Amid Dani Busboom Kelly’s Nebraska Move, Family Member Makes Louisville Confession: “I Just Cried”

Expect to see a very different Huskers squad from the 2025 season onward. Since 2000, John Cook has transformed the volleyball program of Nebraska, taking it to unforeseen heights with his wisdom. However, the 4x NCAA winning coach announced his retirement earlier this week with Louisville’s head coach Dani Busboom Kelly en route to taking over the reins. But this won’t be the first time that Kelly will be headed to the Lincoln campus.

Dani is a Huskers alum herself, who flourished as a tactical coach later in her career. In the 2024 NCAA D1 Volleyball Championship, under Busboom’s coaching, Louisville reached the finals before being defeated by Penn State. However, by taking an ACC squad to its third NCAA Final Four appearance in program history, Kelly showed her worth as a proficient coach, making her a logical choice to be Coach Coo’s successor. And her family members can hardly hide the glee about her homecoming.

Dani Busboom Kelly has triggered festivities in her family

An article by Huskers Illustrated from January 31 shared Dani’s mother Bonnie Busboom’s ecstatic feeling to see her daughter returning to her alma mater. Acknowledging that it was difficult to stay so far away from Dani, her mother said that seeing her popularity in Louisville made things easier. “…we’ve always said, if your kids are happy, you’re happy. They were very happy in Louisville. I mean, she’s kind of like a mini John Cook in Louisville,” Bonnie was quoted saying in the article.

And yet, homecomings are always special, and the Busboom household is livid. When Dani Busboom Kelly was announced as the next head coach for the Huskers’ volleyball program, it was understandably emotional for her mother. “I just cried,” she said. “I’m like, ‘Are you kidding me? This is finally real?’ “It’s real, mom,’ I said, ‘OMG.’ I’ve been in tears, off and on, the whole time. Of course, happy tears, not sad tears,” Kelly’s mom revealed how elated she was to learn that Dani was indeed returning home. And how!

Busboom Kelly will take her new job at almost double the salary from her previous role. “Nebraska volleyball’s new head coach Dani Busboom Kelly will start at a base salary of $700,000 in her six-year contract with the Huskers,” Huskers Online revealed via social media yesterday. But considering the big shoes Dani will have to fill at Nebraska, the high wage could be the incentive to keep her motivated.

John Cook’s legacy will be the benchmark for the new HC

When John Cook took over the coaching responsibilities for the Huskers from Terry Pettit, the program had only one national title under its belt. But things changed quickly. In his first year at the helm, John guided the Huskers to a stunning 34-0 record, winning the AVCA National Coach of The Year award, and lifting the NCAA title in the process. That’s one way to start your new job with a bang! But Cook wasn’t going to be a one-hit-wonder by any means.

Just two years later, teaming up with Sarah Pavan and future Olympic gold medalist Jordan Larson, Cook won his second NCAA trophy as the Nebraska HC in 2006. That season, the squad lost only once in the regular season and firmly established itself as a force to be reckoned with in the collegiate circuit. In 2015 and 2017 too, John Cook led his girls all the way to the top of the country. Coach Cook exits Nebraska with numerous All-American honors, 4 NCAA team titles, and five Big 10 titles, the last of which came in 2024.

But Cook firmly believes that Dani Busboom Kelly has what it takes to maintain the momentum he helped to generate. He called Kelly the “right person” to be his successor during his retirement presser. He also admitted his sadness about retiring, saying, “Am I going to miss it? Hell yeah. Yeah, I’m going to miss it, but I’m going to be the biggest cheerleader,” making it clear that Busboom Kelly can always have a guide to talk to when things get murky. So how do you think Dani will be able to match up the Coach Cook’s towering reputation? Tell us!

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