Nebraska and Pittsburgh Hold the Top Spots as Upsets Shake the AVCA Volleyball Rankings

The latest American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 25 poll dropped on September 21, 2026, and the calm at the absolute summit masks a fracturing landscape underneath. Only five Division I programs held their exact positions from the previous week. Nebraska remains the undisputed No. 1, while Pittsburgh holds firm at No. 2, but the rest of the top 15 saw wild fluctuations driven by weekend upsets and conference realignments.[1][2][6]

Nebraska locked down its 1,560 points and 48 first-place votes by sweeping Creighton for the 25th consecutive time. The Cornhuskers, anchored by Andi Jackson and Harper Murray, have refused to drop a single set in recent weeks, maintaining a flawless 7-0 record and sending a clear message to the rest of the Big Ten.[1][3]

Pittsburgh sits right behind them at 10-0, carrying 15 first-place votes and 1,527 points. Outside hitter Olivia Babcock has consistently posted double-digit kills, while setter Izzy Starck has engineered an offensive system that early-season analysts described as limitless. The Panthers have already collected multiple top-15 wins, proving their preseason hype was entirely justified.[1][4]

The real chaos erupted in the Southeastern Conference. Kentucky leaped to No. 3 after upsetting then-No. 3 Louisville in four sets at Historic Memorial Coliseum. Brooklyn DeLeye tallied 22 kills and Morgan Gaerte added 20, marking the first time during the 2026 season that Kentucky had two players cross the 20-kill threshold in the exact same match.[1][6]

Meanwhile, Texas, the defending national champion, sits at No. 7. The Longhorns opened the 2026 season at No. 2 but fell after an early upset to Arizona State. Senior Torrey Stafford and sophomore Cari Spears are now tasked with navigating a brutal SEC schedule that includes a looming Sunday showdown against Kentucky.[1][5]

In the Big Ten, Tennessee delivered the week's most stunning result, traveling to Happy Valley and upsetting Penn State 3-1. Kennedi Rogers tied her career-high with 21 kills and added 10 digs. The victory marked Tennessee's first top-10 road win since besting No. 6 Florida on September 25, 2011.[1][2]

The loss sent Penn State tumbling five spots to No. 14 in the AVCA poll. The Nittany Lions had previously swept then-No. 4 Stanford but could not sustain that defensive momentum against Tennessee's relentless attack. They now face an uphill battle to reclaim their top-10 status.[1][2]

Further down the rankings, TCU climbed to No. 11 after sweeping Yale and Rice at the Fight in the Fort Invitational. "Evan Hendrix had herself a week," the official TCU Volleyball account posted on September 21, highlighting her "50 kills, .368 hitting, [and] 26 digs." Kinsley Young also contributed a career-high 16 kills against Rice.[1]

Conversely, Creighton is in freefall. After opening the season in the top 15, the Bluejays dropped to No. 20 and are now fighting to stay ranked after suffering a fifth straight loss, this time to No. 15 Texas A&M. The program's 82-week streak of appearing in the Top 25 is suddenly in genuine jeopardy.[1][3]

With conference play accelerating across the country, the margin for error has vanished entirely. The upcoming slate features Penn State heading on the road to face Michigan, while Kentucky travels to Vanderbilt before hosting Texas. The AVCA poll will undoubtedly shift again next Monday, but for now, the road to the national championship still runs through Lincoln.[2][6]