Nebraska Cornhuskers

Nebraska Cornhuskers
University	University of Nebraska–Lincoln
Conference	Big Ten(primary) Patriot Rifle(rifle)
NCAA	Division I(FBS)
Athletic director	Troy Dannen
Location	Lincoln, Nebraska
Varsity teams	24 (10 men's, 14 women's)
Football stadium	Memorial Stadium
Basketball arena	Pinnacle Bank Arena
Baseball stadium	Hawks Field
Softball stadium	Bowlin Stadium
Soccer stadium	Hibner Stadium
Lacrosse stadium	Cook Pavilion
Other venues	Devaney Center Dillon Tennis Center East Campus Bowling Lanes Hawks Championship Center Nebraska Rifle Range Wilderness Ridge Golf Club
Mascot	Herbie Husker Lil' Red
Nickname	Cornhuskers Big Red
Fight song	Hail Varsity
Colors	Scarlet and cream
Website	www.huskers.com
Team NCAA championships
21
Individual and relay NCAA champions
136

Big Ten logo in Nebraska's colors

TheNebraska Cornhuskers(often abbreviated toHuskers) are theintercollegiate athleticteams that represent theUniversity of Nebraska–Lincoln.The university is a member of theBig Ten Conferenceand competes inNCAA Division I,fielding twenty-fourvarsity teams(ten men's, fourteen women's) in fifteen sports. Nineteen of these teams participate in the Big Ten, while rifle is a member of the single-sportPatriot Rifle Conferenceand beach volleyball and bowling compete as independents. The Cornhuskers have two official mascots,Herbie HuskerandLil' Red.

Early nicknames for the university's athletic teams includedAntelopes(later adopted by theUniversity of Nebraska at Kearney),Old Gold Knights,andBugeaters.Cornhuskersfirst appeared in a school newspaper headline ( "We Have Met The Cornhuskers And They Are Ours" ) after an 1893 victory over Iowa, though in this instance the term referred to Iowa.It was first applied to Nebraska in 1899 byNebraska State JournalwriterCy Shermanand was officially adopted by the school the following year – and later by the state ofNebraskaitself, which became "The Cornhusker State" in 1945.

Nebraska was a founding member of the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association in 1907 (later known as the Big Six, Big Seven, andBig Eight Conference) and competed in it for the next eighty-nine years, with a brief hiatus duringWorld War I.In 1996, NU and the seven other members of the Big Eight merged with fourTexasschools from theSouthwest Conferenceto form theBig 12 Conference.Nebraskajoined the Big Tenin 2011.

Nebraska's athletic programs have won thirty-two national championships: eleven inbowling,eight inmen's gymnastics,five each infootballandvolleyball,and three in women's track and field.Twenty-one of these were bestowed asNCAA championships.

Varsity sports

Men's sports	Women's sports
Baseball	Basketball
Basketball	Beach volleyball
Cross country	Bowling
Football	Cross country
Golf	Golf
Gymnastics	Gymnastics
Tennis	Soccer
Track & field†	Softball
Wrestling	Swimming and diving
	Tennis
	Track and field†
	Volleyball
Co-ed sports
Rifle
† – Track and field includes both indoor and outdoor.

Baseball

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers baseball

Nebraska's baseball team was founded in 1889, making it the oldest athletic program at the school. It was disjointed in its first decades, frequently disbanding for years at a time. The hiring of Tony Sharpe in 1947 brought stability to the program, but success was limited. Sharpe and his successorJohn Sanderscombined to lead NU for fifty-one seasons, making just threeNCAA Division I tournamentappearances between them. Nebraska hiredDave Van Hornin 1998 and he quickly turned the Huskers into a national power, reaching theCollege World Seriesin 2001 and 2002.Mike Andersontook over for Van Horn and in 2005 led NU to a school-record fifty-seven wins and another College World Series berth. Anderson could not sustain this success, and since his departure in 2011 Nebraska has experienced modest success under head coachesDarin ErstadandWill Bolt.

In 2002, the Huskers moved from the agingBuck Beltzer StadiumtoHawks Field at Haymarket Park,considered among the best collegiate baseball facilities in the country at the time. Nebraska has ranked in the top thirty nationally in average attendance each year since moving to Hawks Field.

