Academics and Community

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2 Academics and Community Nebraska s student-athletes work hard to succeed in athletics, academics and life, and have contributed to NU s tradition of excellence both on and off the fi eld. Their dedication is evident, as the Huskers continue to lead the nation in earning prestigious national and conference academic honors. In , nine student-athletes were named CoSIDA Academic All-Americans, bringing Nebraska s total to 252, 59 more than second-place Notre Dame. The Huskers boasted a Big 12-leading 94 percent exhausted eligibility graduation rate. NU led the Big 12 in Academic All-Big 12 selections in Women s Track & Field (22), Volleyball (8), Women s Golf (5) and led the conference in fi rst-team honorees in Football with 15. NU also was instrumental in the community, touching the lives of more than 100,000 people during the year. The Husker coaching staff was honored as well. Kris Grimes, assistant Track & Field coach, was honored as one of the nation s top assistant coaches by the USTFCCCA (United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association). Grimes was selected as the top women s jumps/combined events coach for the NCAA Midwest Region in Hayden Perez, assistant Women s Tennis coach, was also honored as the ITA Central Region s top assistant coach. NU Academic All-Americans: First Team: Jenny Green, Track & Field Sarah Pavan, Volleyball Nate Probasco, Track & Field Ashley Selig, Track & Field Issar Yazhbin, Track & Field Second Team: Dane Todd, Football Imke Reimers, Women s Tennis Kim Shubert, Track & Field Third Team: Stephen Tetrault, Men s Gymnastics Academic Highlights First-ever Honda Broderick Cup winner Sarah Pavan, Volleyball, who also won the Honda Award and was named the CoSIDA Academic All-Americanof-the-Year and National Player-of-the-Year Nine CoSIDA Academic All-Americans, giving NU an NCAA record 252 total CoSIDA Academic All-Americans 59 more than No. 2 Notre Dame Walter Byers NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship - Dane Todd, Football ($21,500) Prentice Gautt Big 12 Conference Postgraduate Scholarships - Dane Todd, Football ($7,500); Lauren Bailey, Swimming ($7,500) 109 fi rst-team Academic All-Big 12 selections across all sports (3.2 GPA or above) 131 Academic All-Big 12 selections across all sports (3.0 GPA or above); one of just fi ve Big 12 schools to have more than 100 student-athletes honored 525 spots on the Big 12 Commissioner s Fall and Spring Academic Honor Rolls; led Big 12 (3.0 GPA or above) 79 perfect 4.0 semester GPAs; led Big current or former student-athletes earned degrees from August, 2006 through May, percent exhausted eligibility graduation rate; led Big 12 Football team honored with American Football Coaches Association Academic Achievement Award for graduating 70 percent or more of its football studentathletes from the freshman class of Male Student-Athlete-of-the-Year Dane Todd, Football Female Student-Athlete-of-the-Year Stephanie Carter, Women s Gymnastics Men s Herman Award Winner - Men s Cross Country Team (3.096 cumulative GPA in 2006) Women s Herman Award Winner - Rifl e Team (3.675 cumulative GPA in 2006) Volleyball team won the annual Life Skills Award for commitment to all phases of the life skills program, including outreach, education and leadership Only one of three schools in the nation across all divisions with more than eight CoSIDA Academic All-Americans in , increasing nation-leading total of fi rst-team All-Americans to 128 across all sports Community Outreach Nebraska student-athletes and coaches have accepted the role-model challenge by volunteering extensively for various community service projects and school appearances statewide. Each year, in addition to special keynote speaking engagements and major events such as Football 101 for Women, NU student-athletes and staff participate in several activities that serve thousands of people, including: American Education Week Read to Succeed Book Drive Holiday outreach programs, including Boo at the Zoo, Angel Tree, and visits to city recreation centers Husker Choices, which educates student groups regarding alcohol issues School is Cool Celebration - annual assembly targeting all Lincoln 8th graders featuring messages that will facilitate the transition into high school. Former Huskers help fund this event. School is Cool Week Special Olympics outreach, including interaction with Special Olympians and assistance with fund-raising events Area hospital visits - individual student-athletes and teams visit hospitals in Lincoln and Omaha, interacting with patients and providing cheer Tour of Excellence, which features student-athletes as speakers for motivational assemblies at schools statewide On Oct. 17, 2007, University of Nebraska Chancellor Harvey Perlman named former Husker football coach and Third District Congressman Tom Osborne interim athletic director. Chancellor Perlman said he is pleased that Osborne agreed to provide leadership and that the university will benefit from Osborne s vast experience.

