Nebraska saw its historic college basketball season come to an end with a loss to Iowa during the Sweet 16 of March Madness. Senior guard Connor Essegian (not so) secretly filmed his teammates’ reaction to the crushing defeat and posted their raw emotions on social media.
Fair or foul?
Only one college basketball team can be crowned as national champions in April so the other 360 teams will end their season with a loss and go home sad. To then have your private moment in the locker room blasted out on Instagram cannot feel good.
Nebraska lost to Iowa in March Madness.
The Cornhuskers had never won a game at the NCAA Tournament prior to this season. In fact, they only made the NCAA Tournament eight times prior in program history.
That frustrating trend finally changed last week!
Nebraska captured its first-ever win at March Madness in the first round. It captured its second-ever win at March Madness in the second round.
The No. 4 seed advanced to play No. 9 seed Iowa in the Sweet 16 on Thursday night. The Hawkeyes ultimately went on to win by six because Cornhuskers had only four players on the court during the most important possession of the game.
FOLGUEIRAS CATCHES THEM OFF GUARD 😳
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 27, 2026
Nebraska only had 4 defenders on the floor. pic.twitter.com/6ayu6HjMiB
Although the best Cinderella run of the season will continue, the historic season for Nebraska came to an end. It was a disappointing way to go out.
Connor Essegian wore Oakley Meta glasses to film his teammates.
Wisconsin transfer Connor Essegian played an important role off of the bench for the Cornhuskers as a junior in 2024-25 and during the first two months of 2025-26. An injury to his right ankle ended his true senior season early on Nov. 25.
That did not stop the 6-foot-4 guard from having a role on the team. He helped to document Nebraska’s historic run with behind-the-scenes access to practice, the locker room and team activities.
Essegian wore Oakley Meta Glasses throughout the NCAA Tournament.
The glasses allowed him to capture exclusive on- and off-court moments without his teammates realizing or remembering they were being filmed.
He used his footage from the loss to Iowa for a post that is now subject to criticism.
Essegian posted a video of his teammates as they buried their heads in their hands in defeat. They had to be consoled by other players and coaches. The video was captured by the Meta glasses both on the court and in the locker room. The players who were in tears did not know they were on camera.
It was intended to be a positive spin on a heartbreaking defeat. It instead came across as a player using his access for clout on social media.
Connor Essegian exploited his teammates’ emotions for views. Maybe they knew, maybe they didn’t.
Either way, his video put them on blast at their lowest.