LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Thanksgiving weekend has been a whirlwind for Iowa's Aaron Graves, and the emotion caught up with him minutes after the Hawkeyes wrapped up a 40-16 win over Nebraska on Friday.
Graves' wife, Aubrey, gave birth to their first child at 3:07 p.m. Thursday and five hours later the defensive lineman was on a Hawkeye booster's private plane flying from Iowa City to Lincoln. He arrived at the team hotel about 12 hours before Iowa took the field at Memorial Stadium.
The 6-foot-5, 295-pound senior from Dayton, Iowa, choked up and needed a minute to compose himself when asked about his son, Grayson, who weighed in at 6 pounds, 5 ounces. Mom and baby are doing well, he said.
“The last 24 hours are probably the craziest of my life, for sure,” Graves said. “She went into labor Wednesday, gave birth yesterday and I was able to spend time with her. The emotions of all that is ridiculous. Last game as a senior, getting a win here at Nebraska, my wife giving birth to our boy, first-born of our family.”
What did he think when Grayson crossed his mind during the game?
“Just how much I love him,” he said.
Graves was a factor right away. Nebraska started the game with the ball, and Graves was in on the first tackle and he broke up a pass on the second play. His only other tackle came in the second quarter.
“I told Aubrey when I left that I’m not leaving you here in the hospital to lose,” Graves said. “I told the D-line, too, before the first drive started, I was like, ‘Guys, I did not leave my baby in the hospital to lose this game, so we better come out firing on all cylinders.’ ”
Graves said he appreciates the support his teammates and coaches gave him from the time he and Aubrey found out she was pregnant.
“They always ask me just every day how Aubrey’s doing, how it’s been progressing and everything,” he said. “They’ve been with me every step of the way.”
Coach Kirk Ferentz said the birth of Grayson Graves was the biggest news of the weekend. He said he gave Aaron a game ball to give to give to his son.
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
We're excited to announce our India Community Travel in Spring 2026! Join this virtual Zoom … Read moreTravel to India Information Session (Online)
“A dazzling delight for all ages” Read moreRodger's & Hammerstein's Cinderella
Join us for Bay Area Youth Ballet's magical holiday tradition as The Nutcracker comes to lif… Read moreThe Nutcracker Presented By Bay Area Youth Ballet
Dirk van Ulden said:
Mike Caggiano said:
Mike Caggiano said:
Mike Harris said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.