Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Dez Bryant wants to hang out with Nihar “The Machine” Janga

Children Compete In Annual E.W. Scripps Spelling Bee

NATIONAL HARBOR, MD - MAY 26: Spellers Nihar Saireddy Janga (2nd R) of Austin, Texas and Jairam Jagadeesh Hathwar (2nd L) of Painted Post, New York celebrate with family members after the finals of the 2016 Scripps National Spelling Bee May 26, 2016 in National Harbor, Maryland. Both spellers were declared co-champions at the end of the annual spelling competition. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Getty Images

Dez Bryant got caught up watching one of last night’s most intense back-and-forth sporting competitions, and he wants to hang with the winner.

It was 11-year-old Nihar Janga, who was named co-champion when the Scripps National Spelling Bee was declared a tie after 25 words for Janga and co-finalist Jairam Hathwar.

As Harthwar went in for a high five to celebrate, Janga ignored him and threw up the Cowboys wide receiver’s famous “X” as he was mobbed by family members.

This pleased Bryant greatly, and he was quick to reach out to the young speller, writing on Twitter: “#NiharJanga you just made my whole day buddy.. Congrats on winning the #spellingbee champ.. Some how some way I have to get you to a game #x

Young Nihar has a bit of showman in him — despite being a fifth-grader, and one of the youngest participants in the spelling bee. At varying points in the contest, he’d show off his knowledge by calling out definitions rather than ask judges for them, and cameras caught him shaking his head like Dikembe Mutombo when Hathwar got a word wrong.

Frankly, we love the blending of art and knowledge, and it is only right that two great sportsmen like Bryant and Janga should get together.