that platform."
 
 Reach Brian at brosenthal@huskers.com or follow him on Twitter @GBRosenthal.