Husker Defense Gets Roy Manning’s Winning Edge
Nebraska football has officially added Roy Manning as its next defensive edge coach for the 2026 season. Manning, who spent 2025 alongside new defensive coordinator Rob Aurich at San Diego State, helped engineer one of the nation’s biggest defensive turnarounds—leading the Aztecs to three shutouts and a top-five scoring defense. With a dozen years of Division I experience across Michigan, USC, Oklahoma, UCLA, Washington State and Cincinnati, he brings versatility in coaching every defensive position group. Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule praised Manning’s holistic defensive expertise and the preexisting trust between him and Aurich. The hire signals a commitment to revamping the front seven, boosting sack numbers, and grooming a young defensive line corps loaded with underclassmen talent.
Move over, secret sauce and magic beans—Nebraska has discovered the true elixir for defensive dominance: recycling the same coach who torched offenses at San Diego State. Forget about scheme synergy or player development; the Huskers are simply hitching their wagon to Manning’s lone star of hype. After all, nothing says “we mean business” like hiring a guy who helped pile up sacks at a mid-major school and then boasting about it as if Sacks Inc. is our new mascot. If this doesn’t scare opponent quarterbacks into choosing retirement, nothing will—except maybe a PowerPoint on “Defensive Success 101.”
Jackson and Reilly Spike Their Way to National Fame
Nebraska volleyball juniors Andi Jackson and Bergen Reilly captured the inaugural AVCA positional awards, with Jackson named Middle Blocker of the Year and Reilly earning Setter of the Year. Under coach Dani Busboom Kelly’s revamped offense, Jackson posted a nation-leading .467 hitting percentage—the third-best in school history—while averaging 2.74 kills and 1.12 blocks per set. Reilly orchestrated a school-record .351 team hitting percentage, tallying 10.47 assists and 2.7 digs per set. Their connection fueled Nebraska’s dynamic attack, propelling both to All-American and all-conference honors and cementing their status as the nation’s most lethal duo on the court.
In a stunning display of collegiate athletics, Nebraska has proven that all you need for national recognition is to swing, set and spike until someone hands you a trophy. Jackson and Reilly basically RSVP’d “yes” to the AVCA awards banquet by hitting the competition so hard that the volleyball itself filed a formal complaint. Now, instead of boring graduates with speeches, Nebraska can parade its block-and-set duo around campus like Olympic mascots. Next on the Husker agenda: teaching the campus squirrels to dig and serve—because if you can’t intimidate the competition, at least terrify Rodentia.
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