Nebraska Athletics to Add More Than 150 New Scholarships for Husker Teams

The largest expansion of scholarships since the addition of women's sports in the 1970s is coming for Nebraska Athletics.

An announcement from Nebraska Athletics on Wednesday detailed a three-year plan to add more than 150 new scholarships to the department's teams. This will begin with 78 new scholarships in the 2026-27 school year.

“The decision to significantly increase our number of scholarships reaffirms Nebraska’s commitment to the student-athlete,” Nebraska Director of Athletics Troy Dannen said. “This will not only help each of our teams compete at a high level, but it will also better support many student-athletes in their education and pursuit of a college degree.”

Nebraska athletics director Troy Dannen smiles during the Northwestern game. — Nebraska athletics director Troy Dannen. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

That will take the Husker teams up to 360 total scholarships. With the addition of 32 more in 2027-28 and 41 more in 2028-29, Nebraska is expecting to have 433 scholarships across its 25 varsity sports. That's an increase of 53.5% from the 2025-26 numbers.

Of the 151 new scholarships, 96 will be for women's teams and the other 55 will go to men's teams.

“Nebraska is proud of its history as a leader in women’s athletics,” Nebraska Deputy AD/Senior Woman Administrator Kristen Brown said. “The opportunity to provide all Husker female student-athletes with scholarships is the latest example of that commitment. We are pleased that the addition of these scholarships, along with the addition of Women’s Flag Football, will help Nebraska achieve our long-standing goal of Title IX proportionality.”

Nebraska volleyball coach Dani Busboom Kelly | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

The 15 women's sports, including the newly added flag football program, will have 100% of scholarships funded. Those 15 sports combine for 284* allowable roster spots under the House settlement from 2025.

*Beach volleyball is considered among the varsity sports, although the program does not compete in the postseason. A Nebraska spokesperson confirmed to HuskerMax that those 19 scholarships will not be used, as the roster will consist of those already on scholarship from the indoor season.

Sport	Roster Limit
Basketball	15
Beach Volleyball	19*
Bowling	11
Cross Country	17
Flag Football	25
Golf	9
Gymnastics	20
Rifle	12
Soccer	28
Softball	25
Swimming & Diving	30
Tennis	10
Track & Field	45
Volleyball	18

The men's sports will have approximately 80% of the maximum allowed scholarships. Husker men's teams have a total allowable size of 285.

Sport	Roster Limit
Baseball	34
Basketball	15
Cross Country	17
Golf	9
Gymnastics	20
Football	105
Tennis	10
Track & Field	45
Wrestling	30

The House settlement last year removed scholarship limits, replacing them with roster limits for each sport instead. School are also able to share a portion of their revenue with student-athletes, with the 2025-26 allotment being up to $20.5 million.

Prior to the 2025-26 school year, Dannen noted that football, men's and women's basketball, and volleyball were being allocated cash pools to use as they see fit, including adding scholarships.

"That's why we have GMs," Dannen said. "That's why coaches, everybody's moved to the GMs because there is now a strategy and how are we allocating those resources. Not to mention the fact that nearly every athlete has an agent, and the head football coach cannot be expected to deal with 80 agents. That's the role of the general manager right now."

Six other sports - soccer, wrestling, baseball, softball, men's and women's track and field - received additional scholarships, giving Nebraska a jump start on the unprecedented growth in scholarship support across the department.

Have a question or comment for Kaleb? Send an email to kalebhenry.huskermax@gmail.com.

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