• Conference championships (8): 1929, 1948, 1950, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2017, 2021
• Conference tournament championships (5): 1999–2001, 2005, 2024
• NCAA Division I tournament(20) appearances: 1948, 1950, 1979, 1980, 1985, 1999–2003, 2005–2008, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2021, 2024
• College World Seriesappearances (3): 2001, 2002, 2005

Basketball

Men

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers men's basketball

Nebraska's men's basketball program has accomplished little of note since the establishment of theNCAA Division I tournamentin 1939. Nebraska has not won a regular-season conference championship since sharing the Big Seven title in 1950 and has not won an outright title since 1916. Nebraska's lengthiest period of success came in the first years of the sport's existence; the retroactivePremo-Porretta Power Pollranked the Cornhuskers in the top ten three times between 1897 and 1903.

Nebraska did not make an NCAA tournament appearance until 1986, forty-six years after its establishment, and is the only power-conference program without a tournament victory. Much of the team's modest recent success came underDanny Nee,who coached the Huskers from 1987 to 2000. Nee is the team's all-time winningest head coach and led Nebraska to five of its eight NCAA tournament appearances, the1996 NIT championship,and the 1994 Big Eight tournament championship (NU's only conference championship of any kind since 1950). Nebraska has made just two NCAA tournament appearances since the departure of Nee in 2000. The program has been led by formerChicago BullsandIowa Statehead coachFred Hoibergsince 2019.

• Conference championships (6): 1912–1914, 1916, 1949, 1950
• Conference tournament championships (1): 1994
• NCAA Division I tournamentappearances (8): 1986, 1991–1994, 1998, 2014, 2024
• NITappearances (19): 1967, 1978, 1980, 1983–1985, 1987, 1989, 1995–1997, 1999, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2018, 2019
• NIT championships (1): 1996

Women

Corncob Man at a football game at Memorial Stadium in 1958

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers women's basketball

Nebraska's women's basketball program began as a club sport in 1970 and became a varsity sport five years later. George Nicodemus led the Huskers to a 22–9 record and the second round of theAIAW Tournamentin its first varsity season. Nicodemus left the program in 1977 and the school cycled through several head coaches before hiring Angela Beck in 1986. Beck led the Huskers to the Big Eight championship and the school's firstNCAA Division I tournamentappearance in 1988. She left the program in 1997 and was succeeded by Paul Sanderford, who took Nebraska to the tournament in each of his first three seasons. When Sanderford resigned in 2002 due to health issues, the school hiredCreightonhead coachConnie Yori.

Under Yori's guidance, Nebraska became a fixture in the national top 25 and NCAA tournament. In2009–10the Cornhuskers went 32–2, earned a number-one seed in theNCAA tournament,and reached the Sweet Sixteen for the first time in school history. Yori resigned in 2016 following an athletic department investigation into reports that she mistreated her players and assistant coaches. Former Huskers point guardAmy Williamswas named Yori's replacement.

• Conference championships (2): 1988, 2010
• Conference tournament championships (1): 2014
• AIAW(3) /NCAA Division I(16) tournament appearances: 1979–81, 1988, 1993, 1996, 1998–2000, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2012–2015, 2018, 2022, 2024
• WNITappearances (8): 1976, 1992, 2004–2006, 2009, 2016, 2023

Bowling

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers bowling

Bowling has been a varsity sport at Nebraska since 1996. Bill Straub, who led the bowling club program to national championships in 1991 and 1995, was hired to lead the varsity program and won three moreWIBCtitles. The inauguralNCAA Bowling Championshipwas held in 2003 and Nebraska won the first two national titles. Nebraska has won four more titles since, and has never ranked outside the top ten since national collegiate rankings debuted in 1990. In 2019, Straub retired and longtime assistant Paul Klempa was named head coach.

Bowling competes as an independent, making it one of only three programs at Nebraska not affiliated with theBig Ten.

Nebraska's men's bowling club team won theAmerican Bowling Congressintercollegiate championships in 1990 and 1996.

• WIBC (13) /NCAA(20) tournament appearances: 1991–2019, 2021–2024
• WIBC(5) /NCAA(6)championships:1991, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2009, 2013, 2015, 2021

Cross country

Nebraska's men's cross country team was established in 1938, winning its only conference championship two years later. The women's program was established in 1975. Megan Elliott has coached both teams since 2024.

