Huskies supporting Huskies is a culture NIU Athletics has developed, and few teams personify this mantra like the wrestling team.

During the volleyball team’s opening match of the 2018 season against the DePaul University Blue Demons Aug. 24, a dozen of the athletes from the wrestling team trotted into Victor E. Court with cardboard cutouts of volleyball Head Coach Ray Gooden to support the Huskies.

Not willing to rest on their laurels or make their gesture of backing a one-off appearance, the wrestling team tailgated before the Huskies Aug. 25 matchup against the Oklahoma University Sooners with nearly the entire team showing up to demonstrate their support.

The volleyball team did not win either of those contests, but when the Huskies did pick up their first victory of the season during their Aug. 28 match against the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers, the wrestling team sent a celebratory tweet to ensure the support was felt.

“It is just a general Huskies support Huskies,” Gooden said. “I have helped out [wrestling Head Coach] Ryan [Ludwig] with different things for his meets, but his guys always roll out and show support. It’s never a ‘I do this, you do this for me.’ It’s kind of just what we do. I think the more it happens, it makes one really big and organic experience.”

Wrestling redshirt senior Bryce Gorman said the team does view showing support for the other sports team as something they have to do. He said the team tries to make the most fun out of the experience as they can; as athletes, they know how much the backing means to other teams.

“It’s great to support other athletes,” Gorman said. “Sometimes, you are going to have those games where not a lot of people show up. If you can get an entire team to come to your game, it helps you mentally knowing you have a bunch of people supporting you. It makes it a lot better and easier.”

Gooden and volleyball senior outside hitter Autumn Martin said the amount of support they receive from other sports is a unique aspect of NIU.

“It keeps me from thinking of this as a job,” Gooden said. “I think it’s awesome when I come to work, there is always something fresh out there. The overall support has been constant and continues to grow, which is a good thing.”

Wrestling Head Coach Ryan Ludwig said the team makes sure they support other teams. The wrestling team’s Twitter feed is filled with messages of encouragement toward other teams, including when volleyball picked up their second victory of the season against the Marshall University Thundering Herd Sept. 7 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

“Some places you go, you may not find [school spirit] is stressed within the team,” Ludwig said. “We think that is something that makes NIU a unique place. We feel like all the athletes support the other teams really well. We want to be as active in there as we possibly can.”

The Huskies support Huskies culture is making an impact on the athletes that will last a lifetime.

“I am going to be that mom that is like ‘at NIU I did this,’” Martin said. “I am just going to tell my college stories about how much fun I had at NIU and how unique it is. I love it, and I am going to keep talking about it.”