Nebraska
VB Match Previews: Huskers return home to face Illinois and Michigan
VB Match Previews: Huskers return home to face Illinois and Michigan
Nebraska volleyball, still standing strong as the nation’s No. 2-ranked team, is set to close out its October stretch with two Big Ten home matches this weekend.
The Huskers (18-1 overall, 8-0 Big Ten) will first battle Illinois (13-5, 5-3) on Friday and then face Michigan (15-4, 5-3) on Saturday at the Devaney Center.
Let’s take a look at the stats to know and players to watch on both sides, plus how to watch and listen to the two B1G matchups.
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HOW TO WATCH, STREAM & LISTEN
#2 NEBRASKA (18-1 overall, 8-0 Big Ten) vs. ILLINOIS (13-5, 5-3)
Time: 7:00 p.m. CT
TV Channel: NONE
Commentators: Jacob Schrantz (play by play) and Camden Cohn (color)
Streaming: B1G+
Radio: Huskers Radio Network with John Baylor and Lauren (Cook) West will broadcast all the action on their volleyball affiliate stations
Listen online: Huskers.com (LINK)
App Audio: Official Huskers App
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#2 NEBRASKA (18-1 overall, 8-0 Big Ten) vs. MICHIGAN (15-4, 5-3)
Time: 7:00 p.m. CT
TV Channel: NONE
Commentators: Jacob Schrantz (play by play) and Camden Cohn (color)
Streaming: B1G+
Radio: Huskers Radio Network with John Baylor and Lauren (Cook) West will broadcast all the action on their volleyball affiliate stations
Listen online: Huskers.com (LINK)
App Audio: Official Huskers App
SERIES HISTORY
NEBRASKA-ILLINOIS:
>> Nebraska is 35-8-1 all-time against Illinois and has won 10 in a row in the series, including a 25-18, 25-22, 25-17 sweep in Champaign on Oct. 3.
>> Illinois is one of Nebraska’s three Big Ten double-play opponents this season.
>> Nebraska coach John Cook is 12-1 all-time against Illinois coach Chris Tamas, one of his former assistants. Overall, Cook is 26-2 all-time coaching against his former assistant coaches.
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NEBRASKA-MICHIGAN:
>> Nebraska is 23-3 against Michigan and has won 15 straight in the series. The last five matches have been Husker sweeps.
SCOUTING REPORTS
NEBRASKA
All stats and info provided courtesy of Nebraska Athletics Communications
>> Nebraska has won 15 matches in a row since a loss at SMU on Sept. 3. Twelve of the 15 wins have been sweeps.
>> The Huskers rank ninth nationally and third in the Big Ten with a team hitting percentage of .301.
>> Nebraska ranks ninth nationally in kills per set (14.28).
>> Outside hitter Harper Murray is leading the Huskers with 3.32 kills per set and 18 service aces. Murray also adds 2.13 digs per set.
>> Opposite hitter Merritt Beason is averaging 3.03 kills per set for the Big Red and is hitting .243 with 1.28 digs per set and 13 aces.
>> Lindsay Krause and Taylor Landfair have split time at NU’s other outside hitter position and have averaged 2.33 and 2.41 kills per set, respectively.
>> Middle blocker Andi Jackson is averaging 2.70 kills with a .480 hitting percentage, which leads the Big Ten.
>> Middle blocker Rebekah Allick adds 1.77 kills per set on .382 hitting with 1.29 blocks per set.
>> Setter Bergen Reilly is averaging 11.20 assists per set, which ranks fifth in the nation and leads the Big Ten. She also adds 3.02 digs per set and has 14 aces. Reilly has 11 double-doubles and has been named Big Ten Setter of the Week three times this season.
>> Three-time All-American Lexi Rodriguez guides the Husker back row with 3.73 digs per set and is coming off a season-high 22 digs in a sweep at Ohio State last Saturday.
ILLINOIS
>> Illinois (13-5, 5-3 Big Ten) has won five matches in a row since an Oct. 3 loss to Nebraska in Champaign. The Fighting Illini swept Indiana and Maryland last weekend.
>> Raina Terry averages 4.28 kills per set.
>> Brooke Mosher ranks 13th nationally with 40 service aces.
>> Former Nebraska assistant coach Chris Tamas is in his eighth year as head coach at Illinois and is 144-90 overall. Tamas was an assistant at Nebraska from 2015-16 and was on the staff of the Huskers’ 2015 NCAA Championship team.
MICHIGAN
>> Michigan (15-4, 5-3 Big Ten) has already surpassed its overall win total from last season (7) and equaled its Big Ten win total (5) with 12 matches remaining. The Wolverines play at Iowa on Friday night before coming to Lincoln.
>> Allison Jacobs leads the Wolverines with 4.12 kills per set.
>> Valentina Vaulet ranks fifth nationally with 49 service aces on the season.
STATS TO KNOW: NEBRASKA
SERVE AND PASS
>> Nebraska has allowed just 35 service aces this season, which leads the nation. The next closest team is Pittsburgh with 43.
>> Nebraska’s opponents have served 14 aces and committed 120 service errors over the last 12 matches.
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BALANCED ATTACK
>> Nebraska has seven different players averaging between 1.77 and 3.32 kills per set.
>> Six different players have led the Huskers in kills in a match this season.
>> Reilly ranks fifth nationally averaging 11.20 assists per set.
>> Nebraska’s attack has been one of the best in the nation this season. The Huskers rank ninth in hitting percentage (.301) and kills per set (14.28).
