Nebraska

Pillen budget proposal would bury all 'good life’ districts, but lawmaker holds out hope for a fix • Nebraska Examiner

Published

12 months ago

January 21, 2025

Pillen budget proposal would bury all 'good life’ districts, but lawmaker holds out hope for a fix • Nebraska Examiner

LINCOLN — All of Nebraska’s “good life” districts appear to be in a precarious spot — not just the embattled one in Gretna — as Gov. Jim Pillen’s proposed budget seeks to deny $5 million a year set aside for the new state incentive that had been committed for multiple years to boost the buildout of those destination sites.

Gov. Jim Pillen gives his annual State of the State speech, which spelled out his strategy to cut state spending. Jan. 15, 2025. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)

Pillen’s recently revealed biennial budget package targets “Good Life Transformational Projects” as one of about 50 programs and incentives the Legislature and governor approved over the past five years but that Pillen now proposes cutting. It’s part of his strategy to address a projected two-year $432 million state budget shortfall.

Specific to the good life districts, the governor wants to reject roughly $5 million annually in incentives budgeted through 2029, for a revenue savings of about $20 million in four years. The plan notes that the benefit was to stretch longer, for up to 30 years — derived from a now-controversial cut in the state sales tax rate within the district boundaries.

Here’s how the incentive works: Under the 2023 Good Life Transformational Projects Act, championed by then-State Sen. Lou Ann Linehan of Omaha, the state sales tax within up to five “good life” districts is to be slashed in half, from 5.5% to 2.75%. The idea was that the difference would be redirected to help develop unique, entertainment and shopping districts that ultimately and over time would rake in more tourists and money for the state.

Controversy swirls

Controversy has swirled around the incentive — mostly as it relates to the largest and highest-profile district — in Gretna. The state approved that district based on an application by Nebraska Crossing owner Rod Yates and last April cut the sales tax within the district’s city limits.

Rod Yates at Nebraska Crossing. (Cindy Gonzalez/Nebraska Examiner)

But Gretna officials and Yates deadlocked over terms for his multibillion dollar mega sports-themed vision. Without an actual project or mechanism in place to recapture the vacated portion of the tax, an average of $300,000 a month in sales tax revenue has been lost. As of November, more than $2.2 million was forfeited, according to an update from the Nebraska Department of Revenue.

The governor told reporters at a budget briefing last week that he regrets signing into law certain funding incentives, including the good life districts, and he sees now as the time to “reverse” the course.

State Sen. Brad von Gillern, who has replaced Linehan as chair of the Legislature’s Revenue Committee, said that he has not seen the bill language reflecting the governor’s request. But he said that, as described in the proposed budget, the entire good life district concept would end.

State Sen. Brad von Gillern of Elkhorn. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)

The Omaha senator prefers less drastic measures. He said he is working with a group of state senators on revised legislation that would “preserve the program in a more workable way.”

Besides Gretna, the Nebraska Department of Economic Development has approved formation of good life districts in Grand Island, Bellevue and Omaha. All are in various early stages, with Gretna the last to hold a local election (on Jan. 14) that was required under a 2024 revision to the good life law. Voter approval was needed to tap into the state incentive to help private development.

There is no denying, von Gillern said, that state officials have not been pleased with certain aspects of the law, including that state tax revenue went uncollected in Gretna without even benefiting a project.

Yates persists

Linehan, the sponsor of the original legislation, also has publicly denounced how the law has played out — not only in Gretna, she told the Nebraska Examiner, although that is where her fury was focused.

In her recent criticism, Linehan said the 2024 revisions to the legislation also opened the door for cities to use the incentive in a way she believes lawmakers did not intend, for projects less spectacular than one-of-a-kind. She said that the state did not give up revenue for cities to use the public incentive on non-extraordinary ventures.

State Sen. Lou Ann Linehan of Elkhorn. Aug. 13, 2024. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)

“Shame on me,” she told the Nebraska Examiner previously. “But something is very wrong here.”

Yates, meanwhile, asked the DED on Jan. 13 to terminate his district application. He said he now is seeking someone to push alternative legislation that would help his vision materialize. He said he has amassed partners ready to build arenas and other components and has not given up.

