[Maple Leaf]

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7254966...enn-state/

"Four premier women’s college volleyball programs will compete on Aug. 27 at AT&T Stadium in a nationally televised exhibition with a $1 million prize purse, the largest ever in women’s college sports." 

"Nebraska, Penn State, Florida and SMU are set to headline the first-of-its-kind, three-hour primetime event, named Spikes Under the Lights."

"Of the prize purse, $800,000 is to be split among the four programs, with an additional $200,000 paid to the championship participants. The schools will distribute the money to their athletes as NIL payments."

[Maple Leaf]

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7254966...enn-state/

"Four premier women’s college volleyball programs will compete on Aug. 27 at AT&T Stadium in a nationally televised exhibition with a $1 million prize purse, the largest ever in women’s college sports." 

"Nebraska, Penn State, Florida and SMU are set to headline the first-of-its-kind, three-hour primetime event, named Spikes Under the Lights."

"Of the prize purse, $800,000 is to be split among the four programs, with an additional $200,000 paid to the championship participants. The schools will distribute the money to their athletes as NIL payments."

[SkiBum80]

Wow. This is epic in the big picture of the growth and popularity of college WVB.
But it is brutal for all those like us left off the selective invitation list.

[SkiBum80]

Wow. This is epic in the big picture of the growth and popularity of college WVB.
But it is brutal for all those like us left off the selective invitation list.

[paloalto]

Money grab by the wvb programs.  These are exhibition matches.  They don't count for anything in the rankings or the team's W/L record.

---

https://smumustangs.com/documents/2026/5...Quotes.pdf

"The showcase will mark the first volleyball event of its kind at AT&T Stadium, one
of the most iconic venues in sports with a capacity of up to 100,000..."  

I predict they get less than 20,000 fans; mostly Nebraska fans, for a meaningless exhibition.  TV revenue may be good.

[paloalto]

Money grab by the wvb programs.  These are exhibition matches.  They don't count for anything in the rankings or the team's W/L record.

---

https://smumustangs.com/documents/2026/5...Quotes.pdf

"The showcase will mark the first volleyball event of its kind at AT&T Stadium, one
of the most iconic venues in sports with a capacity of up to 100,000..."  

I predict they get less than 20,000 fans; mostly Nebraska fans, for a meaningless exhibition.  TV revenue may be good.

[martyup]

Pretty much a slap in the face of our storied program.

[martyup]

Pretty much a slap in the face of our storied program.

[paloalto]

Yeah, considering they use the word iconic so many times to describe the teams.  Florida and SMU have never won a National Championship.  Up until SMU joined the ACC there was nothing iconic about SMU volleyball.

Although from what I understand this is the "inaugural" event and they plan to have four different teams each year.  Maybe better to get the kinks out of playing in a big stadium before Stanford accepts an invitation.

[paloalto]

Yeah, considering they use the word iconic so many times to describe the teams.  Florida and SMU have never won a National Championship.  Up until SMU joined the ACC there was nothing iconic about SMU volleyball.

Although from what I understand this is the "inaugural" event and they plan to have four different teams each year.  Maybe better to get the kinks out of playing in a big stadium before Stanford accepts an invitation.

[BobK]

It’s Stanford playing in a tournament at Pitt same time as this event ?

[BobK]

It’s Stanford playing in a tournament at Pitt same time as this event ?

[82lsju]

It’s Stanford playing in a tournament at Pitt same time as this event ?

yes, the Spike Classic

The Opening Spike Classic, a two-day women's college volleyball event, will return for a second year during Week One of the 2026 season and feature matchups between four of the nation's premier programs: the University of Kansas, the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt), Stanford University, and the University of Wisconsin.  


Hosted at Pitt and televised nationally on ESPN, the Opening Spike Classic is organized by Playfly Sports, the sports industry's leading revenue maximization company. The event is being produced in collaboration with JMI Sports, leading media rights company and the exclusive multimedia rights holder for Pitt Athletics.


The two-day event will host four elite matchups, with Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) schools serving as the home team: 


Friday, August 28, 2026: Kansas vs. Pitt, Wisconsin vs. Stanford
Sunday, August 30, 2026: Kansas vs. Stanford, Wisconsin vs. Pitt

https://pittsburghpanthers.com/news/2025...ic-in-2026

[82lsju]

It’s Stanford playing in a tournament at Pitt same time as this event ?

yes, the Spike Classic

The Opening Spike Classic, a two-day women's college volleyball event, will return for a second year during Week One of the 2026 season and feature matchups between four of the nation's premier programs: the University of Kansas, the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt), Stanford University, and the University of Wisconsin.  