Men

• Conference championships (1): 1940
• NCAA Division I Championshipappearances (9): 1969, 1986–1989, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2001

Women

• Conference championships (5): 1985, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1993
• NCAA Division I Championshipappearances (14): 1984, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1991–1994, 1996–1999, 2003, 2008

Football

The opening game of the2024 seasonatMemorial Stadium

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers football

Nebraska competes as part of theNCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision,representing theUniversity of Nebraska–Lincolnin theBig Ten Conference.Nebraska has played its home games atMemorial Stadiumsince 1923 and sold out every game at the venue since 1962.

Nebraska is among the most storied programs in college football history and has the eighth-most all-time victories among FBS teams.NU has won forty-six conference championships and fivenational championships(1970,1971,1994,1995,and1997), along with seven other national titles the school does not claim. Its 1971 and 1995 title-winning teams are considered among the best ever.Nebraska's threeHeisman Trophywinners –Johnny Rodgers,Mike Rozier,andEric Crouch– join twenty-four other Cornhuskers in theCollege Football Hall of Fame.

The program's first extended period of success came just after the turn of the twentieth century. Between 1900 and 1916, Nebraska had five undefeated seasons and completed a stretch of thirty-four games without a loss, still a program record.Despite a span of twenty-one conference championships in thirty-three seasons, the Cornhuskers did not experience major national success untilBob Devaneywas hired in 1962. Devaney won two national championships and eight conference titles in eleven seasons as head coach, but perhaps his most lasting achievement was the hiring ofTom Osborneas offensive coordinator in 1969.Osborne was named Devaney's successor in 1973, and over the next twenty-five years established himself as one of the best coaches in college football history with his trademarkI-formation offenseand revolutionary strength, conditioning, and nutrition programs.Following Osborne's retirement in 1997, Nebraska cycled through five head coaches before hiringMatt Rhulein 2022.

• Conference championships (46): 1894, 1895, 1897, 1907, 1910–1917, 1921–23, 1928, 1929, 1931–1933, 1935–1937, 1940, 1963–1966, 1969–1972, 1975, 1978, 1981–1984, 1988, 1991–1995, 1997, 1999
• Division championships (10): 1996, 1997, 1999–2001, 2006, 2008–2010, 2012
• National championships(claimed in bold) (12): 1915,1970,1971,1980–1984, 1993,1994,1995,1997

Golf

Men

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers men's golf

Nebraska's golf program began in 1935, led byCollege Football Hall of FamerDana X. Bible.The team's greatest successes came under longtime head coach Larry Romjue, who took NU to all four of itsNCAA Division I Championshipappearances. The program has been coached by Judd Cornell since 2022.

• Conference championships (2): 1936, 1937
• NCAA Division I Championshipappearances (4): 1973, 1978, 1998, 1999

Women

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers women's golf

NU established a women's golf program in 1975, initially under the leadership of men's coach Larry Romjue. In 1979, Nebraska hired its first coach exclusively to coach women's golf. The Cornhuskers have made theNCAA Division I Championshipthree times. The program has been coached by Jeanne Sutherland since 2022.

• Conference championships (2): 1976, 1983
• NCAA Division I Championshipappearances (3): 2000, 2003, 2006

Gymnastics

Men

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers men's gymnastics

Nebraska's men's gymnastics program is one of the most successful in the nation, with eight team national championships and forty-one NCAA event titles. Ten Huskers have represented theUnited States in the Olympics.Nebraska is one of only fiveBig Tenschools to sanction a men's gymnastics program.

• Individual all-around national championships (9): Jim Hartung (1980, 1981), Wes Suter (1985), Tom Schlesinger (1987), Kevin Davis (1988), Patrick Kirksey (1989), Dennis Harrison (1994), Richard Grace (1995), Jason Hardabura (1999)
• Conference championships (15): 1964, 1976, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988–1990, 1992–1994, 1997, 1999
• NCAA Championshipappearances (30): 1975, 1976, 1979–1999, 2017–2019, 2021–2024
• NCAA championships(8): 1979–1983, 1988, 1990, 1994

Women

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers women's gymnastics

Nebraska's women's gymnastics program was established in 1975. The school's first team, led by head coach Karen Balke, was made up entirely of freshmen and sophomores. Judy Schalk replaced Balke after two seasons and led the Huskers to five conference titles and a national tournament bid. Rick Walton became head coach in 1984 and soon won four straight Big Eight championships, each resulting in an NCAA tournament appearance. Michele Bryant won NU's first individual NCAA event title in vault in 1990. Dan Kendig was named head coach in 1993 and under him, Nebraska upset No. 1Utahto reach the 1997Super Six Finals,a first in school history. Kendig won his sixth consecutive conference championship in 1999 and was named national coach of the year. Kendig's teams won four individual event titles; Heather Brink won the all-around and vault in 2000 and Richelle Simpson won the all-around and floor exercise in 2003. Brink was named Kendig's replacement in 2019 when he resigned in the midst of an NCAA investigation.

