Nebraska Volleyball is the No. 5 ranked team in the nation and it feels like a low ranking.
The D1 Women’s Volleyball Rankings were released earlier this week and Nebraska volleyball came in at No. 5. While many would see this ranking and be stoked, this seems like a low-blow for the Huskers, who are as built as any program to win a National Championship this season.
Ahead of Nebraska in the polls are (in order): Wisconsin, Texas, Stanford, and Kentucky. These four teams are talented, no doubt, but the Huskers had their entire team return from last season and now they’ve played together and gelled for an extra season. Meanwhile, Stanford lost a lot of their premier talent from their 2019 National Championship season but is considered to be a better team than that of Nebraska.
While the ranking is low for this team, the only thing Nebraska can really do is use it as motivation. If they’re better than these other four teams, then they need to prove it when the season begins two weeks from now. The only team out of this group on their schedule is Wisconsin, who had their number last season, sweeping them in three games (including their matchup in the playoffs).
Nebraska Volleyball should take this ranking and use it as motivation.
No one ever counts Nebraska out and they’re at their best when people are sleeping on them. We saw this in the 2017 season when many thought it’d be a rebuilding season and the Huskers went on to win the National Championship. The following season was yet another rebuilding campaign and Nebraska made it all the way to the National Championship match only to lose to Stanford in five sets.
The point being, Nebraska isn’t considered as the best team in the Big Ten and that’s going to eat at them. They’re bothered that Wisconsin had their number last season and they want to prove that won’t be the case again this time around. There’s no better place to prove themselves than on the court.
For what it’s worth, Nebraska plays Wisconsin on Feb. 26 and 27 in Madison, both of which will be must-see matches.