Hosted at Pitt and televised nationally on ESPN, the Opening Spike Classic is organized by Playfly Sports, the sports industry's leading revenue maximization company. The event is being produced in collaboration with JMI Sports, leading media rights company and the exclusive multimedia rights holder for Pitt Athletics.


The two-day event will host four elite matchups, with Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) schools serving as the home team: 


Friday, August 28, 2026: Kansas vs. Pitt, Wisconsin vs. Stanford
Sunday, August 30, 2026: Kansas vs. Stanford, Wisconsin vs. Pitt

https://pittsburghpanthers.com/news/2025...ic-in-2026

[martyup]

Okay, but what are they paying us to participate in the Spike Classic?

[martyup]

Okay, but what are they paying us to participate in the Spike Classic?

[Spiny_Norman]

The AVCA First Serve event would have been a good one. But Stanford not included. I guess with Pitt, Louisville and SMU, they had a full complement of ACC teams.

https://www.avca.org/event/2026-avca-first-serve/

[Spiny_Norman]

The AVCA First Serve event would have been a good one. But Stanford not included. I guess with Pitt, Louisville and SMU, they had a full complement of ACC teams.

https://www.avca.org/event/2026-avca-first-serve/

[Papa John]

<snip>

Up until SMU joined the ACC there was nothing iconic about SMU volleyball.

<snip>

I think SMU is "iconic" in the sense that its campus is less than 30 miles from AT&T Stadium. Having a local team helps get butts in the seat, I imagine.

[Papa John]

<snip>

Up until SMU joined the ACC there was nothing iconic about SMU volleyball.

<snip>

I think SMU is "iconic" in the sense that its campus is less than 30 miles from AT&T Stadium. Having a local team helps get butts in the seat, I imagine.

[Card10Fan]

https://gostanford.com/news/2026/04/23/s...-challenge

Volleyball also playing defending national champion Texas A&M on Sept 9 at ESPN in Florida. Game on ESPN2. Volleyball will be challenged in non conference and we will play several big games on national TV. I'm not worried about missing out on the one at At&T stadium.

[Card10Fan]

https://gostanford.com/news/2026/04/23/s...-challenge

Volleyball also playing defending national champion Texas A&M on Sept 9 at ESPN in Florida. Game on ESPN2. Volleyball will be challenged in non conference and we will play several big games on national TV. I'm not worried about missing out on the one at At&T stadium.

[paloalto]

I'm not familiar with the stadium.  It looks like fans will be a long way from the action.  

https://seatgeek.com/ncaa-womens-volleyb...zkvmu0CBsx

[paloalto]

I'm not familiar with the stadium.  It looks like fans will be a long way from the action.  

https://seatgeek.com/ncaa-womens-volleyb...zkvmu0CBsx

[Papa John]

AT&T Stadium is where the NFL Cowboys play.

A while back Nebraska played a women's volleyball tournament on the Cornhuskers' football field. As I recall, it was very successful.

But Dallas, TX is a long way from Lincoln, NE.

[Papa John]

AT&T Stadium is where the NFL Cowboys play.

A while back Nebraska played a women's volleyball tournament on the Cornhuskers' football field. As I recall, it was very successful.

But Dallas, TX is a long way from Lincoln, NE.

[spike5882]

The AVCA First Serve event would have been a good one. But Stanford not included. I guess with Pitt, Louisville and SMU, they had a full complement of ACC teams.

https://www.avca.org/event/2026-avca-first-serve/

AVCA First Serve also restricts participating teams to only play 2 times over a 4 year span.  So, if Stanford played this year, they wouldn't be able to play over the next two seasons.  I think more likely that Stanford could have chosen to space their participation out, and I would suspect they will play next year and do a every other year plan with it.  Nebraska played the first two years and is no longer eligible until 2028.

[spike5882]

The AVCA First Serve event would have been a good one. But Stanford not included. I guess with Pitt, Louisville and SMU, they had a full complement of ACC teams.

https://www.avca.org/event/2026-avca-first-serve/

AVCA First Serve also restricts participating teams to only play 2 times over a 4 year span.  So, if Stanford played this year, they wouldn't be able to play over the next two seasons.  I think more likely that Stanford could have chosen to space their participation out, and I would suspect they will play next year and do a every other year plan with it.  Nebraska played the first two years and is no longer eligible until 2028.