• Individual all-around national championships (2): Heather Brink (2000), Richelle Simpson (2003)
• Conference championships (2): 2014, 2017
• Conference tournament championships (23): 1978–1980, 1982, 1983, 1987–1990, 1994–1999, 2001–2003, 2005, 2007, 2011–2013
• NCAA Championshipappearances (28) 1982, 1983, 1987–1990, 1995–1997, 1999–2007, 2010–2012, 2014–2019, 2023

Rifle

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers rifle

Rifle became an official sport at the university in 1998. The team practices and hosts meets at the ten-point indoor firing range in NU's Military and Naval Sciences Building (ROTC). The team has been coached by Richard Clark since 2024.

Although rifle is classified as a coeducational sport by the NCAA, Nebraska fields an all-female team. The program competed as an independent for six years before joining theGreat America Rifle Conferencein 2004. NU left the GARC for the Patriot Rifle Conference in 2021, making it one of only three programs at Nebraska not affiliated with theBig Ten.

• Conference championships (1): 2006
• Conference tournament championships (2): 2005, 2006
• NCAA Championshipappearances (17): 2000, 2001, 2004–2008, 2010, 2013–2018, 2020,2021, 2023

Soccer

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers women's soccer

In 1995, Nebraska became the first Big Eight school to sponsor a varsity women's soccer program. John Walker was hired lead the new program and took his team to theNCAA Division I Championshipin his third year, the first of eight consecutive tournament appearances. This streak ended in 2005, and the Cornhuskers have reached the tournament just three times since. The team has reached the round of 16 eight times and the national quarterfinals three times. Walker, the only coach in program history, has earned NSCAA National Coach of the Year, NSCAA Central Region Coach of the Year, and Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year during his tenure in Lincoln.

• Conference championships (5): 1996, 1999, 2000, 2013, 2023
• Conference tournament championships (7): 1996, 1998–2000, 2002, 2013
• NCAA Division I Championshipappearances (13): 1996–2005, 2013, 2016, 2023

Softball

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers softball

Nebraska's softball program started in 1970, before it was an official NCAA sport. Since the NCAA sanctioned softball in 1983, the Cornhuskers have made eight appearances in theWomen's College World Seriesand won the tenth-most games of any program. The program's greatest successes came under head coach Wayne Daigle shortly after the tournament's creation, culminating in a national runner-up finish in 1985 (though it was quickly vacated by the NCAA Committee on Infractions).Rhonda Revellebecame the program's head coach in 1992, and has since won more games than any coach in Nebraska athletics history. Revelle has won seven conference titles and was inducted into theNational Fastpitch Coaches Association Hall of Famein 2010.

• Conference championships (10): 1982, 1984–1988, 1998, 2001, 2004, 2014
• Conference tournament championships (9): 1982, 1984–1988, 1998, 2000, 2004
• NCAA Division I tournamentappearances (27): 1982, 1984,1985,1987, 1988, 1995–2007, 2009–2011, 2013–16, 2022, 2023
• Women's College World Seriesappearances (8): 1982, 1984,1985,1987, 1988, 1998, 2002, 2013

Tennis

Men

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers men's tennis

Nebraska's men's tennis team was established in 1928 and has reached theNCAA Championshiptwice, most recently in 2011 under longtime head coach Kerry McDermott. Five Cornhuskers have won conference championships and seventeen have been named all-conference selections. In 1989, Steven Jung was the NCAA Singles runner-up and was named NU's first All-American.Jung is the only men's tennis player in theNebraska Athletic Hall of Fame.Peter Kobelt has led the program since 2024.

• NCAA Division I Championshipappearances (2): 2010, 2011

Women

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers women's tennis

NU's women's tennis program was established in 1976 and has made theNCAA Division I Championshipsix times since 2000, most recently in 2013. Fourteen Cornhuskers have won conference championships, and twenty have been named all-conference selections. The team was coached by Scott Jacobson from 1992 until his retirement in 2022.