Yates said he has continued to talk with representatives of the Pillen administration. The governor and K.C. Belitz, DED director, had been involved early on in Yates’ vision, at one point traveling to New York to help the former Husker split end’s effort to woo a pro hockey team to Nebraska and the Gretna good life district.

Von Gillern told the Examiner that said he does not plan to introduce separate legislation to catapult that mega project and did not know of any such bills in the pipeline.

State officials said Jan. 13 that they would seek information from Gretna officials to determine if the approved Gretna project and district remain viable. The 2,000-acre district’s boundaries include and surround the Nebraska Crossing campus near Interstate 80 and Highway 31, between Nebraska’s two largest cities, Omaha and Lincoln.

Gretna sees district surviving

DED said it has the authority to terminate the good life district if it determines the approved project is no longer viable and if termination is in the best interests of the state economy.

Gretna’s Mayor Mike Evans has said they would present evidence to the state that the district should continue, even without Yates’ participation. He said multiple developers within the district are capable of delivering a transformative project.

Gretna officials have said they wanted to work with Yates, but he was not willing to budge on what they believed were legal and financial risks for taxpayers. They said his demands involved possible use of eminent domain, as Yates owned only a slice of the property within the district.

Here is a vision of sports fields, housing and more within the Grand Island Veterans Village good life district led by Woodsonia Real Estate. Woodsonia also owns property in the Gretna good life district and is interested in developing a transformational project there as well. (Courtesy of Woodsonia)

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Nebraska

Challenging Week Ahead in Nebraska Men’s Basketball

Published

49 minutes ago

January 4, 2026

Press Room

Challenging Week Ahead in Nebraska Men’s Basketball

If this were a football road trip for Nebraska, yikes. The Huskers this week visit Ohio State and Indiana.

But maybe, given Nebraska’s 14-0 basketball start, it’s the Buckeyes and Hoosiers who should be concerned.

The basketball version of the Buckeyes and Hoosiers is difficult enough, as both Nebraska opponents are formidable, both are capable of making the NCAA Tournament and both are capable of pinning that first loss on the Huskers.

Nebraska has played one true road game, a victory at Illinois. The Huskers play Ohio State on Monday and Indiana on Saturday, Jan. 10. The No. 13 Huskers are flying, coming off a 58-56 victory over No. 9 Michigan State on Friday night at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Defeating the Spartans was the kind of tense victory over a legitimate basketball powerhouse that could define the Huskers’ season.

Back to reality for Huskers

“Everybody that played, I think, made a big contribution,” Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg said at a postgame news conference about the victory over Michigan State.

The victory led to a wild, court-filled celebration at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

But, now, back to the harsh reality of life in the difficult Big Ten. There’s not much turnaround time for Nebraska before the Ohio State game.

“We’ve got to bounce back [Saturday, Jan. 3] with a good mental day [of] prep and get one more day,” Hoiberg said.

Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg has led his team to a 14-0 record with road games this week at Ohio State and Indiana. | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

“We’ll practice a little bit, and travel day, but it was a hell of a tough turnaround to play back-to-back 8 o’clock games with two days’ prep, and now you go on the road for two.

“So, it’s a great win for us. I’m not going to discount that. Huge win for our program but we got to get past it and move on to Ohio State.”

The Huskers are tied for first place in the Big Ten with Michigan and Purdue at 3-0. One of these teams is not the like the others, at least based on preseason projections and historical precedent. Purdue and Michigan were expected to be Big Ten contenders. Nebraska was not, but has become one of the best national college basketball success stories so far this season.

‘It’s been a fun ride’

“We’ve done something that hasn’t been done in this program ever … running the table in the non-conference hasn’t been done in almost 100 years,” Hoiberg said. “So, there’s a lot of things these guys can be proud of, but at the same time, the most impressive thing to me about this group is how they’ve handled it. They haven’t gotten big-headed.

“You know, a lot of things have been written and listen, if it flips, it’s going to go the other way and they got to handle that well.

“Hopefully, it doesn’t, but it’s been a fun ride with this team and they’ve seen how much effort and time you’re putting into it to go out and execute game plans, get chewed out at halftime and handle it and respond.

