This post was updated Aug. 15 at 4:35 p.m.
UCLA is just weeks away from starting its second season in the Big Ten. After capturing seven Big Ten championships during their first year in the conference, the Bruins will look to build upon their inaugural year. Prior to the start of UCLA’s second Big Ten campaign, Daily Bruin Sports will preview football, basketball and other top programs from each school.
Football
2024 record: 7-6, 3-6 Big Ten, Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl victory
Coach: Matt Rhule
Player to watch: Dylan Raiola
Leading an offense as a true freshman is no easy task.
Doing so in the Big Ten – a conference known for tenacious defenses and staunch run games – is even harder.
Dylan Raiola experienced that first-hand.
The sophomore quarterback led the Cornhuskers to their best overall record since 2016 and their first bowl game win since 2015. Simultaneously, Raiola threw for 2,819 yards at a 67.1% completion rate across 13 games last season, setting a new Nebraska freshman record.
Despite the Cornhuskers boasting their most successful season in almost a decade, they struggled in Big Ten play, finishing with a sub-.500 conference record for the eighth year in a row.
However, the growing pains of a revamped program led by an inexperienced signal caller could be a thing of the past as Raiola – the former No. 1 ranked recruit – continues to develop under offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen, who is entering his first full year with sole control of Nebraska’s play calling.
Head coach Matt Rhule bolstered his coaching staff with Holgorsen at the tail end of the 2024 campaign, allowing the latter to call the final four games of the season.
Improvement came immediately as Raiola averaged 225 yards per game and completed 72% of his passes across that stretch. Additionally, Holgorsen’s impact was felt in the running game – as tailback Emmett Johnson averaged 121 scrimmage yards per game in that same stretch. Although Nebraska went 2-2 to finish the season, there were glimpses of an offense that could fire on all cylinders come fall.
With over 30 years of experience under his belt, Holgorsen brings an impressive resume to an already blossoming offensive scheme. His past offenses averaged second in passing offense and sixth in scoring nationally – testaments to the firepower he can bring to the Cornhuskers.
In the wake of the departure of Nebraska’s top wide receivers, Jahmal Banks and Isaiah Neyor, to the NFL, the Huskers picked up two transfers in Dane Key and Nyziah Hunter. Key, who transferred from Kentucky, finished last season with 715 yards, 47 receptions and two touchdowns. Hunter ran for 578 yards, picked up 40 receptions and scored five touchdowns at California. These retooled offensive options could prove crucial for a .500-plus conference finish.
On the defensive side of the ball, defensive back DeShon Singleton posted a breakout 2024 season, boasting 45 solo tackles – the most on the team – and 71 total takedowns. With the departure of defensive back Issac Gifford – who led the team with 73 total tackles – to the NFL, the Huskers could rely on Singleton to fend off opponents that front seven.
Expectations are on the line for the Huskers in 2025, and they just might be able to live up to them with the help of their new talent and rising veterans.
Men’s Basketball
2024-2025 record: 21-14, 7-13 Big Ten
Coach: Fred Hoiberg
Player to watch: Connor Essegian
The Huskers have a contentious relationship with postseason tournaments.
Nebraska has made eight appearances in the history of the NCAA tournament and has failed to advance past the opening round every single time.
And even though Nebraska’s name was not called during the 2025 March Madness selection show, the squad still had the opportunity to compete in the postseason, playing in the inaugural College Basketball Crown tournament in Las Vegas.
And this past year, the Huskers used the new tournament as the breeding grounds to cultivate a new connection with postseason glory.
Nebraska finished the 16-team tournament with a 4-0 record, walking away with the first-ever title and a $300,000 Name, Image and Likeness package.
However, a season removed from the tournament victory and the team’s top two scorers in guard Brice Williams and forward Juwan Gary – who combined for 41 points in the championship game – have departed to play professional basketball.
However the Huskers’ leading three-point specialist, guard Connor Essegian, returned for his final year at the Pinnacle Bank Arena. In the tournament, the Fort Wayne, Indiana, local combined for 53 points with 21 coming in the championship game. Essegian also led the Huskers with a 37.7 three-point percentage and averaged 10.7 points per game last season.
Alongside Essegian, Rienk Mast is returning for his final year after redshirting last season due to knee surgery. The forward averaged 12.3 points per game and shot 83.8 percent from the free-throw line before being relocated to the sidelines.
In the offseason, Hoiberg has gone to the transfer portal to bolster his squad for next season, securing six transfers. Forward Pryce Sandfort headlines the pack, coming from Iowa, where he averaged 8.8 points per game and shot 40 percent from beyond the arc. The Huskers also acquired forward Ugnius Jarusevicius from Central Michigan and guard Kendall Blue from St. Thomas in Minnesota, respectively.