3 Athletic Budget: Balanced Report from Chief Financial Offi cer Nancy Kenny The Nebraska Athletic Department is proud to be a fully self-supporting athletic program, receiving neither state funding nor student fees, and contributing more than $1.5 million annually toward academic programs at UNL. Nebraska s revenues were $70,846,907; expenses came in at $70,624,335. Ticket sales represented the largest single source of revenue at $29.5 million, refl ecting the fi rst year of the new North Stadium seats. Contributions from our donors and boosters provided another $15 million in fi nancial support. Other funding came from Big 12 Conference and NCAA distributions of $7.9 million, corporate sponsorships and licensing at $8.2 million and radio and television contracts of just more than $4 million. The largest expense at $20.4 million was salaries and benefi ts for Nebraska s coaches and administrative staff. Debt payments for the newly constructed Tom and Nancy Osborne Complex, the Howard and Rhonda Hawks Championship Center, and other building projects came in at just over $10.8 million. Nebraska spent $8.2 million dollars in scholarship and other support for its student-athletes, and also spent nearly $5 million for the installation of the new big screen above the North Stadium. Nebraska s FY07 surplus will be added to the previous budget surpluses which are held in reserve in University accounts. Corporate Partners During , the University of Nebraska Athletic Department continued its relationship with more than 40 corporate sponsors, whose gifts allow the athletic department to provide the best resources, including products and gear, for its student-athletes across all 23 sports. In return for these corporate gifts, the sponsors receive local, regional and national exposure and benefi t from being associated with Nebraska Athletics. Nebraska s premier corporate partners are adidas, Alltel, adidas, Ameritas Life Insurance, First National Bank and Pepsi. Husker Nation Championship Drive Economic Impact of Nebraska Athletics In November, 2003, the University of Nebraska Athletic Department launched the Husker Nation Championship Drive, a $40 million drive to raise funds for new athletic facilities and expand the average attendance in Memorial Stadium to more than 80,000. The Athletic Department received no tax dollars or student fees, and the project is entirely funded by donations. Since the drive began, more than 5,500 Husker fans have donated more than $31 million for the project, resulting in the construction of the beautiful new Tom and Nancy Osborne Athletic Complex and the Hawks Championship Center. Used by all of NU s 23 varsity sports, these new facilities include a lobby area featuring a 40-foot waterfall, the Myers Performance Center; state-ofthe-art Athletic Medicine facility, including a hydrotherapy area and hospital-grade equipment; new offi ces and locker rooms for Football and Soccer; the Gass Outdoor Practice Field and the Hawks Championship Wing, including indoor batting cages and an indoor sand volleyball court. The project also improved Memorial Stadium, with expanded seating, new Skyline Suites, and new HuskerVision screens, including the installation of one of the largest screens in college athletics. The athletic department continues to accept donations for this drive. All who give $100 or more will have their names displayed on the Wall of Champions. A University of Nebraska economic impact study conducted by the Bureau of Research in the summer of 2005 showed that the economic impact of Nebraska Athletics on the Lincoln area alone was more than $100 million. The overall annual economic impact on the Lincoln area during the year was $114.3 million in output $41.2 million in worker income 2,840 jobs $595,000 in direct sales tax revenue for Lincoln The annual economic impact on the State of Nebraska in the fi scal year was between $48 million and $155.1 million in output. These fi gures do not include in-stadium spending on concessions or tickets, or spending by Husker fans who do not attend the games. The economic impact study also found that while the University of Nebraska Athletic Department receives no student fees or tax dollars, it pays $1.7 million in taxes annually ($1.5 million in football ticket sales taxes). I chose Nebraska because I felt that it had the most opportunities and resources to offer students in order for them to succeed in whatever area they choose. All of our academic and athletic facilities are the most up-to-date and latest models. Our coaching staff and players are all outstanding people. We strive for the best. We are a very close, loving team. - Freshman Basketball player Nikki Bober