“Again, I’ve talked a lot about this group. They’ve been a joy to be around and they’ve been fun because of their daily approach …

“When you go on the road, you got to be fresh physically and mentally as much as possible. Had guys play a lot. Rienk [Mast] hadn’t played this amount of minutes in awhile. So, it’s going to be important to get him back fresh and go out and hopefully play well on the road.”

Nebraska at Ohio State

When: Monday, 5:30 p.m. CT
Where: Schottenstein Center, Columbus
Records: Nebraska 14-0, 3-0 in Big Ten; Ohio State, 10-3, 2-1 in Big Ten. The Buckeyes are 7-1 at home.
TV: FS1

Rankings updated based on games through Saturday.

Ohio State rankings

* Associated Press Top 25: Not ranked
* NCAA Net Ratings: 46 (dropped two places)
* USA Today Coaches Poll: Not ranked
* Kenpom.com: 39
* ESPN Power Rankings: 36
* Top 25 and 1: Not ranked
* Team Rankings.com: 62

In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections, Ohio State is an 11-seed as one of the “last four in” for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.

Nebraska rankings

* Associated Press Top 25: 13 (new poll is released Monday)
* NCAA Net Ratings: 11 (improved four places)
* USA Today Coaches Poll: 13
* Kenpom.com: 22
* ESPN Power Rankings: 26 (dropped one place)
* Top 25 and 1: 9 (improved four places)
* Team Rankings.com: 7 (improved one place)

In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections, Nebraska is a 4-seed for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.

Nebraska-Ohio State analysis

Something to watch: How Nebraska bounces back from a highly emotional win over Michigan State. The Ohio State crowd will be revved up at the sight of the 14-0 Huskers. The Buckeyes can enhance their NCAA resume with a win over the Huskers. If Hoiberg has his team focused and the players are “business-like” as the coach says they are, Nebraska could be in good position to keep the winning streak going. Last season, the Huskers lost in Columbus, 116-114, in double overtime on March 4, a defeat that likely hurt their NCAA chances.

Nebraska at Indiana

When: Saturday, 11 a.m. CT
Where: Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, Bloomington
Records: Nebraska 14-0, 3-0 in Big Ten; Indiana, 10-3, 1-1 in Big Ten. The Hoosiers are 9-0 at home.
TV: BTN

Indiana rankings

* Associated Press Top 25: Not ranked
* NCAA Net Ratings: 33
* USA Today Coaches Poll: 39
* Kenpom.com: 28
* ESPN Power Rankings: 17 (improved by two places)
* Top 25 and 1: Not ranked
* Team Rankings.com: 68 (dropped three places)

In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections, Indiana is an 11-seed as one of the “last four byes” for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.

Nebraska rankings

In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections, Nebraska is a 4-seed for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.

Indiana guard Lamar Wilkerson is averaging 20.2 points in home games. Nebraska is at Indiana on Saturday. | Robert Goddin-Imagn Images

Nebraska-Indiana analysis

Indiana is 9-0 at home and has two games before Nebraska comes to Bloomington — Sunday vs. Washington (the Hoosiers’ first game since Dec. 22), and Wednesday at Maryland.

If the Hoosiers can stay focused and not be distracted by the football team’s run to the College Football Playoff semifinals, IU won’t be easy for Nebraska.

Indiana features balanced scoring. Indiana guard Lamar Wilkerson — no relation to the legendary Hoosier Bobby Wilkerson of the 1976 NCAA championship team — should be the focus of the Huskers’ defense. Wilkerson, a 6-foot-6 senior, can light it up, averaging 20.2 points in home games and 19.0 points overall.

Nebraska

So Far, so Good for Huskers in the Transfer Portal

Published

13 hours ago

January 4, 2026

Press Room

So Far, so Good for Huskers in the Transfer Portal

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College Football’s 2026 transfer portal process is in its very early stages. Right now, we’re in the period where teams are losing players into the portal, while hosting visitors they hope to sign and bring in sometime in the next couple of weeks. So pretty much everyone is a net negative at this moment.