• Conference championships (4): 1977, 1978, 2013, 2020
• NCAA Division I Championshipappearances (6): 2005, 2006, 2010–2013

Track and field

Men

Nebraska's men's track and field team started in 1922 under coachHenry Schulte,who led the Huskers to nine conference titles before his retirement. His assistant,College Football Hall of FamerEd Weir,replaced Schulte. NU won eleven individual national championships under Weir's successor Frank Sevigne, with forty-two All-American selections and 103 individual conference champions in combined indoor and outdoor events. Gary Pepin coached both the men's and women's teams from Sevigne's retirement in 1983 until his own retirement in 2022.

• Indoor conference championships (38): 1930–1933, 1936–1938, 1940–1942, 1949, 1951, 1963, 1972, 1973, 1978, 1985, 1987–1989, 1992, 1994–1998, 2000–2005, 2007, 2015, 2016, 2019
• Outdoor conference championships (29): 1921–1924, 1926, 1929, 1932, 1933, 1936, 1937, 1939–1942, 1950, 1966, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2016

Women

Nebraska's women's track and field program began competition in 1976. Carol Frost, whose sonScottwould later quarterback the Cornhuskers to anational championship,took over the program in its second year. Frost left Nebraska after the 1980 season, and Gary Pepin took over the program. Two years later Pepin assumed control of the men's program as well, a dual role he held until his retirement in 2022.

• Indoor conference championships (24): 1980–1997, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2011, 2012
• IndoorAIAW(1) /NCAA Division I(2)championships:1982–1984
• Outdoor conference championships (18): 1980–1995, 2000, 2005

Volleyball

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers women's volleyball

Nebraska vs. Penn State at the Devaney Center on November 30, 2013

Nebraska's volleyball program is among the best in the history of the sport. The Cornhuskers have won fivenational championships(1995, 2000, 2006, 2015, 2017) and reached the national semifinal on twelve other occasions. NU has won more games than any other program and ranks second in national semifinal appearances, tournament wins, and tournament winning percentage. Nebraska has made the NCAA tournament for forty-two consecutive seasons and has never been ranked outside of the national top twenty. The Cornhuskers have featured moreAVCA All-Americansthan any other program, including fourNational Player of the Yearaward winners.

Nebraska volleyball is one of the most popular spectator attractions in women's sports. It has led the country in attendance each year since moving to theBob Devaney Sports Centerin 2013 and has sold out over 300 consecutive home matches, an NCAA record for any women's sport. Before moving to the larger Devaney Center, Nebraska played at the historicNU Coliseum;the Cornhuskers had fifteen undefeated seasons and a record of 454–30 at the Coliseum, including a then-NCAA-record ninety consecutive home victories from 2005 to 2009. On August 30, 2023, NU hostedOmahaatMemorial Stadium– the event's official attendance was 92,003, the highest ever for a women's sporting event.

• Conference championships (35): 1976–1992, 1994–1996, 1998–2002, 2004–2008, 2010, 2011, 2016, 2017, 2023
• Conference tournament championships (Big Eight only) (18): 1976–1986, 1988–1991, 1993–1995
• AIAW(6) /NCAA Division I(42) tournament appearances: 1975–1980, 1982–2023
• NCAA Division I national semifinals (17): 1986, 1989, 1990, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2015–2018, 2021, 2023
• NCAA Division I championships(5): 1995, 2000, 2006, 2015, 2017

Beach volleyball

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers women's volleyball § Beach volleyball

Nebraska added beach volleyball as the school's twenty-second intercollegiate varsity sport in 2013. In 2016, the NCAA began sponsoring a beach volleyball tournament (previously the sport was run by theAVCA), but Nebraska did not attempt to qualify. Nebraska runs one of the only beach volleyball programs in the Midwest and plays the bulk of its season during a spring break trip toCaliforniaorHawaii.NU's beach roster is made up entirely of players from its indoor program, and head coachJohn Cookhas said the school views beach volleyball primarily as a training and recruiting tool for its indoor team. Beach volleyball competes as an independent, making it one of only three programs at Nebraska not affiliated with theBig Ten.

On March 8, 2017, Nebraska hostedMissouri Baptistat the Hawks Championship Center. The match was closed to the public due to space limitations, but was noteworthy as the first collegiate beach volleyball match to take place in the state of Nebraska.

In 2007,Jordan LarsonandSarah Pavandefeated student-athletes from seven other schools to win the Collegiate Beach Volleyball Championship, an invitational tournament featuring two players per school.

