In American college football, the long snapper for the University of Nebraska will take the field but fast when the Cornhuskers host Northwestern on Friday night, the start of Yom Kippur.
A colorful Chicago Tribune profile published Thursday details Jordan Ober’s Jewish rituals, such as reciting the Shema prayer before each snap for a field goal or punt. His towel bears the Hebrew phrase “Hineni,” meaning “Here I am.”
“I am very serious about my religion, but I am also serious about my job,” Ober told the Tribune. “I spoke with my rabbi and with God by myself. I do not want to let my teammates down.”
Dudi Sela of Israel hits a return against Alexandr Dolgopolov of Ukraine during their men’s singles quarter-final match at the ATP Shenzhen Open tennis tournament in Shenzhen, southern China’s Guangdong province on September 29, 2017. (AFP/STR)
Earlier Friday, Dudi Sela, Israel’s top-ranked men’s singles tennis player, quit mid-game at the Wuhan Open in China on Friday due to the imminent start of Yom Kippur.
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