“Lindsay Peterson has been the heartbeat of Husker Volleyball for the last two decades,” the Nebraska Huskers wrote on social media in March. However, Nebraska Volleyball’s Director of Operations has spent just as long (and now even longer) as coach John Cook spent as the program’s head coach. Before becoming the Huskers’ DOP, she shared the court as a player under Cook.

And she wasn’t any ordinary player. The same Nebraska Huskers post described Peterson as “one of the most dominant defensive players in program history.” Throughout her four years as a Husker, the former libero notched 1,111 career digs, averaging a whopping 3.35 per set. Despite her familiarity with the Huskers’ way, transitioning into her role as DOP in 2005 was “tough,” and that’s where Cook came in.

“He wasn’t my head coach anymore. We were working together once again on a team, but just in a different capacity. Filling my role in that capacity looked different than filling my role as a player for him,” Peterson said in the upcoming Nebraska Public Media TV special The Last Ride with John Cook. So what did Coach Cook do? What he had always done.

“I wouldn’t be where I am at today, obviously, without him giving me that opportunity and having that trust,” Lindsay Peterson explained in the clip on Nebraska Public Media’s YouTube channel. Peterson took her time transitioning from the role of player under Cook to his co-worker, so the 3x AVCA Coach of the Year gave her the space and never lost faith.

In fact, in her early days as Nebraska Volleyball’s DOP, Lindsay Peterson approached her job like she had done under John Cook, as an athlete and leader. The result? “I was able to bring those same characteristics back as his director of operations,” confessed the national championship-winning former libero. Almost two decades down the line, she would help Coach Cook change college volleyball forever.

Lindsay Peterson helped John Cook make women’s sports history

Throughout his career as Nebraska’s head coach, the 69-year-old took the volleyball program to the pinnacle of popularity. He took Nebraska volleyball’s NCAA title tally from one to five, and that was only possible because the veteran coach was willing to adapt. “Even at this point in his career, he was still willing to adapt and to change,” ex-Husker Merritt Beason said in March 2025.

John Cook’s success elevated Nebraska’s love for the sport. Yet, he wasn’t alone in building the sport up in the state. While his success drew more and more fans, it was people like Lindsay Peterson who ensured fans would have access to watch their favorite college volleyball players in action. Yet, the growth, especially in recent years exploded.

Even after renovations, the Devaney Center couldn’t handle the demand. As per a 2024 report from the Irish Independent, each season the Huskers have a season ticket waiting list that exceeds the 1000 mark. So back in 2023, Peterson and others decided to test something new and host a game at the Nebraska men’s football home turf, Memorial Stadium.

20,000 tickets vanished within hours, and the demand never eased until over 92,000 Huskers fans cheered John Cook and his girls against Omaha. “Nobody had really gone outside the box like this, and we just proved, given the opportunity, that female athletes can compete on the same stage,” Lindsay Peterson said after Nebraska set the women’s sports attendance world record on August 30, 2023. It was a testament to not only Cook’s ability, but also how far the Huskers’ DOP had come from her days as a libero.