Wrestling

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers wrestling

Jake Sueflohn of Nebraska (left) grapples with Cole VonOhlen of Air Force at the Cliff Keen Invitational on Dec. 1, 2012

Nebraska's wrestling program began in 1910 under the guidance of head coach R. G. Clapp. Despite modest success in the program's early years, NU has been a mainstay in the national top ten since Tim Neumann was hired in 1985. Mark Manning has led the Huskers since 2000 and twice won conference coach of the year.Former Nebraska standouts include2000 Olympic gold medalistand2004 bronze medalistRulon Gardner,and two-time NCAA champion and2012 Olympic gold medalistJordan Burroughs.

Individual

• National championships (11): Mike Nissen(1963 – 123 lbs),Jim Scherr(1984 – 177 lbs),Bill Scherr(1984 – 190 lbs),Jason Kelber(1991 – 126 lbs),Tony Purler(1993 – 126 lbs),Tolly Thompson(1995 – HWT),Brad Vering(2000 – 197 lbs),Jason Powell(2004 – 125 lbs),Paul Donahoe(2007 – 125 lbs),Jordan Burroughs(2009 – 157 lbs; 2011 – 165 lbs)

Team

• Conference championships (7): 1911, 1915, 1924, 1949, 1993, 1995, 2009
• NCAA Division I Championshipappearances (56): 1928, 1942, 1946, 1949, 1954, 1958, 1959, 1961–1963, 1973, 1975, 1978, 1980–2019, 2021–2023

Club sports

TheUniversity of Nebraska–Lincolnsponsors club programs in badminton, baseball, women's basketball, bowling, broomball, climbing, cricket,curling,cycling, dodgeball, golf, men's hockey, women's hockey, judo, women's lacrosse, pickleball, rifle,rowing,men's rugby, running, sailing, shotgun, women's soccer, fast-pitch softball, swimming, table tennis, taekwondo, tennis, men's ultimate Frisbee, men's volleyball, women's volleyball, and water ski.

Athletic directors

Main article:List of Nebraska Cornhuskers athletic directors

In its earliest days, the Nebraska Department of Athletics had no central figure serving as the head of the department, and the history of how this position developed is unclear. Early on, the head of the athletics department often had only a partial or part-time role and held other titles and responsibilities. The first six heads of the Athletics Department held the title "Athletics Manager," first held by Raymond G. Clapp, NU's basketball coach and a professor of physical education.The first individual to hold the title "athletic director" wasE. J. Stewart,who served from 1916 to 1919, while also coaching men's basketball and football during parts of his tenure.However, he is not considered Nebraska's first athletic director because it was not considered a full-time administrative position by the Board of Regents; this designation belong toFred Luehring,who held the position from 1920 to 1922.

Many of Nebraska's athletic directors simultaneously coached one of the university's varsity programs. These included basketball, baseball, and swimming, but the majority of dual-role administrators were football coaches: Stewart,Fred Dawson,Dana X. Bible,Biff Jones,Glenn Presnell,Adolph J. Lewandowski,George Clark,andBob Devaney.NU's longest-serving athletic director was Devaney, who led the department from 1967 to 1992.Troy Dannenwas appointed Nebraska's seventeenth full-time athletic director on March 21, 2024.

Facilities

Nebraska vs.Fresno Stateat Hawks Field at Haymarket Park on Mar. 11, 2011

Home venues Venue Built Sport(s) City Campus Hawks Championship Center 2006 Beach volleyball Memorial Stadium 1923 Football Military and Naval Science Building 1947 Rifle East Campus Husker Bowling Center 1977 Bowling Innovation Campus Bob Devaney Sports Center 1976 Gymnastics Swimming & diving Track & field Volleyball Wrestling Unnamed track & field stadium N/A Track & field Cross country Off campus Barbara Hibner Soccer Stadium 2015 Soccer Bowlin Stadium 2001 Softball Hawks Field 2001 Baseball John Breslow Ice Hockey Center 2015 Ice hockey (club) Pinnacle Bank Arena 2013 Basketball Sid and Hazel Dillon Tennis Center 2015 Tennis Wilderness Ridge Golf Club 2001 Golf

Additional facilities Venue Built Purpose City Campus Francis Allen Training Complex 2020 Gymnastics training facility Hawks Championship Center 2006 Football practice facility Hendricks Training Complex 2011 Basketball & wrestling training facility Nebraska Coliseum 1926 Basketball (former home venue) Volleyball (former home venue) Wrestling (former home venue) Osborne Athletic Complex 2006 Administration Health & medicine Strength & conditioning Osborne Legacy Complex 2024 Football practice facility Off campus Alex Gordon Training Complex 2011 Baseball & softball practice facility

Nebraska Athletic Hall of Fame

The University of Nebraska Athletic Hall of Fame was established in 2015, located just northeast ofMemorial Stadium.Twenty-two former student-athletes were honored in the inaugural class.At least one student-athlete from each of Nebraska's varsity sports has been inducted into the Hall of Fame. Football is the most-represented sport with sixteen student-athletes and coaches inducted.

