College football rivalry trophies are a big part of what makes the sport so fun. In the annual Big Ten rivalry between Minnesota and Iowa, the two teams have been fighting for a bronze pig—The Floyd of Rosedale—since 1935.
Last Saturday, the trophy went viral after Minnesota's 13-10 victory over the Hawkeyes thanks to a newborn baby being perched on top of the trophy.
That baby is four-month-old Winnie Weston, whose parents are Tom Weston and Tia Medve, both from Perth, Australia. Weston is Minnesota's starting punter. The Sporting News spoke with Medve about how the photo of her daughter became a viral sensation.
Hang it in the louvre 🐖 pic.twitter.com/oKhk6D6sjl
— Tom Weston (@tomnweston) October 25, 2026How did a baby end up on top of The Floyd of Rosedale trophy?
Ahead of last Saturday's game, Tom Weston planned to go over to find Winnie and his girlfriend to celebrate as a family. Minnesota offensive lineman Tony Nelson brought the 98-pound pig trophy over to the family section in the stands. From there a classic photo was made.
"They lifted it all up together, and I was like, 'Why would I not sit her on the pig?'" Medve recalled. "And that was just incredible, everyone just started cheering as soon as she sat on it."
"It was just an instinct," Medve added of putting her on the pig. "She was awake, and she was happy, so why not?'"
While having a newborn during the heart of a college football season isn't easy, Medve said the support that families from Minnesota entire football program, including head coach PJ Fleck and his wife, Heather, have given them is above and beyond. Especially with the rest of Medve and Weston's family being 10,000 miles away in Australia.
"We've had so much support with the staff and the coaching and the families," Medve added. "I've never felt alone or unsupported. There is always someone just like at a call away if I need anything."
The photo of Winnie has gone completely viral, unsurprisingly. Fans online immediately turned the snapshot into a meme, sharing it non-stop.
— Field Rush (@thefieldrush) October 26, 2026My dad has lost his mind. pic.twitter.com/NU2KE8QvbM
— Huskersota🌽 (@Huskersota) October 27, 2026Even famous account @ArtButMake it Sports got in on the fun:
Figure of a Child Seated atop a Pig, 2nd–1st B.C, 📸 by @tomnweston pic.twitter.com/S3fwgCbdif
— ArtButMakeItSports (@ArtButSports) October 26, 2026“A cool moment and memory,” Fleck said of the photo via the Pioneer Press. “All the players around them. That’s what the picture encompasses, for me, is how happy and prideful they are. …
“It looks Photoshop. It looks AI, and it’s not.”
"[Coach] Fleck had the photo up in the meeting and just said, 'This is what college football is about,'" Medve added.
While Winnie is far too young to know what college football even is, her parents will make sure to tell her about the time she became a viral sensation within the sport.
'"Hey, Winnie, you're the girl that rode the pig,"' Medve said with a laugh of how the conversation might go. "And she's just gonna be like, 'what does that even mean?'"
Minnesota has two home games remaining this season against UCLA and Northwestern that Winnie is expected to attend. While she will likely have quieter experiences in those games, the memory is one her parents will never forget.
"For me, it's how much love and community that we had when having her," Medve said of what the photo means. "We don't have any family over here, so having this new family in football—she's been so loved. For her to realize that 130 football boys plus the rest of the team and the staff and the fans and the family have all loved her. And she was just going along with it."
