Could This College Volleyball Tournament Draw 100,000 Fans?

Most college sports teams—including quite a few basketball and football squads—would kill for Nebraska women’s volleyball’s name recognition.

The Cornhuskers draw well on television, in person, and—this is crucial—they win on the court. Nebraska has 18 national semifinal appearances to its name between the AIAW and NCAA tournaments, including three in the 2020s.

Now, the program’s cache will be key to one of the largest women’s sports endeavors ever undertaken. Florida, the Cornhuskers, Penn State and SMU will compete in an exhibition tournament on Aug. 27 for a $1 million prize pool at AT&T Stadium—the gargantuan home of the NFL’s Cowboys.

"We are excited and honored to be part of this historic event that showcases the continued growth of women's volleyball," Nebraska coach Dani Busboom Kelly said in a press release announcing the event, called “Spikes Under the Lights.” "This will be a great opportunity to face some talented teams in an iconic setting as we ramp up to the start of the season. It should be an awesome night and hopefully a lot of Husker fans will be able to experience it with us in Dallas."

All four participating teams made the NCAA tournament in 2025

The Cornhuskers went 30–0 in the regular season last year, claiming the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament—only to suffer an upset quarterfinal loss to Texas A&M.

The Nittany Lions, on the other hand, regressed from winning the national title in 2024 to bowing out 3–0 in the second round to Texas. The Gators defeated Rice in the tournament’s first round only to lose, interestingly, to SMU. The Mustangs, the No. 2 seed in their region, lost to Purdue in the regional semifinals.

For Nebraska, women’s sports history could be in play for the second time in four years

On Aug. 30, 2023, the Cornhuskers played in-state foe Omaha at Memorial Stadium in a showcase billed as “Volleyball Day in Nebraska.” Nebraska’s 25–14, 25–14, 25–13 win drew an astounding 92,003 fans, and was widely reported as the highest-attended women’s sporting event in history. Though that specific fact is in dispute, the match was an unquestionable triumph for a sport that has steadily grown into a popular draw over the decades. A few similar events around the country followed, such as an Oct. 2023 exhibition basketball game between DePaul and Iowa at the Hawkeyes’ Kinnick Stadium.

Now, the Cornhuskers and their three potential opponents have a golden opportunity to break that mark. AT&T Stadium can seat, and has seated, 100,000 fans when standing areas are factored in. Examples outside of football include the 2010 NBA All-Star Game (108,713) and a 2014 George Strait concert (104,793). The potential is there.

A little over a week after its Dallas excursion, Nebraska will swing northeast to Chicago for two banner matches: a date with the Blue Demons at Wintrust Arena—the home of DePaul basketball and the WNBA’s Sky—and a nationally televised match against Missouri at Wrigley Field on Sept. 6. As has been the case for a long time now, the Cornhuskers will not be hard to find this autumn.

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