Class of 2015 Steve Friesen– Golf Alex Gordon– Baseball Charlie Greene– Track & field Jim Hartung– Gymnastics Penny Heyns– Swimming & diving Karen Jennings– Basketball Steve Jung – Tennis Joe Kirby – Cross country Christine Latham– Soccer Liz Mooney – Tennis Merlene Ottey– Track & field Eric Piatkowski– Basketball Adam Pine– Swimming & diving Shannon Pluhowsky– Bowling Dave Rimington– Football Sarah Sasse-Kildow – Golf Bill Scherr– Wrestling Richelle Simpson– Gymnastics Lori Sippel – Softball Fran ten Bensel – Cross country Amanda Trujillo – Rifle Allison Weston– Volleyball

Class of 2016 Heather Brink – Gymnastics Phil Cahoy– Gymnastics Janet Kruse – Volleyball Nicole Martial – Track & field Nancy Metcalf– Volleyball Johnny Rodgers– Football Will Shields– Football Class of 2017 Bob Brown– Football Karen Dahlgren – Volleyball Denise Day – Softball Rich Glover– Football Dave Hoppen– Basketball Scott Johnson– Gymnastics Class of 2018 Bob Devaney– Football Darin Erstad– Baseball Peaches James – Softball Tom Osborne– Football Sarah Pavan– Volleyball Mike Rozier– Football Tom Schlesinger – Gymnastics

Class of 2019 Francis Allen– Gymnastics Rhonda Bladford-Green – Track & field Greichaly Cepero– Volleyball Carol Frost – Track & field Wes Suter– Gymnastics Ed Weir– Football Grant Wistrom– Football Class of 2020 Amanda Burgoyne – Bowling Eric Crouch– Football Sam Francis– Football Maurtice Ivy – Basketball Jordan Larson– Volleyball Terry Pettit– Volleyball Class of 2021 Therese Alshammar– Swimming Jordan Burroughs– Wrestling Bob Cerv– Baseball Kelsey Griffin– Basketball Larry Jacobson– Football Cathy Noth – Softball

Class of 2022 Guy Chamberlin– Football Christina Houghtelling – Volleyball Patrick Kirksey – Gymnastics Shane Komine – Baseball Louise Pound– Administrator Bill Straub – Bowling Angela Thacker – Track & field Ali Viola – Softball Class of 2023 Lori Endicott– Volleyball Tommie Frazier– Football Emily Parsons – Gymnastics Gary Pepin – Track & field Tolly Thompson– Wrestling Brittany Timko– Soccer Class of 2024 Jordan Hooper– Basketball Carl Myerscough– Track & Field Virginia Stahr – Volleyball Ndamukong Suh– Football Mary Weatherholt – Tennis Emily Wong – Gymnastics

Olympians

Main article:List of University of Nebraska–Lincoln Olympians

Jordan Burroughswon a gold medal at the2012 Summer Olympics

A total of 120 Nebraska athletes have combined to make in 176 appearances in the Olympic Games. Nebraska athletes and coaches have won sixty-two medals, including nineteen gold medals, while representing thirty-one countries.Merlene Otteyis Nebraska's most decorated Olympian in terms of medals won, winning three silver and seven six bronze across seven Olympic Games, a record fortrack and fieldcompetitors.South African swimmerPenelope Heyns– the only Cornhusker with multiple gold medals – is the only woman to ever win the 100- and 200-meter breaststroke events at the same Olympic Games.

