After Mercer upset Duke last week in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, Bears guard Kevin Canevari was so moved by the win he flashed the "Nae-Nae" dance, by Atlanta's We Are Toonz, on the court.

While his precision moves made Canevari an Internet star, it added another chapter to hip-hop's longstanding connection with college athletes.

A few that came to mind include the Georgia Bulldogs dancing between the hedges to Soulja Boy's "Crank That (Soulja Boy)" ...

... Kentucky guard John Wall popularized "The Dougie" four years ago, even making it his introductory dance into the NBA ...

... The Syracuse Orange get pumped to the "Chicken Soup Dance" ...

And then there is Canevari's dance:

How does it compare to the original (with Dwight Howard)? HUUAHH!

Keep Reading

Former Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter Norman Arey died Oct. 11, 2025 at the age of 84. In addition to sports writing, Arey also co-wrote the popular "Peach Buzz" society column. (Courtesy of the Arey family)

Credit: Courtesy of the Arey family

Featured

Members of the conversion crew take a break as the main scoreboard is lowered to the floor to be worked on as the arena gets ready for the next concert at State Farm Arena, Thursday, October 2, 2025, in Atlanta. The crew was working on creating a stage for the Friday, Oct. 3 Maxwell concert. (Jason Getz/AJC)

Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com