IOWA CITY, Iowa — As Iowa celebrates the eighth year of college football’s best tradition, one fighter is reflecting on his journey to be a part of what he once watched from his hospital room.

Liam Doxsee is an 11-year-old from the Quad Cities. At just five-days-old, he was diagnosed with Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID), a rare disorder that caused him to be born without an immune system.

His mother, Mary Matheson, said his treatment started very early on.

“About a month after he was born, he started chemo, steroids, and then he had his bone marrow transplant at just two-months-old,” she said.

As a result of SCID, Liam was also diagnosed with lymphedema a few years ago after he had a cellulites infection in his bloodstream, according to Matheson.

“He’s been in and out of the hospital a lot over the years,” she said.

Liam has been a fighter his whole life. His longest hospital admission was nine months, and his mom says he’s usually hospitalized every six-to-eight weeks.

However, he never fought alone. His family is always by his side, and so is the University of Iowa. In 2022, he was asked to be the Kid Captain of the university’s baseball team.

Traditions like Kid Captain and the Hawkeye Wave mean a lot to Liam and his family.

After years of participating in the Hawkeye Wave from inside the University of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Children’s Hospital, Liam never thought he would be on the other side.

“It pretty much felt impossible,” he said.

However, last year, Liam proved that anything is possible when he participated in the wave from inside Kinnick Stadium for the first time. Knowing what the wave meant from inside the hospital made him proud to take part.

“It felt like freedom,” said Liam. “It felt almost like fun giving back to the people that I’ve seen in the hospital.”

The moment was also significant for his mother and the rest of his family, many of which were unable to see him wave from inside the hospital.

“Watching him wave and have that moment, him alone, but together was just surreal. Because we couldn’t do the wave from the inside with our family,” said Matheson.

Tuesday, September 2 marks the eighth year of the Hawkeye Wave, famously known as the best college sports tradition, but its impact feels eternal.

“I think no matter what side of the wave you’re on, it’s a really special thing,” said Matheson.

Liam is still a fighter today. His mom started a GoFundMe to help him throughout his medical journey.

Liam said he will be back in Kinnick Stadium waving after the first quarter this season.