Hawkeye the dog tugged at the country's heartstrings when a photo of him lying next to his master's casket went viral. Hawkeye belonged to fallen Navy SEAL Jon Tumilson, who was one of 30 U.S. troops killed when their helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan earlier this month.
Now the Iowa Hawkeyes football team plans to pay tribute to Tumilson, an Iowa native, during one of their home games in November - and they want Hawkeye to participate by leading the team out onto the field, according to the Associated Press.
The idea of Hawkeye the dog leading the Hawkeyes onto the field is not set in stone. Iowa Athletics Department officials have indicated they are working with Tumilson's family to come up with a fitting tribute for him.
Tumilson' mother, Kathleen, told the AP she hopes the Hawkeyes pay homage to all the men who were killed in the Chinook crash:
Home Post reported last week Hawkeye is now living with a friend of Tumilson's, to whom the Navy SEAL willed the dog in case of his death.