4 Volleyball Head Coach: John Cook Record: 33-1 Postseason: Big 12 Champions; NCAA Champions Coach John Cook s Nebraska volleyball team enjoyed incredible success, winning the program s third national championship in the last 12 seasons. The Huskers advanced to the NCAA title match for the sixth time in school history and rolled to a victory over Stanford in front a record crowd of more than 17,000 at the Qwest Center in Omaha. NU also stretched its streak of consecutive home sellouts at the Coliseum to 90 and won the Big 12 Conference title. Junior Sarah Pavan was named NU s fi rst-ever Honda Broderick Award winner and captured 2006 AVCA National Player-of-the-Year honors. She also was named the CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year, and was named an AVCA All-American, along with sophomore Jordan Larson, junior Tracy Stalls, and freshman Rachel Holloway. Cross Country Head Coach: Jay Dirksen Women s Team Finish: 3rd place, Big 12; 4th place, NCAA Midwest Regional Men s Team Finish: 11th place, Big 12; 13th place, NCAA Midwest Regional The Nebraska men s and women s cross country teams, coached by Jay Dirksen, completed a strong season in 2006, finishing in the top 15 in the NCAA Midwest Regional Championships. The men s team was highlighted by sophomore Brian Parr, who led the Huskers in all five meets during the season. The women s squad posted a third-place finish in the Big 12 and a fourth-place finish in the NCAA Midwest Regional Championships. Sophomore Ari Goldstein led the NU women, who had five top 40 finishes at the meet. Soccer Head Coach: John Walker Record: Postseason: First Round, Big 12 Tournament Coach John Walker s Nebraska soccer team fi nished the season , extending a streak of posting at least 10 victories every season. The streak dates back to 1994 the fi rst year of the program. Senior Brittany Timko repeated as the Big 12 Player of the Year, sharing the honor with Oklahoma State s Yolanda Odenyo. Timko is the fi rst three-time Player of the Year in league history. She was also a fi rst-team All-Big 12 selection for the third consecutive season. Senior Tanya Dennis and sophomore Aysha Jamani both earned repeat All-Big 12 second team honors. Freshman Carly Peetz rounded out the Husker honorees, representing Nebraska as an All-Newcomer selection. Football Head Coach: Bill Callahan Record: 9-5 Postseason: Big 12 North Champions, Cotton Bowl vs. No. 7 Auburn The Nebraska football team added to the Huskers Big 12 hardware haul by winning the Big 12 North Division title to earn a spot in the Big 12 Championship Game against Oklahoma. The Huskers finished the season with nine victories and earned a New Year s Day bid to the Cotton Bowl. In Coach Bill Callahan s third season at the helm, Nebraska also stretched its NCAA-record consecutive home sellout streak to 282 games. (Memorial Stadium s capacity expanded beyond 80,000 for the fi rst time in school history.) Quarterback Zac Taylor rewrote Nebraska s career passing record book and was named the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year. Four Huskers were chosen in the NFL Draft, including fi rst-round pick Adam Carriker, who was named the Big 12 s Defensive Player of the Year. The team s strong presence in the classroom earned its seventh straight AFCA Award for having a graduation rate of more than 70 percent. Fullback Dane Todd earned second-team CoSIDA Academic All-America honors. He also received NCAA Walter Byers and Big 12 Postgraduate Scholarships. Swimming and Diving Head Coach: Pablo Morales Record: 7-4 Postseason: 5th place, Big 12 The Nebraska swimming and diving team, under the direction of Coach Pablo Morales, fi nished the season with a 7-4 dual record, and sent two individuals to the NCAA Championships. Senior Lauren Bailey ended her illustrious career with a second consecutive Big 12 title and finished 24th at the NCAA Championships in the 1,650-yard freestyle. She set a school record in the event at the Big 12 Championships. Senior Danielle Stansbury made her mark on the season, making the fi nals of all three diving events at the Big 12 Championships and fi nishing fifth on the platform dive. She concluded the season by placing ninth on the three-meter board at the NCAA Zone D Diving Meet.