With that being the case, the negative impact of the portal for Nebraska so far has been minimal…if you consider losing your former five-star, two-year starting quarterback minimal.

Dylan Raiola is the only Husker of real note to enter the portal thus far. Former starting kicker Tristan Alvano and legacy defensive lineman Maverick Noonan announced early, along with several others. The small number (13 so far) is a win. Several starters and reserve contributors have also confirmed they are staying put, while the reserve players who are leaving are presumably looking for a chance at more playing time and/or a slightly bigger payday.

Next season will be the second year of college football under the NCAA mandated roster limit of 105. Teams will still be allowed to go slightly over that limit to accommodate returning players being “grandfather in.” This exception is for players who have been in their program prior to last season when the rule took effect. It allows them to exhaust their eligibility. Right now, Nebraska still has over 100 players on the roster, so depending on how many players stay and how many more they sign out of the portal, some level of roster reduction will still likely need to take place.

As for who head coach Matt Rhule and his staff are targeting, that list starts with now-former Notre Dame quarterback Kenny Minchey. Minchey lost out on the starting job for the Fighting Irish last preseason and played only sparingly 2025. He’s set to visit Lincoln soon.

With only TJ Lateef returning as a scholarship QB, Rhule will likely need to also bring in a second transfer portal signal caller for depth purposes. Nebraska has not signed a quarterback in it’s 2026 high school recruiting class.

Also targeted and set to visit are several of the defensive players transferring from San Diego State, where new Husker Defensive Coordinator Rob Aurich coached last season. At the top of that list is All-Mountain West Linebacker Owen Chambliss. Chambliss racked up 110 tackles during his Aztec career, plus 9.5 tackles for loss that includes four sacks. He’ll have two years of eligibility remaining. Chambliss was one of six Aztecs to garner All-MW honors last season, and at least two of these former SDSU standouts are set to visit Aurich at his new job site.

Right now, the visitor list is extensive, which is a good thing for Rhule considering the players he’s chasing will all have multiple other offers. When his contract extension was announced back on October 30^th, Rhule pointed out that he expected Nebraska to have a good deal more financial resources available to help lure transfers to Lincoln starting this off season. That time has arrived.

Mark Knudson Mark is a former MLB pitcher for the Houston Astros, Milwaukee Brewers and Colorado Rockies. He’s the only person ever to play high school, college and professional baseball in Colorado. Mark earned a BA in Technical Journalism from Colorado State University and has worked in radio, television and print sports media since 1994. He’s the co-author of “Pitching to the Corners” with former teammate Don August and the author of “Just Imagine,” a historical fiction novel about The Beatles.
Mark is currently a feature writer and columnist for Mile High Sports in Denver and recently joined the team at Heavy.com. Mark is also a high school baseball coach in the Denver area. More about Mark Knudson

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Nebraska

What to watch for in Las Vegas Bowl game between Utah and Nebraska

Published

7 days ago

December 29, 2025

Press Room

What to watch for in Las Vegas Bowl game between Utah and Nebraska

The stage is set for Utah and Nebraska to go toe-to-toe in the 2025 Las Vegas Bowl.

The Utes (10-2, 7-2 Big 12) and Cornhuskers (7-5, 4-5 Big Ten) are set to kick off from Allegiant Stadium on Dec. 31 at 1:30 p.m. MT. Fans not making the trip to Las Vegas will be able to tune in via ESPN.

With several bowl game opt-outs and a significant head coaching change headlining the major storylines, here’s what to watch for when Utah and Nebraska take the field on New Year’s Eve.

Morgan Scalley Takes The Wheel

Kyle Whittingham’s expedited takeover in Ann Arbor, Michigan, puts Utah’s longtime defensive coordinator, Morgan Scalley, at the helm of the Utes for the first time as the head coach.

Scalley was previously in charge of the Utah defense for 10 seasons, helping reaffirm the same principles Whittingham established when he was the team’s defensive coordinator; relentless, smart, tough and not prone to giving up a lot of points.

