With season tickets in the family, Max Anderson grew up going to many Nebraska baseball games.
The Andersons gave them up in recent years, but now they have a pretty darn good reason to get them back.
Anderson will be wearing a red Husker ball cap next spring.
Once committed and signed to Texas A&M, the Millard West graduate told NU coach Will Bolt last week that he was flipping to Nebraska. Anderson went public with the news Monday, announcing his commitment on Twitter.
Anderson's pledge capped a whirlwind and uncertain number of days following the five-round Major League Baseball Draft earlier this month.
The Journal Star 2019 Super-State honorary captain and 2020 Nebraska Gatorade Player of the Year committed to Rob Childress' A&M program in 2018, and then signed in November. All was set. Anderson was headed to College Station, Texas.
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But the ripple effect of the coronavirus pandemic reshaped Anderson's route. The MLB Draft was shortened from 40 rounds and not as many Aggie players were selected. And then A&M ran into some other scholarship limitations.
That's when Childress, the former Nebraska assistant coach, and Anderson went to work to put the player in a better situation for college. Childress reached out to Bolt, who was Childress' assistant at A&M before taking the Nebraska job, and the connection to Lincoln was made.
NU assistant coach Lance Harvell called Anderson and made a scholarship offer. Anderson slept on it, and then talked to Bolt on the phone the next day.
Prior to Anderson signing with the Aggies, Bolt and Harvell had watched Anderson play, but out of respect to Childress did not attempt any late efforts to lure the Aggie commit to Lincoln.
But once A&M agreed to release Anderson from his signed letter of intent, the Husker coaches wanted Anderson in Lincoln and thought he was a great fit. Anderson was sold.
It all happened really fast, Anderson says.
Due to circumstances beyond my control I will not be attending TAMU anymore. I would like to thank everyone who has been with me during all this. With that being said I would like to announce that I will be coming home and following my dreams by committing to Nebraska. 🔴⚪ï¸
— Max Anderson (@maxanderson62_)
He was going to complete his American Legion season and then make a 12-plus-hour trek to Texas to settle in at his new home. In the end, home was just down I-80.
"It was kind of a shell-shock moment," Anderson said. "I was trying to keep the mindset that God has a plan for me and I just have to trust him. I kind of kept it going, my mindset, hoping everything would work out, and sure enough it did. It worked out perfect for me."
After Anderson tweeted his commitment Monday evening, several Huskers reached out to him, including former Millard West teammate Colby Gomes.
Anderson said knowing many of the Huskers and having grown up around Husker baseball brought immediate comfort to his decision.
"It was very comforting knowing that there really wasn't much homework to be learned about the school, and I kind of knew everything about it already," he said. "(The players) made me feel like everybody down there really, really wanted me. It's going to help that I'm going to be playing with a bunch of guys that I'm very familiar with.
"I think with the Nebraska team chemistry that we're going to have down there, it makes something pretty special."
Anderson was one of the state's top high school shortstops for multiple seasons, but he says he can play anywhere in the infield. He hit .366 and tallied 26 RBIs while scoring 27 runs as a junior in helping the Wildcats capture the Class A state championship.
"He's an electric player, and something special always happens when he's at the plate, not just the home runs, but with clutch hits," Millard West coach Steve Frey told the Journal Star in 2019.
With no high school baseball season this past spring, Anderson did the next best thing. He and his father went to a hardware store, bought some netting and put it up in their basement so Anderson could keep his swing going, hitting foam balls.
With Legion season underway, Anderson said he wants to make the most of his final summer with his prep teammates while also remembering why he plays the game in the first place.
"I think the most important thing for me is just remember how fun the game of baseball is and how relaxing it is to be able to play out there and not really think about anything else that's going on in the world," said Anderson, who also added he wants to work to become one of the best infielders in Nebraska.