5 The reassurance of your team behind you on every serve makes everything easier. - Volleyball Player of the Year Sarah Pavan Wrestling Head Coach: Mark Manning Record: Postseason: 16th place, NCAA Championships Sophomore Paul Donahoe headlined Coach Mark Manning s Husker wrestling team s season, winning the NCAA Championship in the 125-pound class. Redshirt freshman Craig Brester added to the team s success, fi nishing just one win shy of All-America status in the 197-pound class. The Huskers fi nished the season with a dual record and a 16th-place fi nish at the NCAA Championships. Rifle Head Coach: Launi Meili Record: 8-3 Postseason: 3rd place, GARC Championships; 5th place, NCAA Championships The Nebraska rifl e program, under the direction of Coach Launi Meili, sealed a top-fi ve NCAA fi nish in , placing fi fth at the 2007 NCAA Championships after taking third at the Great America Rifl e Conference Championships. Four Huskers earned postseason accolades, including GARC Senior-of-the-Year and National Rifl e Association secondteam All-American Stacy Underwood. Other honorees were junior GARC first-team honoree Kirsten Weiss, senior NRA and GARC second-team honoree Kristina Fehlings and junior GARC second-team honoree Kim Chrostowski. Morgan Hicks took the reins as head coach for the Rifle team on June 18. Women s Basketball Head Coach: Connie Yori Record: (10-6, 4th in Big 12 regular season) Postseason: Lost to Iowa State in 2nd round of Big 12 Tournament; advanced to first round of NCAA Tournament The Nebraska women s basketball team continued its progress by earning its fourth consecutive postseason tournament berth, advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the fi rst time since 2000 and just the seventh time in school history. The Huskers, under Coach Connie Yori, posted the second-highest win total in school history with 22 victories, including three wins over teams ranked in the nation s top 25. Honorable-mention All- American Kiera Hardy was chosen in the third round of the WNBA Draft, while sophomore Kelsey Griffi n joined Hardy as a fi rst-team All-Big 12 selection. Men s Basketball Head Coach: Doc Sadler Record: (6-10, 10th in Big 12 regular season) Postseason: Lost to Oklahoma State in the fi rst round of Big 12 Tournament First-year coach Doc Sadler jump-started the Nebraska basketball program, leading the Huskers to a win over No. 20 Creighton and a regular-season sweep of Missouri, along with a road win at Texas Tech and a home win over Oklahoma State in NU s regularseason fi nale. The team posted an impressive 11-3 non-conference record, including a 5-0 record to open the season the longest unbeaten streak to open a coaching tenure at Nebraska in more than 80 years. The season also included wins over fi ve postseason squads. Sadler capped the season with the announcement of one of the nation s top 20 recruiting classes for Women s Gymnastics Head Coach: Dan Kendig Record: Postseason: Big 12 Champions; 6th place, NCAA Championships Coach Dan Kendig s Nebraska women s gymnastics team continued its outstanding tradition by adding a sixth-place fi nish at the NCAA Championships after advancing to the NCAA Super Six Finals for the eighth time in the past 10 years. The Huskers also reclaimed their Big 12 Conference crown, while featuring one of the best gymnasts in school history, junior Emily Parsons. The Big 12 Co-Gymnast of the Year, Parsons smashed the school record for individual event titles in her career while claiming her ninth career All-America award at the NCAA Championships.

6 Men s Gymnastics Head Coach: Francis Allen Postseason: 10th place, NCAA Championships The Husker men s gymnastics team, coached by Francis Allen, earned its fi fth consecutive trip to the NCAA Championships and fi nished 10th overall. Junior Stephen Tetrault and sophomore T.J. Schmidt combined for three All-America awards to lead the young squad that featured 11 newcomers. Tetrault was also named a third-team CoSIDA Academic All-American. Senior Jason Wassung added to the Huskers successful season, missing out on All-America honors by just onetenth of a point and ranking as high as third in the national polls during the season. Bowling Head Coach: Bill Straub Record: Postseason: 3rd place, NCAA Championships The Husker bowling team, coached by Bill Straub, featured 2007 National Playerof-the-Year Amanda Burgoyne and 2006 National Player-of-the-Year Lindsay Baker. Burgoyne and Baker, along with 2007 National Rookie-of-the-Year Cassandra Leuthold, helped the Huskers to fi ve team tournament titles on the season, as well as a third-place fi nish at the NCAA Championships. Women s Golf Head Coach: Robin Krapfl Postseason: 4th place, Big 12; 15th place, NCAA West Regional The Nebraska women s golf team fi nished a solid season with a fourth-place fi nish at the Big 12 Championships, followed by a steady climb up the leaderboard to a 15th place fi nish at the NCAA West Regional Tournament. The regional tournament was the second NCAA tournament invitation the team has received in as many years, and was the sixth in the past eight seasons. Under the direction of Coach Robin Krapfl, the team was led by junior Elli Brown, who took third place individually at the Big 12 Championships the second-best fi nish ever by a Husker at the championships. Brown earned All-Big 12 honors. Men s Golf Head Coach: Bill Spangler Postseason: 6th place, Big 12; 21st, NCAA Regional Tournament The men s golf team, coached by Bill