Welcome back to the Just Askin’ mailbag.
It’s been a long offseason, but we are back!
The premise is straightforward. You ask me some questions — or vent your frustrations — about Nebraska Athletics. Any sport. I attempt to answer them.
If you want your question included in the next edition of the mailbag, find me on X at @amie_just, on Blue Sky at @amiejust.com or email me at [email protected].
Without further ado, here are this week’s questions:
You’re in charge of the next AVCA First Serve tournament. What do you keep, and what do you change/get rid of? — Dave F.
Keep: light show bracelets, red-carpet arrivals, big TV networks, Bolt6 replay system.
Get rid of: cheesy cheers, filling every possible second with noise, the fact that teams can only participate every so often.
People are also reading… Lincoln’s Jana Duggar of ’19 Kids, Counting’ breaks baby news Goodbye, glitter & memories — Gateway Mall staple fades away Nebraska beats Pitt in front of 15,500 at PBA as Busboom Kelly era begins with victory Nebraska volleyball selects 3 team captains for 2025 season Motorcycle riders killed in separate weekend crashes in Lincoln ID’d 9 things to know about ICE taking over University of Nebraska distances itself from ‘Cornhusker Clink’ detention center name 21-year-old motorcyclist killed in northeast Lincoln crash Sunday WATCH: Tearful Husker punter captures America’s heart Lincoln motorcycle driver dies after crash with SUV in northeast Lincoln This Cornhusker Marching Band tradition is coming to an end ‘It just came overnight’ — Planned Nebraska ICE detention center raises fears in McCook From glory to pause: Perennial high school football power cancels season Outside Governor’s Mansion, ‘fury’ directed at Pillen for detention center plans LPD: Lincoln man kidnaps 8-year-old at park, takes him to Burger King
Possibly change: the time of year. Perhaps a mid-season break in conference play would be a good opportunity for these showcases. (But that would require the NCAA to actually listen to its coaches.)
How many wins do the Huskers get this year in football? — Blue Sky user @tgabrukiewicz
This has been how I’ve phrased it to people: Six wins is the floor. Getting to seven or eight wins is realistic. If everything goes in Nebraska’s favor, and I mean everything, there’s a reality where Nebraska could get to 10 or 11. Now, do I think Nebraska gets to double digits? Unlikely.
If we’re game picking, without context, here’s what I’m thinking.
Wins: Cincinnati, Akron, Houston Christian, Michigan State, Maryland, Northwestern, UCLA.
Losses: Michigan, Penn State.
Toss-ups: Minnesota, USC, Iowa.
I don’t think Nebraska will lose all three games that I’ve deemed to be toss-ups, but I don’t think they’ll win them all, either.
Allie Sczech is surely the starter at opposite going forward, right? — Mitch P. and Mick F.
Man, that performance by Allie Sczech against Stanford on Sunday was something to behold. A team-high 12 kills on 25 swings with only two errors for a hitting percentage of .400. Setter Bergen Reilly went to Sczech basically as much as she went to All-American Harper Murray (26 swings with 10 kills and two errors), and that, to me, says that the connection between her and Sczech is strong.
Now, I’m not going to completely write off Virginia Adriano. Her cross-court Euro serve is lethal when it stays in bounds.
Going into the weekend, Dani Busboom Kelly wanted each of them to start.
“They’re both playing so great in practice,” Busboom Kelly said. “… It’s early, so we want to learn about our team. We’re going to use everybody on this roster when we need them.”
I think Sczech has really cemented herself as deserving of the spot, but it wouldn’t surprise me if we see Adriano get a few more sets to prove herself, too.
Who are the primary Nebraska volleyball redshirt candidates? — Troy P.
Let’s start with who is off the table.
In volleyball, players burn their redshirt if they play one singular point. That means setter Campbell Flynn, opposite hitter Virginia Adriano and outside hitter Teraya Sigler — who all played over the weekend — are ineligible to redshirt for 2025.
The four freshmen who haven’t yet played are defensive specialist Keri Leimbach, middle blocker Kenna Cogill, middle blocker Manaia Ogbechie and opposite hitter Ryan Hunter.
I think we get a potential answer after the matches against Lipscomb (Friday) and Wright State (Sept. 5). It wouldn’t surprise me if one (or both) of the freshman middles played in those matches.
It wouldn’t surprise me if Leimbach redshirts, and the same holds true for Hunter. Both are good enough to play, but the two (or three) women ahead of them on the depth chart are really, really good.
With the expanded roster, it’s going to be even harder to keep people happy. And that, I think, might be the biggest challenge of this season for Dani Busboom Kelly.
If you were looking forward to the end of the volleyball season, which player becomes the surprise story? Choboy, Sczech, Adriano, one of the first years? — JD F.
Based on the first weekend, two early candidates for this are Sczech and Sigler. Both are in very different spots in their career, with Sczech transferring to Nebraska from Baylor for her final season of eligibility and Sigler playing as a true freshman.
Sigler, in a deep outside hitter room, played in the back row — with a couple of opportunities to rotate up front — against both No. 3 Pitt and No. 6 Stanford, showcasing her passing abilities. Was she perfect? No. There’s plenty of room to improve.
There’s plenty of time for someone else to break onto the scene and become the surprise story, but these two are the leaders in the clubhouse right now.
Between Trev and Troy, who has/had the better plan for Memorial Stadium renovation? — Paul J.
In Paul’s defense, he gave a preamble to his question. As he wrote, “under Trev’s plan, the south stadium would be demolished right now,” while “Troy Dannen seems to be taking a slower, installment approach.”
Yes, Dannen’s plan will cost more money, and the longer we wait, the more it will cost. However, I’m still in favor of the Dannen plan — whenever it actually comes to fruition. Do we need South Stadium to come down eventually? Yes. But it’s a wise business decision to focus on the areas that generate more revenue first.
Photos: Nebraska volleyball vs. Stanford at PBA, Aug. 24, 2025 0 Comments Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
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