Cooper Koch immediately became a fan favorite after taking a subtle shot at Nebraska

In a rare move, Iowa freshman forward Cooper Koch decided to return to Iowa City after initially being recruited by Fran McCaffery.

The program fired McCaffery in late March last year, and Koch initially entered the transfer portal, along with 11 other players.

Koch stated that his decision to return to the program was based on a productive conversation with new coach Ben McCollum, and that it is already paying immediate dividends.

After playing sparingly last season and ultimately redshirting, Koch is now a starter for McCollum and is blossoming into a solid three-and-d forward for the squad.

Following a stellar performance on both ends, where he scored 10 points and helped shut down the Nebraska offense, he had a simple but effective message for what they all feel about the Cornhuskers.

Koch famed the flames of the Iowa-Nebraska rivalry postgame

In his postgame comments, when he was asked about what beating Nebraska means, Koch stoked the Iowa-Nebraska rivalry a little more with his blunt statement.

According to 247Sports Hawkeye Insider Eliot Clough, Koch said that the Cornhuskers are "second to Iowa State. We don't like them."

Koch said what most Iowa fans have always felt about Nebraska, and even though Iowa has traditionally had other rivals, Nebraska is one of the biggest.

Iowa fans completely agree with Koch's sentiment about Nebraska as the rivalry continues to grow and get more heated.

Ever since joining the Big Ten in 2011 after many years in the Big 12 Conference, the Iowa-Nebraska rivalry has taken on more meaning, and it has not been without vitriol on both sides.

Iowa continues to own Nebraska in almost every major sport, and Koch certainly became a fan favorite after his postgame comments.