Nebraska's Quest for a Big Ten Tournament Three-Peat Begins in Mid-January

Happy baseball season everyone.

Exactly one month from the publishing of this article, the Nebraska baseball team will be taking the field for the first time in 2026, and if you’re thinking it’s awfully early to be talking about baseball in Nebraska – you’re right.

For the first time this season, college baseball teams are getting a longer ramp to start the year. Traditionally, teams are given three weeks before their opener to cross the t’s and dot the i’s on the opening day lineup card.

Now, thanks to a new rule change within the NCAA – Nebraska is practicing in mid-January.

Back at it. 💪 pic.twitter.com/pCSPWaQiu0
— Nebraska Baseball (@HuskerBaseball) January 12, 2026

“Obviously, around the country this rule’s pretty uniform,” Nebraska coach Will Bolt said during the team’s first official practice Monday. “I think it’ll be new for us just in terms of figuring out how hard to push this early in terms of their legs. We’ve talked at nauseum before everybody left about (how) it’s going to be a little different this year.”

It also doesn’t hurt that practice number one allowed the team to get outside, and you can expect much of the same Tuesday with temperatures potentially pushing into the 60s for highs.

“It’s almost 60 degrees on the first day of practice (in) mid-January,” Bolt said of the unseasonably warm temps being seen in Lincoln this week. “(We’re) pretty fortunate to have this place out here. To be able to get out here, move around, see the ball in the air for the outfielders, it’s obviously a great day to get started.”

The mild weather is also giving Bolt and his coaching staff a good first look at a team that features 22 new players from a year ago. It’s an injection of youth into a program that has won back-to-back Big Ten Championships, and you can bet they have their sights set on a three-peat in 2026.

About that time of year.⏳ pic.twitter.com/Zz74KnB31b
— Nebraska Baseball (@HuskerBaseball) January 9, 2026

After taking home the conference tournament title the past two seasons, however, the team is hungry for more beyond the tournament this year.

“Our team goal is to make it to Omaha and host a regional,” Nebraska junior infielder Case Sanderson said Monday. “That’s always been our goal. We have very high expectations and priorities and keeping that standard to the level it’s supposed to be. That means showing up every day and doing what it takes to just go display that and work hard and just make the most of each day.”

Despite not winning the regular season conference titles, Nebraska has proven to be a great tournament team, ousting UCLA for the crown in 2025 and Penn State for the title in 2024. The 2026 Huskers know the proverbial “X” will be on their back once again this season, but they’re also admittedly entering the year as underdogs despite the back-to-back tourney wins.

Nebraska players hold up the trophy after winning the 2025 Big Ten Baseball Tournament. — The Huskers knocked off No. 13 UCLA 5-0 to claim the 2025 Big Ten Tournament Championship. | Nebraska Athletics

After all, the UCLA team Nebraska beat to win the Big Ten Tournament is now the preseason No. 1 team in D1 Baseball’s Top-25. The Huskers, though, have some national pundits to prove wrong as NU is not listed in the rankings released Monday.

“We’re just taking one day at a time,” Sanderson said. “You could look at us like a bunch of newcomers. I think that’s a good thing. We’ve got guys who are capable of doing whatever it takes, and I think that’s going to build us up. It’s going to be fun to watch.”

The Huskers plan to fully use the extra preseason days to get a full grasp on what this team will look like come mid-February when they take the field for the first time against UConn. Bolt said it will be a new challenge he and his coaching staff will have in balancing the ability to keep the team fresh while also making sure they’re as prepared as they can be for the first pitch.

Will Bolt smiles as he starts his fifth season at Haymarket as the Husker head coach. — Nebraska coach Will Bolt says the extended preseason will go a long ways in determining what kind of year this will be for Husker baseball. | Amarillo Mullen

“The process is the process, so we have to be consistently good in the next four weeks to give ourselves a chance,” Bolt said. “This schedule this year is no easier than last year’s schedule. It’s just as daunting and difficult, and we talk about that all the time. If we can be consistently good here over the course of the next four weeks, then we’ve got a shot to get off to a good start.”

Top-ranked UCLA is the only Big Ten Conference team represented in the national polls to start the year, clearly making the Bruins the team to beat in the league. If you’re wondering when Nebraska will get its shot at UCLA, it’s anybody’s best guess because the two teams won’t meet up in the regular season in 2026. One would have to think the Bruins would be okay getting a rematch with the Huskers in the tournament that NU bounced them from a year ago.

However, we’re a very long way from having to worry about any postseason tournaments for the fellas in Lincoln. Right now, it’s about getting outside while the weather allows and getting 22 new faces accustomed to playing Nebraska baseball.

The Nebraska baseball dugout celebrates Tyler Stone's (55) solo home run in the second inning vs. Oregon State. — Nebraska welcomes in 22 newcomers to the 2026 roster. | Amarillo Mullen

Bolt admits there are many benefits to the extended preseason in 2026, but none more so than getting new players up to speed.

“It’s everything,” Bolt said. “That’s just the way college sports are now. You’re going to turn your roster over every year. No different this year for us, that we have half and half. The difference being is that most of the guys that are back have been part of a couple championship teams, and they’ve seen two different ways of doing it. They’re hungry for more.”

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