LINCOLN — Olivia Mauch’s favorite new feature is the massage chair. 

NU coach Dani Busboom Kelly said she and assistant coach Kelly Natter plan to use the red light therapy beds on game days. 

While the Huskers have been using their newly renovated locker room space for the past few weeks, fans will get their first look at the renovated John Cook Arena on Thursday when the No. 1 Nebraska hosts New Mexico for its home opener. 

Count Manaia Ogbechie as a fan of the new amenities, which also include a revamped team room with a kitchenette, a film room and an overhauled locker room. 

“The locker room has been such an amazing change these past couple of weeks,” she said. “We’re looking around at Devaney and all the new seats, the lighting, and the speakers. This environment is going to be incredible, and I can’t wait.”

In addition, the hallway outside the locker room has been redone with new displays honoring Nebraska’s five national championships, its All-Americans and letter winners. Another wall celebrates that the Huskers have sold out every home match since 2001. 

In the arena, all seating was replaced and now features seatbacks as capacity expanded to 10,000. The only exception is the united student section on the east end of the floor seating, which remains bench seating. The facility also received new lighting and sound systems. 

New loge and club seating were also added. In the rafters, banners hang celebrating the accomplishments of the three sports that call the Devaney Center home: volleyball, wrestling and gymnastics. 

Busboom Kelly said she’s most excited about the team room, where they can gather with the players to watch sports and organically bond. While they won’t change their game-day routine, more players might stay in the team room between serve-and-pass and matches. 

“The gym doesn’t look a whole lot different, but I love that everybody gets a chair back seat,” Busboom Kelly said. “I know there’s a lot of people that are going to be very happy about that, but the locker room, team room, all that is just unbelievable and a place where everybody can hang out.”

After spending the first two weeks of the season on the road, Nebraska is ready to play a home match in front of its fans. Granted, most of their matches away from Lincoln have been in front of Husker fan-filled crowds, but they get to play in the arena where they practice every day. 

September 10 is the latest home opener since 2009, when the Huskers hosted Virginia on the same date. 

Busboom Kelly said the return to Lincoln this week allowed the Huskers to get back into a good practice rhythm. She said their training session on Tuesday was one of their best training sessions of the young season.

“I’m just very thankful to be home, and really excited to play at home in our venue in front of our fans and with very little distractions,” she said. 

After playing six matches (plus the suspended Wrigley Field match) over the first 11 days of the season, the schedule doesn’t let up for the Huskers this weekend. 

The Huskers face New Mexico (2-3) on Thursday, No. 20 Baylor (4-1) on Friday and RV Georgia Tech (7-0) on Saturday afternoon. Those matches will be broadcast on B1G+, BTN and Nebraska Public Media/B1G+, respectively. 

Mauch said that because they changed locations so frequently, they didn’t have time to get tired of one location. Ogbechie added that she didn’t mind the constant travel and many nights in hotel rooms. 

“It was a very, very long trip, but what a blessing it is to make such an impact on the progression of women’s sports,” Ogbechie said. “It’s been such an amazing trip, even though it was tiring - very, very tiring. We got back super late one of the nights, but it was worth it.”

To help with the many matches and constant travel, the coaching staff relied on the bench last week, with each starter sitting out multiple sets against either South Dakota State or DePaul. 

Busboom Kelly said she doesn’t yet have a plan for extended rest for their top players and to use their bench more.

“We want to give players opportunities in Devaney,  home, in three days, where our routines are predictable. What can different players do? We’ll definitely use our depth, but I wouldn’t say there’s a specific plan for that.”

Mauch and Ogbechie both raved about their experience Sunday night at Wrigley Field, despite the less-than-ideal playing conditions, with moisture condensing on the Taraflex court. 

Mauch joked that the surface was so slick that it was like playing on ice.

“Have you ever heard of Disney on Ice? We were like Huskers on Ice,” she said. “The whole Wrigley Field was just amazing to play in. It was so cool. It was a great representation of Husker fans doing what Husker fans do well. I think the crowd was just really into it, and the whole experience was just amazing.”

Ogbechie said the long delays didn’t bother her too much, as she was busy most of the time either helping wipe down the court or watching her teammates participate in a dance competition. She also spent time looking around and soaking up the atmosphere. 

“Everybody felt so united, and again, surreal,” she said. “It was beautiful.”

Busboom Kelly said the most difficult decision she's ever had to make as a coach is choosing who plays libero between Mauch and Laney Choboy. 

She said the No. 1 factor when choosing a libero is serve receive but she considers other areas including out-of-system setting, serving, floor defense and demeanor, energy and communication.

So far this season, Mauch has been designated as the libero in every match, with Choboy playing as a defensive specialist for opposite Virginia Adriano. Choboy has the slight advantage in good passing percentage (48.2 to 46.3) but Mauch has a better rate at converting passes into side out and dig percentages. 

"This is one of the toughest calls I’ve ever had as a coach," Busboom Kelly said. "They’re both so, so talented and great players, and they’re good at everything. Both of them, they’re great servers, great defenders, good setters, good at serve receive, all of it."