The five-time national champion Nebraska volleyball team plans to add another accolade to its collection in the form of the sport’s NCAA attendance record this fall, and that plan involves jumping on the outdoor sports trend.
On Aug. 30, the Cornhuskers will be leaving the confines of their arena to play Nebraska-Omaha at the football team’s Memorial Stadium. The attendance record for an NCAA volleyball match is currently 18,755, which was set in 2021.
Memorial Stadium seats more than 85,000, so a sizable representation would easily set the record.
Nebraska is turning it into a big event in hopes of driving up attendance. The university described it in a release as a celebration of the impact of volleyball on the state of Nebraska, and it will feature an exhibition matchup between in-state Division II programs and a performance from a “national recording artist” who is yet to be determined.
Through these gates.
8 . 30 . 23 pic.twitter.com/Ku4O31xxno
— Husker Volleyball (@Huskervball) February 24, 2023
We’ve seen a recent push for indoor sports to experiment with playing outdoors — particularly in hockey with the NHL’s Stadium Series. It would be cool to see college volleyball expand on this trend, perhaps as other teams attempt to chase the record that the ‘Huskers are likely to break this fall.