Jackson Thrives Again as She 'Plays Like Andi'

All it took to unleash Andi Jackson this year was a little bit of patience.

It was the patience her teammates showed her as they put in extra practice to help her improve her blocking. They were also patient as she worked through early-season offensive struggles.

Eventually, Jackson started to “play like Andi” again and has become a stalwart option for No. 1 Nebraska. During last weekend, Jackson terminated on 13 of her 17 swings while committing just one error and recorded 10 blocks while the Huskers limited Michigan State and Michigan to a combined .139 hitting percentage.

As a result, Jackson moved into first place for hitting percentage in the Big Ten for the season at .417. She was also named the league’s Defensive Player of the Week for the second time in her career.

“I’m just super grateful to all of them for their help, because I would not have made these strides without them,” she said about her teammates. “This season especially, blocking-wise, I have made huge strides, not only stuff blocks, but just getting more touches.”

In practice, Jackson’s daily goal is to record four stuff blocks every day. It might not seem too lofty a target, but with four middle blockers, the opportunities are limited as they rotate frequently during live play.

If she doesn’t reach that mark, setter Bergen Reilly, along with the other middle blockers—senior Rebekah Aliick and freshmen Manaia Ogbechie and Kenna Cogill—stay after and run drills until they all achieve their daily goal.

Nebraska middle blocker Andi Jackson and setter Bergen Reilly defend an attack from Creighton's Kiara Reinhardt. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

NU coach Dani Busboom Kelly said the reps she gets in practice helped make her better on both sides of the net. While she’s always been a dynamic attacker, Busboom Kelly said Jackson is seeing the value in scoring points with her block and is becoming more dangerous in every facet of the game.

“They are probably our strongest group with each other, as always pushing each other and celebrating each other,” she said. “We used to say at Louisville that you recruit great blockers, that’s the best way to be a great blocking team. And Manaia and Kenna are great blockers, so Andi gets to watch them every single day.”

Jackson ended last season with one of her best matches as she put up 19 kills on 27 swings (.630 hitting percentage) against Penn State in the five-set loss in the national semifinals.

However, with a new season came new challenges. Dani Busboom Kelly was named the head coach and brought a new offensive approach, including new routes. Jackson got a new position coach as former graduate manager Brennan Hagar was elevated to a full-time assistant coach. In addition, she was named a co-captain as she was now one of the more experienced players for the Huskers.

After putting up 10 kills in the season opener against Pittsburgh, Jackson scuffled a bit. Over the next four matches, she averaged 1.86 kills per set on a .222 hitting percentage. While her 327 hitting percentage in nonconference action is splendid, it was more than 100 points below her average from last season.

Even though the Huskers were playing some high-caliber teams to start the season, Jackson said she was also trying to live up to the standard she set for herself when she was the only first-team All-American middle blocker.

She talked with Nebraska’s sport psychologist and the coaching staff to address some of the issues, and also leaned on her friends, family, and teammates for support.

“At the beginning, I put too much pressure on myself, and felt like I had to go and prove to everyone like the player that I was coming off of last season,” Jackson said. “I feel much more free on the court. I’m not feeling as much pressure from the outside noise. I’m just sticking with my team and really just leaning into doing what I know how to do.”

AJJJJJJ 🗣️@aandijackson earns this weeks @b1gvolleyball Defensive POTW award after posting 1.67 Block/set avg! pic.twitter.com/Ut7jOYoG2E
— Nebraska Volleyball (@HuskerVB) October 20, 2025

Against Cal on Sept. 7, Jackson broke out with 12 kills on 20 swings and said after the game she had to strip away all the complexity with Reilly and revert to a “see ball, hit ball” approach.

Their connection has solidified as Jackson has once again become a centerpiece of the Huskers’ offense. She’s also learned that mistakes will happen, and if they do, she regroups and moves on to the next point.

“I feel like we’re back at the place that we were at the end of last season, and we’re just really connecting,” Jackson said about Reilly. “You can see that in our game. It feels just very freeing. She can set the ball, I can hit the ball, and if we don’t score, that’s okay, we’re going to do it again. If I get blocked, that’s okay, we’re going to move on, and she’s going to repeat it, and we’re going to get a kill from there.”

Jackson has evolved under Busboom Kelly’s offense. She’s running different routes and has a few attacks from the back row, but is still one of the best slide attackers in the nation. She’s also found a new way to contribute from the service line. Jackson has 11 aces this year, and opponents only have a 33.5 good pass percentage on her serves, which is the lowest rate allowed by NU.

Jackson’s two best matches both came against Michigan. In the first meeting in September, she terminated on eight of nine swings with one hitting error. During the rematch, Jackson recorded kills on eight of her 10 attacks.

Nebraska middle blocker Andi Jackson gets ready to spike the ball while Pitt's Dagmar Mourits during the third set of the AVCA First Serve. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

Since the start of Big Ten play four weeks ago, Jackson is hitting .574, which is 100 points higher than second-place Carter Booth of Wisconsin.

Jackson said the extra work put in by her teammates and the grace they showed have enabled her to return to All-American-caliber play. She is averaging 1.105 blocks per set, a shade below her rate from last season, but has increased her touch percentage on opponents’ attacks from 8.6 to 9.5 percent.

On offense, Jackson leads the league with a .417 hitting percentage, one point better than Booth and good enough for 19th in the nation. Her fellow NU middle blocker, Rebekah Allick, is third in the Big Ten at .412.

Jackson said the ideal version of herself on the volleyball court is someone who plays carefree and has fun with her teammates. She said this season she felt the need to prove herself and lost sight of why she plays the sport.

“I love volleyball because I get to be on a team, and I love this team that I’m on, and I love getting to represent Nebraska, and it’s so much bigger than myself,” she said. “When I’m ‘Playing like Andi,’ I’m just playing free, I’m not worried about my mistakes, I’m not worried about the stats. I’m just going out there and I’m having fun with my teammates, and I’m playing volleyball because I get to, not because I have to.”

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