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HOME SWEET HOME
>> Nebraska has won 36 home matches in a row dating back to Dec. 1, 2022, which is the longest active streak in the nation.
>> The Huskers’ home win streak is its longest since moving into the Devaney Center in 2013.
>> Nebraska’s longest all-time home win streak was 88 matches from 2004-09. Since then, NU also has a home win streak of 38 matches in a row from 2009-11.
QUEEN CREEK, AZ — A slice of the Midwest is coming to the East Valley! Godfather’s Pizza from Omaha, Nebraska, is set to open a new location this month in Queen Creek.
Bruce Cannon, who owns and operates two Godfather’s Pizza locations in Lincoln and Norfolk, Nebraska, will also own and operate the new Queen Creek restaurant.
“This marks the brand’s first traditional Godfather’s Pizza restaurant in Arizona since 2009, signaling an exciting return to the Phoenix metro area,” read the news release sent to ABC15.
The restaurant will open near Queen Creek Rd and Signal Butte Rd.
The restaurant will provide dine-in, carryout, and third-party delivery options, featuring its classic pizza lineup alongside favorites like breadsticks, streusels, and specialty pies.
IF YOU GO
- Opening date: January 19, 2026.
- Address: 22485 Queen Creek Road, Suite 101
More Things to Do stories:
The quarterback position has been one of the most intriguing to follow early on into the transfer portal period, as schools across the country make offers to some of the best available arms. Nebraska thought they managed to bring aboard one of the best quarterbacks in the portal on Sunday when they received a commitment from Notre Dame transfer Kenny Minchey.
That commitment ended up being rather short lived, however.
On Monday, reports emerged saying that Minchey was flipping his commitment from Nebraska to Kentucky just one day after declaring he’d be joining the Cornhuskers for the 2026 season.
Instead, Minchey now appears set to join the Wildcats under new head coach Will Stein, who is finishing up his duties as the offensive coordinator for Oregon.
Minchey is entering his redshirt junior season and will have two years of eligibility remaining. He’s spent the last three years as a backup at Notre Dame. He completed 20 of 26 passes this season for 196 yards, but did not have a passing touchdown or interception.
Now, he’ll get the chance to start for Kentucky, replacing former Wildcats quarterback Cutter Boley, who transferred to Arizona State.
As for Nebraska, this is a big blow for the program. It’s not yet clear what direction they’ll turn as the program hunts down its next quarterback after Dylan Raiola entered the transfer portal at the end of the season.
More College Football on Sports Illustrated
Ernest Hausmann is electing to hang it up after a four-year run in college football.
The former Nebraska football and Michigan linebacker announced on social media Saturday that he is medically retiring rather than pursuing a pro football career. Hausmann concludes his college football career with over 250 career tackles in 50 career games. The Columbus, Neb., product finished his final season as Wolverines with 44 tackles, including 5.5 tackles for loss and a sack.
Prior to becoming a national champion with Michigan during his sophomore campaign in 2023, Hausmann was a true freshman standout for Nebraska, playing for his in-state team. The Columbus High School graduate was one of the top prospects in Nebraska during his prep career, becoming an All-Nebraska selection and earning a three-star recruitment rating as the No. 5 player in the state for the Discoverers. Hausmann signed with Nebraska over Arizona State, Iowa, Kansas State, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota and others.
The linebacker would play in every game of the 2022 season as a true freshman, earning seven starts while finishing with 54 tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss, a sack, and a fumble recovery in Scott Frost’s final season as head coach. After Frost was fired early in the season, interim coach Mickey Joseph led lead the team as Hausmann’s play improved as the season continued. The linebacker had a 12-tackle performance at Wisconsin in Nebraska’s 15-14 loss in his second-to-last performance as a Cornhusker before ending the year with six solo tackles and a fumble recovery in a Nebraska win at Iowa.
Hausmann entered the transfer portal after his freshman campaign, electing to join the Michigan Wolverines for the 2023 season. He appeared in all 15 games in the Wolverines’ 2023 national championship run, finishing third on the team with 46 total tackles, including two tackles for loss. He also earned Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors in Michigan’s Big Ten Championship Game win over Iowa, totaling eight tackles against the Hawkeyes.
Hausmann started all 13 games as a junior for Michigan in 2024, leading the team with 89 tackles, seven tackles for loss, two sacks, two pass breakups, and one interception. His performance led to an All-Big Ten honorable mention selection by the media and coaches, as well as earning a ReliaQuest Bowl win over Alabama while being named a captain for the game.
During his senior campaign, Hausmann was named a Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year semifinalist while earning an All-Big Ten Third-Team selection. He earned four Defensive Player of the Week honors for the Wolverines, and started in Michigan’s 30-27 win at Nebraska on Sept. 20, totaling nine tackles and a sack.
Hausmann was born in Uganda and was legally adopted when he was two years old, but did not join his Hausmann family until he was five years old in 2008. Prior to his senior campaign at Michigan, Hausmann returned to Africa and later partnered with One Million Wells, a nonprofit that seeks to provide water to impoverished communities.
The Wolverine linebacker began communication with his biological family through social media in the past few years, as Hausmann was able to speak to his mother for the first time in 2024. His return journey to Uganda was featured on ESPN’s College GameDay as a feature story earlier in the college football season.
Hausmann stated in his social media post that it was time to “focus on my true purpose on this earth full time.” He added that he would finish his degree at the University of Michigan.
More From Nebraska On SI
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