A week that brought both basketball and softball schedules, as well as a future football matchup? Welcome to mid-September.
In fact, it was a week of news that provided plenty to look forward to. That includes a future football series that will immediately make people start telling stories from 2000, as well as Big Ten basketball dates for both Nebraska teams. We also got Nebraska softball’s conference path, including another postseason event coming to Lincoln, and a resolution to volleyball’s suspended match with Missouri.
Basically, grab a calendar. There are things to circle.
1. Nebraska and Notre Dame are getting back together
Nebraska and Notre Dame announced a home-and-home series for 2032 and 2033, with Notre Dame coming to Memorial Stadium on Oct. 30, 2032. Nebraska will return the trip to South Bend on Oct. 29, 2033.1
Yeah, that’s a long ways away if we’re being honest. It doesn’t make it any less fun, of course.
Nebraska and Notre Dame have not played since 2001, when the Huskers beat the Irish 27-10 in Lincoln. The year before that, Nebraska won 27-24 in overtime at Notre Dame Stadium in a game remembered almost as much for the sea of red in South Bend as the final score. Nebraska fans traveled in huge numbers then and it is not exactly hard to imagine them doing it again.
“The series with Notre Dame is the type of matchup that college football fans circle on their calendars years in advance,” athletic director Troy Dannen said. “Our fans have a tremendous appreciation for the history of college football and iconic venues. We are excited to welcome Notre Dame and their fans to Lincoln in 2032, and I know our fans will travel to South Bend in full force in 2033.”
Nebraska leads the all-time series 8-7-1. The programs are both top-10 nationally in all-time wins. They have combined for 13 national titles in the poll era.
Will the sport look wildly different by 2032? Almost certainly, but Nebraska-Notre Dame still reads like Nebraska-Notre Dame. That’s pretty fun.
2. Men’s basketball gets a loaded January
Nebraska men’s basketball now has its Big Ten roadmap.
The Huskers, coming off a 15-5 Big Ten season and a tie for second in the league standings, open conference play Dec. 2 against Ohio State at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Three of Nebraska’s first four Big Ten games are at home, but the first month of 2027 is where the schedule really gets interesting.
Michigan State comes to Lincoln on Saturday, Jan. 2. Defending national champion Michigan follows on Tuesday, Jan. 5. That Michigan game will mark the first time a defending national champion has played in Lincoln since 2009.
That is just the beginning.
Six of Nebraska’s nine January games are against teams that reached at least the Sweet 16 in 2026. The Huskers go west for Oregon and Washington, get Iowa twice in 15 days, host UCLA on a Friday night and hit the road for Purdue before closing the month at Iowa.
The February schedule gives Nebraska a little more home rhythm early, with Indiana, Penn State and Rutgers all visiting PBA in the first half of the month. There are still trips to Maryland, Michigan State, Northwestern and Wisconsin before the regular-season finale against Minnesota on March 7.
Start times and TV details are to come at a later date.
3. Women’s basketball gets a Big Ten welcome that wastes no time
Nebraska women’s basketball is chasing a fourth straight NCAA Tournament appearance and the Big Ten schedule for the 2026-27 season is not exactly subtle about what that will require.
The league sent 12 teams to the NCAA Tournament last season and all 12 won at least one game. Nebraska was one of those teams. Now the Huskers open Big Ten play Dec. 5 at Iowa, then play three more nonconference games before beginning conference home play against Washington on Dec. 29.
That Washington game already has some built-in memory. Last season, Britt Prince hit a game-winning 3-pointer in the final seconds in Seattle to give Nebraska a 66-65 win and help secure another NCAA Tournament bid.
The Huskers’ first seven Big Ten home games are against teams that reached at least the second round of last season’s NCAA Tournament. After Washington, Nebraska goes to Los Angeles for UCLA and USC. UCLA is the defending national champion, and USC is expected to have JuJu Watkins back after she missed last season with a leg injury.
Then comes a three-game home stretch with Michigan State, Michigan and Ohio State.
By the time Nebraska reaches early February, 10 of its first 11 Big Ten games will have come against NCAA Tournament teams from the year before.
4. Softball gets its Big Ten path and the tournament comes to Lincoln
Nebraska softball’s 2027 Big Ten schedule is set and the ending certainly jumps out a bit.
The Huskers will host the Big Ten Softball Tournament from May 12-15, with the top 12 teams in the conference qualifying. That gives Nebraska’s regular-season path a little extra local interest, because the postseason is coming back through Lincoln.
The conference schedule starts at home with back-to-back series against Minnesota and Northwestern in March. Then Nebraska goes on the road for Indiana and Iowa before getting a Big Ten off week.
After that, the Huskers host Ohio State, travel to Oregon, host Purdue and close the regular season at Illinois.
It feels like a balanced schedule, with four home series and four road series. It also gives Nebraska a chance to start quickly at home before spending a couple of weekends on the road.
As for the tournament? Well, Nebraska softball has been building, recruiting well and staying relevant in the Big Ten picture. Hosting the conference tournament gives the program another chance to put that growth in front of its own fans.
May is a long way off but that weekend already feels like one worth watching.
5. Nebraska-Missouri gets a restart
Nebraska’s suspended match against Missouri will be played Wednesday, Sept. 23 at John Cook Arena at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. First serve is set for 6 p.m., and Big Ten Network will televise it.
The important detail: the match will start over at 0-0.
Nebraska and Missouri played only 18 points at Wrigley Field before moisture on the court made it unsafe to continue. The scene was memorable but the match never really had a chance to become anything. Now it gets a normal indoor setting and a full reset.
There will not be additional tickets sold. The match has been added to the 2026 season ticket package, and current season ticket holders will automatically receive their seats at no extra charge.
It is not the Wrigley night anyone expected but at least the match gets finished in a way that feels fair to both teams.
Honestly? After everything Nebraska volleyball has already been part of this season, “normal indoor volleyball” sounds pretty good right now.
As Brandon pointed out upon editing, does anyone actually have a physical calendar that goes out this far into the future? Probably not, but let us know if you happen to.