Nebraska receiver Malachi Coleman surprised on Kelly Clarkson Show

Luke Mullin and Wilson Moore consider Daniel Kaelin's commitment from the quarterback's point of view, along with baseball, softball and Big Ten TV deal chatter.

Nebraska receiver Malachi Coleman appeared on the Kelly Clarkson Show to discuss his foundation, Fly Like Chi, and his desire to help kids who grew up in the foster care system like him. He didn't know there would be more to the appearance, which aired Monday.

His adopted parents sitting next to him on a gray couch, the four-star recruit out of Lincoln East detailed his difficult childhood and origins on the foundation before Clarkson revealed a surprise: Dude Wipes, a wet wipe and hygiene company, had donated $15,000 to Fly Like Chi.

Coleman leaned back on the sofa and laughed as he heard the news.

The conception of the foundation, he had explained minutes earlier, had come from his mother Miranda, who challenged him to do one thing for somebody else. He began by holding a door open for a stranger.

"The appreciation that person showed me, just that little, quick thank you, was something that I’d never had up to that point in my life," he said. "I never had the feeling of being wanted. I never had that, and it has made me want to do it more and more. It made me want to open my heart up to everybody that I possibly could."

That urge eventually led to Fly Like Chi and its focus on kids growing up like he had. The foundation allows kids to pursue other outlets, like music, art or sports, the kinds of opportunities Coleman didn't have until later in his childhood.

Coleman recently enrolled at Nebraska as the top-rated recruit of the 2023 class. He committed to NU last October, decommitting Dec. 1 before making a final decision to join the Huskers nearly three weeks later.

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Husker sports reporter

Wilson covers Nebraska athletics. He's from Minnetonka, Minnesota, and graduated from the University of Missouri in 2022. Before joining the Journal Star, he worked for the Indianapolis Star, Columbia Tribune and Columbia Missourian.

Luke Mullin and Wilson Moore consider Daniel Kaelin's commitment from the quarterback's point of view, along with baseball, softball and Big T…