Spangler, matched last year s sixth-place Big 12 Conference fi nish to mark the team s highest fi nish since The Huskers 20-stroke improvement from its fi rst round to final round tied for the fourth-best improvement from fi rst to third round in Big 12 history. Senior Brady Schnell led the team, finishing third at the Big 12 Tournament and marking the first top-10 individual fi nish since Schnell led the tournament in birdies, placed fi rst in the tournament in par-four scoring and finished even. He was one of 10 individuals named to the Big 12 Tournament team. Schnell also tied for 37th in the fi nal NCAA Regional standings. Women s Tennis Head Coach: Scott Jacobson Record: 13-9 Postseason: Quarterfi nals, Big 12 Tournament The women s tennis team had only one returning letterwinner from the previous season, junior Imke Reimers. However, guided by Coach Scott Jacobson, the team was able to fi nish the season with a solid 13-9 record, and advanced to the quarterfi nals of the Big 12 Championships for the third time in four years. Reimers was named to the All-Big 12 singles team, and was joined by freshman partner Diana Kuhl on the All-Big 12 doubles team. Reimers also earned secondteam CoSIDA Academic All-America honors. The season marked the fi rst time the Huskers competed in the new $3 million Nebraska Tennis Center, considered to be one of the fi nest facilities in the country. The Nebraska Tennis Center features six climate-controlled indoor courts as well as 12 outdoor courts. At Nebraska, we re all one big family. - Junior Football player Armando Murillo

7 Men s Tennis Head Coach: Kerry McDermott Record: 9-11 Postseason: First round, Big 12 Tournament The men s tennis team, coached by Kerry McDermott, fi nished with a 9-11 dual match record and compiled its best record against Big 12 opponents in five years. With a No. 4 seed at the Big 12 Championships, the team matched its highest spot at the league tournament since Senior Adrian Szatmary was a standout for the Huskers, earning All-Big 12 singles honors and compiling an overall record of 8-9 at the No. 1 spot for the Huskers. He was ranked as high as No. 76 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) national standings. He capped his season by being named the 2007 Central Region recipient of the Intercollegiate ITA/Arthur Ashe Award for Leadership and Sportsmanship. Softball Head Coach: Rhonda Revelle Record: Postseason: 5th place, Big 12; First round, NCAA Lincoln Regional The Nebraska softball team advanced to its 13th straight NCAA Tournament appearance and played host to an NCAA Regional at Bowlin Stadium for the fourth time in the past fi ve years. NU fi nished with a record under Coach Rhonda Revelle, as the Huskers posted at least 35 wins for the 10th straight season. The team led the Big 12 Conference in team strikeouts and individual ERA, posted a new four-year record for home victories and drew 10,000 fans to Bowlin Stadium for the sixth consecutive season. Individually, sophomore Molly Hill had a standout season. She led the Big 12 with a 1.05 ERA, and became just the fourth underclassmen to post the league s best ERA since the Big 12 was formed in Track and Field Head Coach: Gary Pepin Women s Team Indoor Finish: 5th place, Big 12; tie 67th place, NCAA Championships Men s Team Indoor Finish: Big 12 Champions; 25th place, NCAA Championships Women s Outdoor Team Finish: 2nd place, Big 12; 18th place, NCAA Championships Men s Outdoor Team Finish: 5th place, Big 12; 54th place, NCAA Championships Coach Gary Pepin s Nebraska track and fi eld programs added to their remarkable tradition with the men claiming the Big 12 Conference indoor title. Men s and women s track and fi eld athletes combined to capture 13 All-America awards during the indoor and outdoor seasons, and had four first-team CoSIDA Academic All-Americans: junior Jenny Green and seniors Nate Probasco, Ashley Selig and Issar Yazhbin. Kim Shubert also was named a second-team CoSIDA Academic All-American. Junior Dusty Jonas earned an NCAA runner-up fi nish in the indoor high jump. The men s squad placed 25th overall in the meet. Sophomore Brysun Stately added a seventh-place NCAA fi nish in the indoor pole vault to help the Huskers to a tie for 67th place. In the outdoor portion of the season, senior Sheryl Morgan won her fi rst career conference title in the 400-meter hurdles to help the women s squad earn a second-place fi nish at the Big 12 Championships. Freshman Scott Wims earned a seventh-place fi nish in the men s 200-meter dash at the 2007 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Senior Jeni Steiner fi nished 11th in the shot put fi nals. With the finals completed, Steiner fi nished her career at Nebraska with a personal best throw of /2, which ranks fi fth all-time at Nebraska. Baseball Head Coach: Mike Anderson Record: Postseason: 4th place, Big 12; Championship round, NCAA Tempe Regional The Nebraska baseball team earned an NCAA Regional berth for the eighth time in nine years and advanced to the championship round of the Tempe Regional. Coached by Mike Anderson, the Huskers placed seven on the All-Big 12 team, headlined by juniors Tony Watson and Jeff Tezak, while juniors Andy Gerch and Craig Corriston joined senior Andrew Brown on the NCAA Tempe Regional All- Tournament Team. Following the season, eight Huskers were chosen in the fi rst 35 rounds of the Major League Baseball Draft. Report edited by Kiley Abdouch

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