The start of the 2025 NCAA volleyball season has been nothing short of a whirlwind. After an off-season full of bombshell transfers and coaching changes, I had expected things to return back to a sense of normalcy once athletes returned to the court. Silly me.

The AVCA First-Serve event more or less met my expectations, but I can’t say the same for what’s happened since then. Let’s reflect on some of the major story lines coming out of the season so far.

An Uninspiring Start for the Reigning Champs

The AVCA and I both had Penn State ranked #2 in the pre-season. While I can’t speak for the coaches who voted, I personally had them so high due to their strong performance last year, the incoming transfer of the phenomenal Kennedy Martin, and the return of who I believe to be the best setter in the country, Izzy Starck.

Well. After a dominant opening win over Creighton, the Nittany Lions have whimpered more than they’ve roared. They barely squeaked out a win over Kansas in five sets and then dropped matches to the lower-ranked Arizona State and TCU. This all came before Starck announced that she is taking a break from volleyball for the rest of the season to work on her mental health, a bombshell story that directly preceded Penn State’s straight-sets loss to Kentucky.

While Starck’s replacement, 5’9” transfer from Saint Louis Addie Lyon, was serviceable in her first match, the loss of Penn State’s starting setter and what it may say about the behind-the-scenes environment of being on the team does not bode well for a return to form. 

The Big Ten is a B1G Mess

The underwhelming performance by Penn State is representative of a larger trend among the Big Ten Conference. Once considered to be the premier conference in college volleyball, the Big Ten, aside from top-ranked Nebraska, has had a collectively rough start to the season. The conference’s results from the first full weekend of the season were uninspiring, to say the least: Maryland lost to Coastal Carolina and North Carolina; Wisconsin was swept by Texas; Washington lost to Northern Colorado and Colgate; and Ohio State was swept by both VCU and Miami-FL.

Even when the Big Ten came out on top, the matches weren’t as straightforward as they should have been: Purdue barely outlasted South Florida in five sets; Minnesota dropped sets to Cal Poly and St. Thomas; Michigan dropped a set to Wake Forest; and Oregon dropped a set to Prairie View. Follow this all up with the new UCLA squad’s lackluster debut—barely winning in five sets over Long Beach State and then losing to Pepperdine and twice to TCU—and it’s safe to say that, for Nebraska, there may indeed be a few “nights off in the Big Ten” this year.

Minute Volley’s Updated Top 10

While there is still a whole lot of volleyball to be played just in the non-conference portion of the season alone, there’s been plenty of data to rethink my top 10 since the pre-season.

1. Nebraska (-): Among the chaos, the Huskers are as strong as expected. While Kentucky pushed them to the brink in a five-set thriller, Nebraska remains undefeated and mostly unchallenged under new coach Dani Busboom Kelly.
   
   
2. Kentucky (+2): Even though it resulted in their first loss of the season, The Wildcats made a statement in their match against Nebraska, where they were inches away from taking the match in a sweep. Brooklyn DeLeye and Eva Hudson have been every bit as deadly as expected, and others from the squad are stepping up, too: Asia Thigpen, who’s been playing on the right side, had a standout performance against Penn State, and Lizzie Carr has been rock solid in the middle.
   
   
3. Texas (-): I probably would have had Texas at #2 if not for the Longhorns’ performance against Stanford. While Texas is undefeated this season, their passing completely broke down in the face of Stanford’s unrelenting service pressure. Normally I would write this off as an off-day for a squad, but considering the program’s history with reception issues, this was a concerning performance. Still, the Longhorns have some serious firepower on their team, led by Torrey Stafford, who already has three double-doubles and achieved a career high 24 kills vs. Rice.
   
   
4. Texas A&M (+1): Led by star opposite Logan Lednicky, the Aggies’ seasoned squad is undefeated after five matches, including ranked wins over Minnesota and Utah. They did face a close call when attempting to rest Lednicky and outside Kyndal Stowers vs. Central Arkansas, but ended up taking that match in five sets after inserting their full starting lineup.
   
   
5. Louisville (+2): Putting Louisville at #5 feels a bit unfair, as their schedule has been pretty soft to start the season. However, they’re 4-0 to start the season and have only dropped a single set (to a scrappy Illinois squad), so I can’t think of any reason to rank them lower. The Cardinals are about to be tested in a big way when they face off against Texas on Wednesday.
   
