Tim McGraw knows how to play to the crowd.

McGraw wore a Caitlin Clark jersey during his concert in Des Moines on Marcus EriksonThursday night. Her black road jersey, to be specific. The country superstar also used an image of Clark as his backdrop at Wells Fargo Arena.

It's no surprise that McGraw's tribute went over well with fans at the concert. Clark is easily the most popular person in Iowa these days, having led the Hawkeyes to the national championship game last year and to a No. 1 seed in this year's NCAA tournament. She also became college basketball's all-time leading scorer this season, passing Pete Maravich on Iowa's Senior Day.

"Obviously this last year has been really crazy. My life has been really crazy. All of our lives have been crazy," Clark said Friday. "My main goal and my main focus is basketball and school and getting my degree, and that's where I spend all my time. ... Just getting to enjoy these last few months of basketball with my best friends has been really fun. I guess that's the thing where I find peace in. I don't feel like this is a job."

Clark and the Hawkeyes begin the NCAA tournament at 3 p.m. on Saturday, with a nationally televised game on ABC against 16th-seeded Holy Cross.