With a mix of returners and newcomers, it will be interesting to see how Hoiberg’s new squad meshes together. The team will need to find a rhythm if they want to be dancing come March.
Women’s Basketball
2024-2025 record: 21-12, 10-8 Big Ten, NCAA Tournament First Round appearance
Coach: Amy Williams
Player to watch: Natalie Potts
Players-turned-coaches can be exactly the lifeblood a program needs injected into their bloodstreams to facilitate rebuilding.
Former Nebraska player Amy Williams has led her team to the NCAA Tournament four times in her nine years at the helm. However, the squad has yet to advance past the second round, only qualifying once in 2024.
The 2024-25 season started off strong, but the Huskers took a huge blow by losing the 2024 Big Ten Freshman of the Year forward Natalie Potts to a season-ending knee injury in just the team’s fifth game of the season.
In her freshman season, Potts averaged 10.2 points and 5.5 rebounds per game alongside five double-doubles. Returning from injury, Potts has the opportunity to lead the Huskers once again and pick back up right where she left off.
Guard Britt Prince stepped up to fill Pott’s shadow, averaging 13.4 points, 4.0 rebounds, while boasting team bests with 3.8 assists and 1.7 steals. Prince made the Big Ten All-Freshman Team and received an All-Big Ten honorable mention last season.
Potts and Prince on the court together for a full season will showcase the talent of the young Huskers, but they can’t do it alone, and Williams likely knows that.
Williams added four key transfers and recruited one sole high school prospect from the 2025 class. Guard Claire Johnson rounded out the bunch, transferring from Samford. In her freshman campaign, Johnson averaged 12.2 points per game and made over 40% of her 3-pointers. Other transfers include Eliza Maupin, Hailey Weaver and Emily Fisher, who transferred from Kansas State, Northwestern, and Maryland, respectively.
Guard Alanna Neale arrives in Lincoln, Nebraska, as a decorated high school standout from California, where she averaged 12.1 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game as a senior from Ontario Christian, leading them to a 30-2 finish. Her rebound skills could help her make an immediate impact for the team.
With all the power in Williams’ corner, they have the opportunity to make some noise in the Big Ten this season and even break their second-round curse come tournament time.
Women’s Volleyball
2024 record: 33-3, 19-1 Big Ten, Final Four appearance
Coach: Dani Busboom Kelly
Player to watch: Andi Jackson
New coach, same team.
With the surprising retirement of long-time head honcho John Cook – who had recently signed a contract extension through the 2028 season – Nebraska left little time to question who would take over the helm, immediately signing Dani Busboom Kelly as the fourth head coach of Nebraska volleyball.
Busboom Kelly returns to Nebraska – where she won a national championship in 2006 – after making a name for herself as head coach of Louisville, building them into a national powerhouse over the past eight seasons. In her time with the Cardinals, the team reached two NCAA championship matches, three NCAA semifinals, five Regional finals and won four ACC titles.
You’d think with a new coach, some players would hit the transfer portal, right?
Wrong.
The Huskers are returning every eligible player from the 2024 season, with the addition of , including one international signing and one transfer. Of the returners, four players were named to the Preseason All-Big Ten Team, three of whom were unanimous selections, including outside hitter Harper Murray, middle blocker Andi Jackson and setter Bergen Reilly. Middle blocker Rebekah Allick also joined the trio on that list.
Nebraska is an established volleyball powerhouse, having qualified for the NCAA tournament for 43 consecutive years. And the Huskers are never short of talent. Murray has been a name to watch since the beginning of her college career, and she proved her namesake last season, leading the team in kills, kills per set and service aces.
But if the Huskers are to win a national championship this year, they are going to need to dominate in the middle.
Just their luck, Jackson is coming off a breakout season where she averaged 2.62 kills per set with a .439 hitting percentage, which ranked sixth in the nation and earned her an AVCA All-American selection. She also totaled 134 blocks with 1.18 blocks per set, sitting only behind Allick, who finished the season with 156 blocks, averaging 1.43 blocks per set, which ranked third in the Big Ten.
Reilly has established herself as the Huskers’ starting setter, notching 11.08 assists per set last season, the second most in the Big Ten, while also earning Big Ten Setter of the Year awards in back-to-back seasons.
Following the departure of four-time AVCA All-American and three-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year Lexi Rodriguez to graduation, the libero spot is up for grabs. Laney Choboy and Olivia Mauch seem to be the frontrunners, having both spent time in the back court last season as defensive specialists.
Busboom Kelly has all she needs in her pocket to secure a national championship with veterans – and former All-Americans – all over the court.
Now all they have to do is execute when it’s most important.
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