“I was a little confused. I had heard comments made about it during our beach season, but I just didn’t think it was actually going to become a thing,” Harper Murray said about the upcoming Alumni Scrimmage. The Huskers’ star was surprised because Nebraska had a hard time getting enough alumni players to make the scrimmage a reality. Meanwhile, Dani Busboom Kelly was happy.

The former Louisville Cardinals head coach had planned something similar even when she was with the Cardinals. Unfortunately, those plans never came to fruition. So you can imagine her excitement now that it’s finally happening at Nebraska. In fact, you don’t even have to imagine because the excitement was palpable as the head coach spoke to the media and even playfully issued a challenge.

While discussing whether the game would be the regular best-of-five or a three-set affair, DBK revealed what she ideally expects. “I know there are some that are hoping it stays at three (sets), but I’m secretly hoping for a four-setter,” Dani Busboom Kelly said in a HuskerOnline video on YouTube. “We won’t be playing extra if it’s a sweep one way or the other,” she added.

Needless to say, she expects that sweep to go in her squad’s favor. Then again, Kelly knows it’ll be difficult to beat the alumni lineup they had in front of them. Icons like Jordan Larson, Lauren Stivrins, Layla Blackwell, Ally Batenhorst, and more are all active pros. Although busy schedules have kept the alumni squad from practicing, they’ve just played full pro volleyball seasons in the PVF and LOVB.

“You can’t count out Olympians,” Dani Busboom Kelly told the media. “Even though some of these players might not have played in the last month, they just got off playing pro seasons and were playing at a really high level. So, I’m expecting them to be pretty good on the other side,” the head coach explained during the presser. Yet, you may be wondering why this scrimmage is so important.

How Dani Busboom Kelly sees the alumni scrimmage

DBK is excited about the Alumni Scrimmage not just for its novelty factor but for how it can help. While the Red-White Scrimmage helped stars like Rebekah Allick, who earned Lifter of the Year, Harper Murray, and many of the newcomers stand out, it also revealed the gaps the Huskers squad needs to fill going into the AVCA First Serve Showcase.

One of the things Dani Busboom Kelly highlighted was the serving and passing. While setters like Bergen Reilly and Campbell Flynn did great on the stats sheet, they were far from flawless. “I think that’s the toughest thing to do when you’re nervous and when there’s a lot of pressure, and I thought that showed a little bit today. So we’ll do a little more serve and pass,” DBK said in the post-match presser.

Similarly, DBK believes playing against such a high-level and experienced alumni squad will reveal new strengths and weaknesses. “We want to continue to fine-tune that. That’s a pretty big priority going into the First Serve Showcase,” the 40-year-old head coach explained while discussing their passing and serving from ahead of the season kickoff.

So the Alumni Scrimmage is the perfect opportunity to give it another go before their 2025 NCAA volleyball season kickoff game against Pittsburgh. After all, Dani Busboom Kelly’s girls can’t afford to make too many mistakes against last year’s semi-finalists. Nebraska hopes to start the season with a win, and the alumni game will help the whole squad.