Ron Powell

Longtime Nebraska teacher, coach and referee Larry Bleach is in the quarterfinals for the America's Favorite Teacher award. Details: rivercountry.newschannelnebraska.com/story/25895571…

Recaps - @DoaneAthletics Claims 2026 GPAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Fremont at Midland University. Women's Release -> tinyurl.com/3tsukuf8 Men's Release -> tinyurl.com/5n82en8p

Columnist Tom Shatel is hearing from Husker fans with a big decision to make on Memorial Stadium tickets. He hopes Nebraska's athletic department does, too. journalstar.com/sports/huskers…

Aubrey Fujan of Bishop Neumann sets a new Class C 100h record with her 14.08 at the Centennial meet, breaking her own record of 14.28 from earlier this year. The designated wind official, as good of a man as I’ve ever met, has confirmed it’s a wind-legal mark (confirmed as 1.4 m/s).

The Centennial girls are on fire. Kearney Catholic’s Hazel Haarberg takes down her Class C 100m record of 11.73 from 2024 with a wind-legal 11.55, as evidenced by the thumbs-up sign from our wind measurement official (he later informed me it was a -0.4 m/s headwind). More importantly, she also breaks the All-Class record of 11.64 set by Dajaz DeFrand in 2022. Hazel told me after the race that she knew she was going to break the record as she ran - she had no missteps and was still accelerating at the finish. The wind has died down and her Class C record of 24.04 for the 200m may be in play in a few hours.

Lightning strikes twice today! UNL commit Hazel Haarberg of Kearney Catholic sets a new Class C record in the 200m, running 23.86 (-0.13 m/s headwind) at the Centennial meet. She breaks her own record of 24.04 from 2024.

Pryce Sandfort is progressing through his rehab after his hernia surgery, and Braden Frager is already looking forward to 2026-27. journalstar.com/sports/huskers…

A former Norris standout will miss the rest of the minor-league season after another injury setback, while a look around the pros shows five Nebraskans currently on major league rosters. journalstar.com/sports/high-sc…

It's a "new chapter" for Indiana football, writes Sam McKewon, but IU's chip-on-the-shoulder culture dares the Big Ten and Nebraska to catch up. journalstar.com/sports/huskers…

Nebraska just got a $600 million stadium renovation approved and the way they're thinking about it is worth paying attention to. The Big Red Rebuild is a major revenue play. The renovated Memorial Stadium is projected to generate $95 million in annual revenue, a 40% increase over current levels. The entire project is funded without taxpayer dollars, using $250 million in philanthropic support and $350 million in private bond financing, but the financial model underneath is what makes Nebraska interesting. AD Troy Dannen has been clear about how he views the role of facilities in the new era of college athletics. He's called the stadium "a revenue stream that, for the most part, is untapped." The rebuild is designed to turn Memorial Stadium into a year-round venue for concerts, events, and entertainment, not just seven Saturdays in the fall. Premium seating gets repriced, concessions and fan experience get overhauled, the building starts working 12 months a year instead of three. Dannen's broader philosophy on funding is just as notable, I think. He's said Nebraska is adapting to revenue sharing "with a focus on creativity rather than contribution drives." The athletic department takes no student fees, no institutional subsidies, no state dollars. It actually pays $5 million back to the university annually. When the $20.5 million revenue sharing obligation hit, Nebraska absorbed it by cutting 27 positions, reprioritizing expenses, and leaning into Big Ten distribution money. That's a program treating its athletic department like a business, protecting a financial model while investing aggressively in the infrastructure to grow it. Not every school has Nebraska's fan base or Big Ten TV money, but the mindset is transferable. The programs that will thrive in this new landscape are the ones rethinking how their assets generate revenue, not just asking their fans and donors to cover the difference.

Big Ten distributes record $1.37 billion in revenue, or $72 million per school (though its newest members - Washington and Oregon - receive a reduced share) bigten.org/article/59960/

🚨BREAKING🚨 Safety Wyatt Liebentritt has committed to Minnesota, @AllenTrieu reports〽️ Read: on3.com/rivals/news/sa…

From Nate Boerkircher to Baylor Scheierman and legends like Tom Kropp, Aurora, Nebraska, keeps producing pro-level talent. 🤯 Aurora's population is under 5,000.

You might want to sit down for this one. Noah Rau of Chase County threw the discus 219-06 on his first attempt at today’s SPVA meet at Perkins County. With that throw, the UNL commit breaks Class C and All-Class record of 207-03 he set on April 16. It’s the second longest HS throw in the US this year behind the 225-06 by Simon Rosselli of Spokane Mead in Washington state.

Colorado Christian (D2) G Pierce Bazil (@piercebazil) on the season 🔹17.9 PTS (98th percentile) 🔹3.5 REB (75th perc.) 🔹2.7 AST (90th perc.) 🔹.511 eFG% (53rd perc.) 🔹.361 3P% (64th perc.) 🔹11.7 GmSc (95th perc.) 🔸TPR Scoring = 92nd percentile

Grand Island Senior High’s Celia McCoy clocked a 14.08 at the Titan Classic for the state’s top time in the 100m girls hurdles this season. 🔥   The senior is committed to Utah.

Former Prairie Wolf signs with the Saltdogs! Seward native, RHP Theo Hughes joins the Saltdogs after four years with Nebraska Wesleyan Read More: saltdogs.com/former-prairie… @NWUSports | @NWUBaseball | @Seward_Baseball Photo courtesy of Mindy Wittig - Fremont Moo

Doane Athletics and #DoaneBB will serve as one of 10 host sites for the 2026 NAIA Baseball Opening Round which runs May 11-14. The Tigers will host in Lincoln at Sherman Field for the 2nd time in 3 years.

WOW! Noah Rau adds 12 (!) feet to his state record in the discus at the SPVA, now No. 2 nationally (Thanks to Rich Barnett at McCook's 96.1 for the head's up!) #nebpreps

Congratulations to Charlie Meyer, who's retiring after 26 years as the President of the Lincoln Saltdogs. Job well done, my friend! "Greatest gig." Charlie is 1-of-1. Kindness & gentleness personified. Interview tonight on @1011_News. 1011now.com/2026/04/30/lin…