Jack Hoffman, a young cancer patient and Nebraska fan who scored an iconic touchdown during the Cornhuskers’ spring game in 2013, died Wednesday.
He was 19 years old.
Hoffman was first diagnosed with cancerous glioma when I was 5 years old, which is a form of cancer that can grow to press on the brain or spinal cord tissue. Initially, doctors told the family that most of the tumor found in his brain could not be removed, although surprisingly one doctor ended up managing to remove more than 90% of the tumor.
Hoffman, a lifelong Nebraska fan, became friends with then-Cornhuskers running back Rex Burkhead shortly before his surgery. They ran on the field at Memorial Stadium after a lunch together, and Hoffman later played during the team’s 2013 spring game.
Hoffman, then 7 years old, ran for a 69-yard touchdown during that game, sparking a massive celebration in the end zone in an incredible scene. Naturally, the moment blew up on the Internet. That same year he won an ESPY for best sports moment and met with President Barack Obama at the White House.
Hoffman and his family subsequently launched the “Team Jack Foundation,” which has raised more than $14 million for pediatric brain cancer research. Jack’s father, Andy, was also diagnosed with brain cancer in 2020 and died less than a year later. He was 42 years old.
Hoffman recovered from his initial battle with cancer and ended up playing for his high school football team. He was diagnosed with cancer again in 2023 and underwent tumor resection surgery in 2024. His tumor had returned and progressed to a rare high-grade glioma.
Despite undergoing dozens of radiation treatments, Hoffman began his freshman year of college at the University of Nebraska at Kearney last fall and was in its pre-law program.
“Jack was widely known and admired throughout Nebraska and beyond for his courageous spirit and dedication to raising awareness about childhood cancer through the Team Jack Foundation,” UN-Kearney said in a statement. “We express our deepest condolences to Jack’s family, friends and relatives.” all those whose lives he touched. Jack’s connection to the UNK community, even in his short time here, was significant. His impact on our campus and the broader community will not be forgotten. “