One of the greatest athletes in Nebraska history is returning to the university.
Coach John Cook announced on Tuesday that Nebraska volleyball legend Jordan Larson has been named a full-time assistant on his staff.
The NCAA Division I Council approved a proposal in January that eliminates the volunteer assistant coach position and adds a third full-time assistant role for volleyball programs. She will join Cook’s staff alongside Jaylen Reyes and Kelly Hunter once her summer playing schedule wraps up in September.
“One of the greatest honors of being the Nebraska volleyball coach is when I have the opportunity to coach with a former player,” Cook said in a release. “Jordan and I have talked for years about coaching at Nebraska. She will bring a wealth of experience that she can share with our players. There is no place like Nebraska!”
Larson is currently part of the 30-player roster pool for the U.S. National team competing in the Volleyball Nations League. She plans to play with the national team in qualifiers for the Paris 2024 Olympics Sept. 16-24 in Poland before joining the Huskers for the rest of the 2023 season. She also hopes to represent the U.S. at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games as well.
Larson initially announced that she planned to retire from international play after the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. She continued her club playing career in China, but opted to get into coaching last year.
In January of 2022, Texas announced that Larson was joining Coach Jerritt Elliott’s staff as a full-time assistant, though she made a detour to continue her club playing career in Italy. The plan at the time was for her to rejoin the Longhorns’ program in May, though when she did so it was as a volunteer assistant rather than a full-time one. Prior to the season, Larson left the Texas coaching staff for personal reasons.
Larson returned home to Nebraska and began giving lessons at Cub Legacy in Elkhorn before joining Coach Paul Giesselmann’s staff at NAIA Midland in Fremont as a volunteer assistant in September.
“I am very excited to be returning to Nebraska,” Larson said. “I can’t wait to learn and help the next generation of volleyball players. It has felt so good to be home even for a short time, and I can’t wait to join the team in the fall. I really appreciate John giving me this opportunity. Go Huskers!”
The native of Hooper, Nebraska, was a three-time AVCA All-American (first-team twice, second-team once) and led the Huskers to the 2006 NCAA title during her time in Lincoln. She finished her college career with 1,600 kills, 1,410 digs and a school-record 186 aces. She was inducted into the Nebraska Athletic Hall of Fame in 2020.
Larson then went on to become one of the greatest American volleyball players in international competition history. She’s been a member of the U.S. Women’s National Team since 2009, competing in more than 20 events during her career. She became team captain in 2017. Larson led the U.S. to its first Olympic gold medal in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, earning Best Outside Hitter and MVP honors for the event. She also helped the Americans earn silver in the 2012 Olympics and bronze in 2016. In total, she’s helped the United States capture 11 gold medals in international competition during her career.
Larson has played professionally in Puerto Rico, Russia, Turkey, China and Italy, and she also won the inaugural championship with Athletes Unlimited, a U.S.-based women’s professional volleyball league, in 2021.