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NCAA Volleyball Selection Committee Unveils Midseason Top 16: Nebraska No. 1

The NCAA Volleyball Selection Committee unveiled its top 16 Sunday afternoon, with Nebraska slated to host the first two weekends of the postseason as of today.

Kaleb Henry

Nebraska volleyball players celebrate a point against Purdue. The Huskers won in five sets.
Nebraska volleyball players celebrate a point against Purdue. The Huskers won in five sets. / Nebraska Athletics

With 12 matches still to play, Nebraska volleyball is in the driver's seat for hosting until the NCAA Semfinals.

The NCAA Volleyball Selection Committee unveiled its top 16 during the Stanford-Pitt match on ESPN Sunday. This is similar to the College Football Playoff Committee releasing rankings several weeks into the season and giving teams an idea of where they slot in for the postseason.

There are several criteria the committee looks at when it comes to seeding.

  • RPI
  • KPI
  • Results vs. common opponents
  • Significant wins and losses
  • Head-to-head competition
  • Won-lost record
  • Strength of schedule
  • Regional advisory committee ranking

The committee is also supposed to emphasize head-to-head matchups, top-10 wins, and strength of schedule.

Nebraska got the nod for the top spot over current AVCA No. 1 Pitt. The Huskers have more RPI top-25 wins than the Panthers, which set the NU apart.

The full ranking is below.

  1. Nebraska
  2. Pitt
  3. Penn State
  4. Louisville
  5. Stanford
  6. Creighton
  7. SMU
  8. Texas
  9. Wisconsin
  10. Oregon
  11. Kansas
  12. Purdue
  13. Utah
  14. TCU
  15. USC
  16. Minnesota

With the rankings this way, and assuming higher seeds winning, Nebraska would host Texas, Wisconsin, and Minnesota the second weekend of the tournament. The Longhorns are the two-time defending national champions, while the Badgers won in 2021. The Huskers have made two finals in the past three seasons.

The Huskers will try to keep the momentum rolling back home this weekend. Nebraska hosts Illinois Friday and Michigan Saturday.

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Kaleb Henry
KALEB HENRY

Kaleb Henry is an award-winning sports reporter, covering collegiate athletics since 2014 via radio, podcasting, and digital journalism. His experience with Big Ten Conference teams goes back more than a decade, including time covering programs such as the Nebraska Cornhuskers, Oregon Ducks, and USC Trojans. He has contributed to Sports Illustrated since 2021. Kaleb has won multiple awards for his sports coverage from the Nebraska Broadcasters Association and Midwest Broadcast Journalists Association. Prior to working in sports journalism, Kaleb was a Division I athlete on the Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville Track and Field team where he discussed NCAA legislation as SIUE's representative to the Ohio Valley Conference Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. 

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