The Iowa Hawkeyes football players appeared to get the last laugh after a heated pregame exchange in the annual rivalry game against Nebraska.

The rivalry between Nebraska and Iowa added another chapter on Friday night when Hawkeyes players were snubbed during the pregame coin toss before they

A handshake snub set the stage for Iowa’s narrow victory over Nebraska, but the real drama unfolded on and off the field in this heated rivalry.

To say that Friday's college football clash between Nebraska and Iowa was intense would be an understatement. The Cornhuskers set the tone even before the game started as they pulled off an act that many football fans consider to be a major sign of disrespect for their opponents.

Following Iowa’s 13-10 win over rival Nebraska on Friday, Hawkeyes linebackers Jay Higgins and Nick Jackson called out Cornhuskers head coach Matt Rhule and the team’s captains for their pregame antics. “So we immediately knew what type of game this was,” Higgins said.

They do not like Iowa. Those Nebraska players didn’t want to engage in an act of good sportsmanship in the company of that opponent. They did not care about respecting the game in a series that has included repeated moments of disrespect — in their view — committed by the Hawkeyes and directed at Nebraska.

A pre-game controversy overshadows Nebraska’s narrow loss to Iowa, sparking online backlash and raising questions about sportsmanship.