   
6. Pittsburgh (-): Despite losing their first two matches, the Panthers have already started to turn their season around now that they’re on a four-match win streak. Setter Brooke Mosher, who transferred from Illinois, looks to have improved her connections with many of her hitters, including reigning National Player of the Year Olivia Babcock. While this team’s offense still largely relies on Babcock shouldering the heaviest load, outside Blaire Bayless has been steadily getting better and better, which should provide some relief for Pitt’s star hitter.
   
   
7. Stanford (+2): After the second set against Texas, I fully expected to take Stanford out of my top ten altogether, but Kevin Hambly’s squad changed my mind real quick. Even though it was ultimately another entry in the L column for the Cardinal, they showed a level of play and grit that I was not expecting. Elia Rubin and Ipar Kurt make for an excellent outside hitting duo, while freshman middle Erika Sayer has been exceptionally good. With Taylor Yu potentially having an ankle injury, this team may need freshman Logan Parks to step up in a big way. While Parks’ setting wasn’t consistently great against Texas, I think she’s up for the task.

8. Wisconsin (-): The Badgers looked devastatingly good in their first set of the season against Kansas, but they returned to earth after that. Mimi Colyer shone in that Kansas match, hitting .339 with 26 kills in five sets, but overreliance on her in subsequent matches has somewhat hindered her performance. The Badgers struggled mightily against Texas, losing to the Longhorns in straight sets, including a blowout 14-25 third set. For a team known for its height, the Badger block has been relatively quiet so far, with only 2.5 blocks per set compared to last season’s 3.1.
   
   
9. Florida (NEW): Despite losing their opening match to Stanford, there’s a lot to like about this Florida team. Texas transfer Jordyn Byrd has been a revelation; she leads the team with 4.39 points per set, and if new head coach Ryan Theis is successful in making her a six-rotation player, things will only look up for the Gators. Middle blocker Jaela Auguste has also been excellent, with over two kills per set in addition to her steady blocking. Some challenges remain for Florida, however: Alexis Stucky and Taylor Parks have been alternating setting responsibilities, leading to connection issues with the hitters, and it’s still a question mark of which pin hitters can reliably complement Byrd’s offensive output.

10. Arizona State (NEW): The Sun Devils made quite a statement when they took down Penn State in four sets, though they were quickly humbled by a straight-sets loss to Pitt the next day. Still, Arizona State, led by opposite Noemie Glover, have demonstrated that they know how to win. To remain strong, the team will need more production from hitters other than Glover, especially given that Glover’s status is unknown after she missed the last two matches.

On the Outside Looking In

Minnesota: Despite losing a couple of sets they really shouldn’t have (one vs. Cal Poly and one vs. St. Thomas), the Gophers are 5-1 on the season with their only loss being to Texas A&M. Star hitter Julia Hanson has been every bit as good as expected, while Purdue transfer Lourdès Myers has been steady in the middle. Despite losing starting libero Zeynep Palabiyik to a season-ending injury, her replacement—freshman McKenna Garr—has been nothing short of impressive, notching a total of 30 blocks in her first six sets as starting libero. There are still questions about who can step up on the right side, which head coach Keegan Cook can hopefully figure out during the remainder of the non-conference schedule.

Kansas: Oh, Kansas. Five of the team’s seven matches have gone to five sets, with Kansas only managing to win one of them. They do have four-set victories over Bowling Green and Georgia Tech, which, in addition to their ability to compete and push teams to the brink, is encouraging for new head coach Matt Ulmer’s squad. Still, the team needs to figure out how to close out when they have the advantage. The team shouldn’t face much of a challenge until they play Creighton on the 21st, so what should be a slew of wins will hopefully give them some confidence and help work out lingering issues.

SMU: After two narrow five-set victories against LSU and Baylor, SMU seems to be stabilizing. Malaya Jones and Jadyn Livings have both been playing exceptionally well, and setter Averi Carlson is running a great offense. The upcoming week’s schedule will be a real test for the Mustangs, however, as they face off against Texas A&M, Kentucky, and Purdue.