Volleyball On SI

WATCH: World Champion Boxer Bud Crawford Stars in Epic Volleyball Hype Video

World champion boxer Bud Crawford brings his championship swagger to the volleyball court in an electrifying hype video for the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

Maren Angus

Terence "Bud" Crawford stars in Nebraska Volleyball's hype video for the 2026-27 season. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Terence "Bud" Crawford stars in Nebraska Volleyball's hype video for the 2026-27 season. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Nebraska native and world champion boxer Terence "Bud" Crawford is ready for the 2026 college volleyball season.

The pound-for-pound superstar appears in the Nebraska hype video that was posted on X by Cornhusker setter Bergen Reilly.

"Everyone's got a favorite team," Crawford says. "That's cool. But your favorite team's got a show they can't miss. And if you know the sport. you know who they're watching. Your favorite team's favorite team."

The top-ranked Huskers enter the season ranked No. 1 and expect to win a national championship this season despite losing to eventual national champion Texas A&M in the NCAA Regional Finals 3-2.

NU takes the court for the first time this season Thursday night against No. 17 Florida at AT&T Stadium, home of the National Football League's Dallas Cowboys.

The Spikes Under the Lights also features No. 10 Penn State and No. 11 SMU. Each match is a best-of-three format with the first two sets played to 21 points and a deciding third set (if needed) played to 15 points. The two winners wiill compete for a grand prize of $1 million.

Thursday's contests are classified as exhibition games and will not count toward the regular season record.

Spikes Under the Lights
Aug. 27, 2026 | 7 p.m. CT
AT&T Stadium | Arlington, Texas 

Tournament Schedule
No. 1 Nebraska vs. No. 17 Florida | 7 p.m.
No. 10 Penn State vs. No. 11 SMU | 8 p.m.
Championship Match | 9 p.m.

All three matches will be broadcast on TNT with Anne Marie Anderson and Holly McPeak on the call.

Nebraska Sets New Standard in College Volleyball

Playing in front of a massive crowd in a nontraditional volleyball venue is nothing new for Nebraska, as the Huskers sold 90,000-plus tickets for an exhibition match at Memorial Stadium years ago.

However, NU is taking the program to new heights this season.

After playing in an NFL venue on Thursday, the Huskers travel to Las Vegas for the the first-ever Players Era Volleyball Showcase on Aug. 29-30. Nebraska will face UNLV on Aug. 29 and No. 2 Texas on Aug. 30 at T-Mobile Arena, home of the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights.

Following a midweek matchup at South Dakota State, the Huskers will play at two other professional venues in Chicago. They will take on DePaul on Sept. 4 at Wintrust Arena, home of the WNBA’s Chicago Sky, before facing Missouri in the Big Ten/SEC Challenge on Sept. 6 at Wrigley Field, home of Major League Baseball’s Chicago Cubs. 

Published |Modified
Maren Angus
MAREN ANGUS

Maren Angus was born in Los Angeles and raised in Nashville, Tenn. She is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University and has been a sports writer since 2008. She has been covering college softball since 2016 for various outlets including Softball America, ESPNW and Hurrdat Sports. She is currently the publisher of Softball On SI and also serves as an analyst for Nebraska softball games on Nebraska Public Media and B1G+.

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