Nebraska's Olympic gold medalists

Athlete
Penelope Heyns	2	0	1
Don Quarrie	1	2	1
Jordan Larson	1	2	1
Adam Pine
Kelsey Robinson	1	1	1
Curtis Tomasevicz	1	1	0
Justine Wong-Orantes
Rulon Gardner	1	0	1
Charlie Greene
Francis Allen	1	0	0
Jordan Burroughs
Trent Dimas
Tyronn Lue
Jim Hartung
Tyler Hildebrand
Scott Johnson
Jim Mikus
Linetta Wilson

Mascots

Lil' Red on the sideline atMemorial Stadium

Nebraska cycled through several official mascots before settling on the now-familiarHerbie HuskerandLil' Red.The first of these was Corncob Man, a man in green overalls with an ear of corn for a head. After just a few years, the university sought a more "representative" mascot and debuted Huskie the Husker, a farmer who stood ten feet tall and wore overalls with a straw hat on top of a fiberglass head.Huskie soon gave way to Mr. Big Red (more commonly known as Harry Husker); Harry was equally tall but dressed in a blazer and red wide-brim hat. Harry's head was so large it couldn't fit on the team's traveling bus and was so heavy the student wearing the costume had to be switched every forty-five minutes.

Herbie Husker as he looked from 2003 to 2023

The physical demands of the Harry costume meant the university was soon looking for another mascot, and in 1974 NU acquired the rights to Herbie Husker, based on the design ofLubbock, TexasartistDirk West.Nebraska hiredDisneycartoonist Bob Johnson to refine West's design into a costume and Herbie made his first appearance at a Nebraska football game at the1974 Cotton Bowl Classic,a 19–3 Cornhuskers victory overTexas.Mr. Big Red wasn't officially retired until 1988, but was infrequently seen while coexisting with Herbie.

Historically, Herbie had blond hair and dressed in denim overalls (with an ear of corn in the pocket), a white undershirt, and a red cowboy hat. Prior to the 2003 season, Herbie's appearance was altered to include a red workshirt, blue jeans, and workboots in an effort to update the overall appearance of the state's agricultural workers and general public; however, the new design was not well-received and many of the modifications were reverted in 2023.

Since 1994, Herbie has often been joined on the sideline by the inflatable Lil' Red. Initially, Lil' Red was created to appeal to younger fans and to primarily represent the school's volleyball team, which occasionally played at the same time as Nebraska's football team. Lil' Red was so popular that then-athletic directorBill Byrneconsidered discontinuing Herbie entirely, but later decided the mascots would coexist.The mascots are now frequently seen together across all sports.

Herbie was named the 2005 National Mascot of the year at halftime of the2006 Capital One Bowl.Lil' Red won the NCA National Mascot Competition in 1999 and was inducted into theMascot Hall of Famein 2007.

Fan support

A fan attends a football game at Memorial Stadium in 1973

Decades of high attendance and well-traveling crowds across all sports have earned Nebraska fans a reputation for being fiercely loyal and dedicated. The school's athletic department proclaimed their fans "the greatest fans in college football" in an inscription above each of the twenty-four gates atMemorial Stadium.In 2001, PresidentGeorge W. Bushstated that he "can't go without saying how impressed I am by the Nebraska fan base. Whether it be for women's volleyball or football, there's nothing like the Big Red."

Memorial Stadium is sometimes referred to asThe Sea of Reddue to the home crowd's propensity to wear the color. Nebraska has sold out every home football game since November 3, 1962; at 389 it is the longest sellout streak in college athletics history.The streak, historically a source of pride for the school and its fans,has been scrutinized in the decades followingTom Osborne's retirement as NU's athletic department has occasionally been forced to sell a large number of tickets at a discounted rate to keep the streak alive.Cornhuskers fans are noted for often applauding the visiting team as they leave the field at the end of the game.Nebraska is considered to have one of the best-traveling fanbases in the country – the most famous example of this occurred in 2000, when an estimated 35,000 Nebraska fans watched No. 1Nebraskadefeat No. 25Notre DameatNotre Dame Stadium.

Nebraska's volleyball program has sold out 303 consecutive matches between theNebraska ColiseumandDevaney Center,the longest streak of its kind in women's college sports. The Cornhuskers have led the country in attendance for nine straight seasons,and have played in nine of the tenhighest-attended college volleyball matchesever played. Nebraska's five-set loss toWisconsinin the2021 national championship matchbroke college volleyball records for both attendance and viewership.

Academic success

Main article:Nebraska Cornhuskers academic honors and awards

Nebraska has produced 347 Academic All-Americans, more than any other Division I school and second only to theMassachusetts Institute of Technologyamong all universities.Nebraska's 108 Academic All-Americans in football is forty-one more than second-placePenn State;the school also leads all volleyball programs in Academic All-Americans with thirty-eight.

External links

• Official website