Since 2019, the Utes have held opponents to 15 points or fewer in 36 games, including seven times during the 2025 regular season. Scalley’s defense in 2025 ranked No. 5 in the Football Bowl Subdivision in passing efficiency defense, No. 15 in interceptions (14) and No. 16 in scoring defense, allowing just 18.7 points per game. Utah was No. 2 in the Big 12 in passing yards, allowing 177.5 per game.

It’s safe to assume the transition to Scalley — a Salt Lake City native who’s been on the Utes’ sidelines in some capacity since 2007 — will be seamless for the most part, and that Utah’s defense will continue to be stout as it faces a Nebraska offense that’s being led by a true freshman making his fourth career start. How the Utes as a whole come out of the gate and their intensity and focus on both sides of the ball after the abrupt head coaching switch, will be worth monitoring, though.

Utah’s Bowl Game Opt-Outs

From the sidelines to the field itself, Utah will be without several key figures for its postseason game.

The offensive line, especially, won’t look the same, as both Spencer Fano and Caleb Lomu have opted out of the Las Vegas Bowl while declaring for the 2026 NFL Draft.

It’ll be interesting to monitor how the Utes — who averaged the second-most rushing yards per game (269.8) in the Football Bowl Subdivision in the regular season — function without their two best offensive linemen bookending their front line against a Cornhuskers defense that allowed the third-highest yards per carry average in the Big Ten (4.8).

According to reports, Keith Olsen and Zereoue Williams will fill in for Fano and Lomu along the offensive line. Olsen, a 6-foot-6 junior, started at right tackle for the Kansas game and has allowed one pressure and one hurry in 64 pass blocking opportunities this season, according to Pro Football Focus. Williams, a 6-foot-8 Arizona native, played in all 12 regular season, mainly at left tackle, and recorded 79 total snaps, including 59 on run plays.

As for the other side of the ball, Utah will be down without its main edge rushers in John Henry Daley and Logan Fano. Daley’s absence has been felt since his season-ending injury against Kansas State in November; Logan, meanwhile, recently announced with his brother that he’ll be entering the 2026 NFL Draft.

Utah’s Offensive Play-Calling

First-year offensive coordinator Jason Beck has orchestrated the Utes offense to the tune of 41.1 points per game — the third time since 1930 that Utah averaged over 40 points per game — and 478.6 total yards of offense per game, ranking No. 6 in the Football Bowl Subdivision. He’s been creative, too; from wildcat packages, flea flickers, defensive players lined up at skill positions and designed run plays for both the starting and backup quarterback.

A standalone postseason game to cap off the 2025 campaign will give Beck more opportunities to show what he’s got up his sleeves as a play-caller. And given his name has been attached to the list of assistants Whittingham will reportedly target to join him at Michigan, it’ll be interesting to see how Beck approaches what could be his final game as the Utes’ offensive coordinator.

Not to mention, Utah won’t have its top two tackles leading the way in the run game. If the Utes can’t move the ball with the same consistency they had in the regular season, it’ll be worth monitoring how Beck adjusts.

Will Ryan Davis Play?

Utah’s top receiver wasn’t involved during the home finale against Kansas State and was ruled out for the Kansas game in the days leading up to kickoff. It’s unclear what sort of ailment Davis has been dealing with, though he’d certainly like to be on the field for what will likely be the final college football game of his career.

Davis, a New Mexico transfer who began his career at UAB in 2019, led Utah with 659 receiving yards on 57 receptions, hauling in four touchdowns across 11 regular season appearances.

Nebraska Without Emmett Johnson

The Cornhuskers were middle of the pack in the Big Ten in rushing, averaging 144.7 yards per game during the regular season, due in large part to Emmett Johnson’s success on the ground. The 5-foot-11, 200-pound junior from Minnesota was named the Big Ten Running Back of the Year after totaling 1,451 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns, plus 46 catches for 370 yards and three more touchdowns. His 1,821 scrimmage yards ranked No. 2 in the country.

The Utes won’t have to worry about trying to slow down Nebraska’s dynamic tailback, though, given he’s already declared for the 2026 NFL Draft.

Utah struggled defending the run down the stretch of the regular season, giving up 275.3 rushing yards per game and yielded 7.1 yards per carry in November, including 472 yards on the ground to Kansas State on Nov. 22.