Spring Breakers
Offseason updates as the team reconvenes in Austin to continue spring practice
It was spring break last week in the 512. The university paused classes for the week as students evacuated the proverbial dance floor bound for South Padre or any other stereotypical college party destination only to be replaced in Austin by the hordes of creatives, creative-adjacents, and their associated hangers-on for South by Southwest. For anyone following members of the volleyball team on the various social media platforms, this means you’ve been inundated with pictures of the various pockets of the team who made their way as far out as the islands of Hawaii or even just onto a boat in the middle of Lake Travis.
This week, however, the switch has flipped back to practice videos, mostly of funny gaffes that the team has seen during their various drills; underclassman Callie Krueger shared a video of her own mistake that saw her wildly misjudge an Addy Gaido serve that caught tape and somehow hit her in the back as she fell to the floor, much to the shock and amusement of her teammates who enjoyed roasting her further in the comments. Freshman Henley Anderson also found herself on the receiving end of an AVW attack that allowed her the rare opportunity to perform a close visual inspection of a Molten Super Touch. The best news out of all of this is that the vibes on the team seem high if they’re happy to be sharing their funny screw-ups from practice and laughing at themselves.
The team has also been among the loudest supporters of both the men’s and women’s basketball teams during March Madness. The women have handled business as one would expect out of a #1 seed, advancing to the Sweet 16 in their bracket. The men, on the other hand, squeaked by to get into the tournament, playing in the First Four but still managing to get enough momentum to topple North Carolina State, BYU, and Gonzaga en route to a Sweet 16 berth of their own. Texas men’s basketball as the 2026 tournament’s Cinderella squad has truly been an emotional test for the nation as they struggle to decide if they should be happy that a #11 seed has advanced this far or if they would rather be mad that it’s Texas. The monkey paw has indeed curled.
Schedule Updates
When the AVCA First Serve in Milwaukee first unveiled its schedule, many Texas fans were disappointed to learn that Texas would only be playing one match against Arizona State on August 22nd, making it a bit of a stretch to justify making the trip to Wisconsin as a fan. However, an updated First Serve schedule was released earlier this week, and it turns out the Horns will also be facing off with Marquette on Monday, August 24th. Marquette participated in last winter’s NCAA tournament, upsetting 7-seed Western Kentucky in a first round sweep before falling to 2-seed Louisville in a five set thriller in the second round. This now makes three known opponents for Texas - Arizona State and Marquette in Milwaukee on 8/22 and 8/24 and Louisville in Nashville on 9/6.
As for the rest of the schedule: its release remains a mystery. Jerritt notoriously holds out on Texas fans as long as possible, it seems, so we’re left to dabble in the realm of only passing along random rumors that have been heard regarding opponents in the non-con next fall. The strongest, most convincing rumor for now continues to be Wisconsin coming to Austin and playing the Longhorns in the Moody Center, though the exact date for such a match remains uncertain.
Another rumor that has persisted since tournament time is that Nebraska is set to make a long-awaited return to the non-conference schedule for Texas. Once again, potential dates are unknown, but added intrigue comes in the form of one quiet rumble we’ve heard from various corners of the internet and originating with those who would claim to have some knowledge of the Cornhusker athletic department: Nebraska vs Texas, should it happen, could find its way to Sin City. I’ll remain skeptical of that, though I wouldn’t weep at an excuse to make my way out to Las Vegas in September (barring any Ohio State-shaped conflicts on the football schedule).
Nike Blue Ribbon Elite
Two weeks ago, Nike and the University of Texas partnered to announce a new NIL program featuring 16 top Longhorn athletes as representatives of the program dubbed the “Blue Ribbon Elite”. Nike already had NIL deals in place with roughly 60 college athletes nationwide, but the brand power of Texas and the longstanding relationship between the school and Nike led to special opportunities in Austin. The vast majority of Texas’ athletic programs are represented with notable absences from the beach volleyball and track & field side of the department.
Representing volleyball are standout attackers Torrey Stafford and Cari Spears. With many NIL programs, athletes are used purely as marketing representatives who appear in various advertisements -Texas football fans are likely very familiar with Arch Manning and his Warby Parker ads for the eyeglasses brand last season. With the Blue Ribbon Elite program, Torrey and Cari will both get opportunities for collaboration with Nike including input on creative direction, brand campaigns, and product innovation with the athletic shoes and apparel giant.
Joining Torrey and Cari are the following athletes at UT:
Reese Atwood - Softball
Dia Bell - Football
Cam Coleman - Football
Teagan Kavan - Softball
Hubert Kos - Swimming
Ava McDonald - Soccer
Tommy Morrison - Golf
Eva Okaro - Swimming
Farah O’Keefe - Golf
Aiden Robbins - Baseball
Colin Simmons - Football
Dylan Volantis - Baseball
Jonah Williams - Baseball/Football
Ryan Wingo - Football
You can read the official Nike press release at this link. Texas athletics shared their own feature about the Blue Ribbon Elite program at this link.
Beach Volley Check-In
Since my last article, beach volleyball has continued their strong start to the season, climbing as high as #4 in the nation before slipping back slightly to #6 this week. UCLA and Stanford continue to lead the way nationally this year.
Texas swept then-#13 Hawaii two weekends ago while also taking five-match wins over #9 Loyola Marymount and #10 California, all of whom they’d played and beaten roughly a month prior. Texas was unfortunately hit by the UCLA buzzsaw once again, getting swept off the sand by the Bruins for the second time this season as well.
Last weekend’s trip to Baton Rouge saw the Sandhorns take sweep wins over the hosts in #12 LSU and also #10 Arizona State. Texas held off #16 Grand Canyon 3-2 after sweeping the Antelopes in an earlier match-up this spring. Unfortunately, the third time was the charm for the Golden Bears as Cal was finally able to get over the hump and beat the Longhorns in Baton Rouge in yet another five-match showdown.
Texas hosts the Texas Invitational this weekend at the Wright-Whitaker Sports Complex in Austin, bringing a 13-5 record into the contests. They’ll look to avenge earlier sweep losses to #2 Stanford and #1 UCLA as well as repeat their upset win over #3 USC from earlier this season. They’ll also meet #10 Long Beach State for the first time in 2026.
For the weekend of April 3rd and 4th, Texas will be hosting the Longhorn Showdown featuring Tulane, Washington, Houston Christian, and an additional team still to be determined.
With the start of the spring exhibition schedule finally upon us, we’ll actually have some actual volleyball to discuss in the next article. The Horns face Baylor, Texas A&M - Corpus Christi, and TCU in Houston this Saturday as part of the 2026 FAST Collegiate Invite event at the FAST Complex in Houston. Reporting on the outcomes and things we learned from those matches will be coming second- or third-hand, but it’s at least some real volleyball to discuss! Texas will also face Houston on April 4th before our next article. Until then: Hook ‘em!