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Nebrasketball’s Fred Hoiberg Named AP Coach of the Year

A historic season keeps on giving to the Husker men's basketball program even after the season ends.
Trevor Tarr|
Fred Hoiberg walks off the court after defeating the Iowa Hawkeyes at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
Fred Hoiberg walks off the court after defeating the Iowa Hawkeyes at Pinnacle Bank Arena. | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

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Nebraska Cornhuskers

After leading Nebraska to the best season in program history, Fred Hoiberg has been recognized as the nation’s top coach.

In a year that rewrote the record books, the Huskers’ head man added another accolade to his resume, earning the Associated Press National Coach of the Year award Friday.

In his seventh season in Lincoln, Hoiberg guided Nebraska to a program-record 28 wins and its first-ever Sweet 16 appearance. Along the way, the Big Red also secured the first two NCAA Tournament wins in school history.

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Hoiberg will receive the award in Indianapolis during this Final Four weekend, becoming just the second coach in Nebraska history to earn AP National Coach of the Year honors. Women’s basketball coach Connie Yori received the distinction in 2009-10, when the Huskers went 29-0 in the regular season, won the Big 12 title, and advanced to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament.

He is also the first men’s coach in program history to earn the award in its 59-year existence. Voted on by media members who ranked Nebraska in the Top 25 for a program-record 14 weeks, Hoiberg built a strong case throughout the season.

Nebraska entered the rankings in Week 6 and remained there the rest of the year. The Huskers spent eight weeks in the Top 10 and reached a program-best No. 5 nationally, finishing the regular season ranked No. 15 heading into the NCAA Tournament.

During the 2025-26 season, Nebraska set school records for wins (28), conference wins (15), and conference road wins (seven). The Huskers also started the season as one of the hottest teams in the country, going 20-0 through late January.

Carrying over from the 2024-25 season, the Huskers set a program record for most consecutive wins (24) before suffering a loss to then-ranked No. 3 Michigan on Jan. 27. Before that, they had gone 324 consecutive days between defeats.

Nebraska was picked to finish 14th in the Big Ten during the preseason but far exceeded expectations, going 15-5 in conference play to tie for second place. It marked the program’s best finish since joining the league in 2011-12 and its highest in any conference in more than 30 years.

That success didn’t come against a soft schedule, either. The Big Ten was widely considered one of the nation’s toughest conferences, and Nebraska consistently found ways to win. Six of the Huskers' seven losses came against teams that advanced to the Elite Eight.

Hoiberg is just the 10th coach in Big Ten history to win the award and just the second to win it over the past two decades.

The Big Red is set to lose five seniors, three of whom were starters throughout the 2025-26 year. Senior guard Sam Hoiberg is the only starter that played his whole career in the scarlet and cream. Senior forward Rienk Mast and guard Jamarques Lawrence both transferred in from other schools, though it is worth noting that Lawrence played his first two years at Nebraska and transferred back to Lincoln ahead of his final season.

Available players to return include First-Team All-Big Ten Selection Pryce Sandfort and starting forward Berke Büyüktuncel. Players who contributed in reserve roles that can also return include will-be sophomore Braden Frager, the Big Ten's Sixth Man of the Year honoree, Connor Essegian, Cale Jacobsen, and Leo Curtis. Ugnius Jaruševičius is also looking to come back after dealing with an injury all season and appearing in just one game.

The Associated Press honor is not the only recognition Hoiberg has earned this season. He was also named Big Ten Coach of the Year for the second time and remains a finalist for the Naismith Coach of the Year award, which will be announced Sunday.

With that momentum carrying into next season, expectations in Lincoln have clearly shifted. What was once a year of firsts has now become a new standard. Reports indicated Nebraska was among the least compensated teams to reach the Sweet 16, a reality that could soon change with increased revenue sharing and NIL opportunities, further fueling the program’s rise.

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Trevor Tarr
TREVOR TARR

Trevor Tarr is the founder of Skers Scoop, a Nebraska football media outlet delivering original coverage through writing, graphics, and video content. He began his career in collegiate athletics at the University of South Dakota, producing media for the football team and assisting with athletic fundraising. A USD graduate with a background in journalism and sports marketing, Trevor focuses on creative, fan-driven storytelling in college football.

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