Introduction
John G. Cook (born April 19, 1956) is an American volleyball head coach of the Nebraska Cornhuskers volleyball team, who is in his 24th season as head coach in 2023. He has led the Huskers to four national championships, in 2000 by defeating Wisconsin, in 2006 by defeating Stanford, in 2015 by defeating Texas, and in 2017 by defeating Florida. He is a three-time winner of the AVCA National Coach of the Year award. Prior to becoming head coach at Nebraska, Cook served as head coach of the Wisconsin Badgers, compiling a 161–73 record over seven seasons. On Sept. 23, 2022, he earned his 800th career coaching win, a feat only 29 other coaches in NCAA volleyball history have achieved.
Early life
Cook graduated from the University of San Diego, earning his bachelor's degree in history in 1979. He completed his master's degree in teaching and coaching effectiveness from San Diego State in 1991.
Coaching career
Francis Parker School
After Cook's college graduation, he got a job teaching geography at his high school alma mater of Francis Parker School, a private institution in San Diego. The job provided him with a free apartment, but also required him to coach three girls' sports—basketball, softball, and volleyball. According to ESPN journalist Elizabeth Merrill, "He knew little about volleyball, and had to read books to get a grasp on the basics." Cook proved to be a quick learner; in six seasons as Parker's volleyball coach, he had a 162–18 record, including a 90-match winning streak and two state championships.
UC San Diego
While still coaching at Parker, Cook served as the head assistant coach at the University of California, San Diego from 1983 to 1984, where he aided the Tritons to a second-place national finish in 1983 and an NCAA Division III national championship the next year.
Wisconsin
John Cook was hired in 1992 to coach Wisconsin. In seven years as head coach he had a record of 161–73 before resigning to accept the Nebraska position. He was named the Big Ten Co-Coach and AVCA District 2 Coach of the Year after leading the Badgers to a share of the 1997 Big 10 title with a 19–1 mark and school-record 30–3 overall record. The Badgers advanced to a postseason tournament in Cook's final six years at the school, including NCAA appearances in 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997 and 1998. In 1995, Wisconsin won the National Invitational Volleyball Championship with a perfect 6–0 record. During his tenure at UW, he coached four All-Americans, nine AVCA All-District award winners, 11 All-Big Ten honorees, two Big Ten Freshmen of the Year, and 21 Academic All-Big 10 selections.
Nebraska
Cook succeeded Terry Pettit in 2000 as the coach at Nebraska. Cook has guided the Huskers to four national championships (2000, 2006, 2015, 2017), four national runner-up finishes (2005, 2018, 2021, 2023), and three other national semifinal appearances (2001, 2008, 2016). Cook has made the NCAA tournament in each of his years at Nebraska (the Cornhuskers have appeared in every NCAA tournament since its inception in 1982). Cook was named the AVCA Division I National Coach of the Year in 2000, 2005, and 2023, the AVCA Central Region Coach of the Year in 1997 (Wisconsin), 2000, 2005, and 2008 as well as the Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year in 2001, 2005, and 2008. After Nebraska’s switch to the Big Ten Conference in 2011, Cook has garnered Big Ten Coach of the Year honors three times, in 2016, 2017, and 2023. He was also awarded the USA Volleyball All-Time Great Coach Award in 2008. Cook was inducted into the AVCA Hall of Fame in 2017.
At Nebraska, Cook has coached three AVCA National Players of the Year (Greichaly Cepero in 2000, Christina Houghtelling in 2005 and Sarah Pavan in 2006). Pavan also won the Honda-Broderick Cup in 2007 as the Collegiate Female Athlete of the Year.
Personal life
Cook and his wife Wendy, a former two-time All-America setter at San Diego State, are the parents of two children, Lauren and Taylor, and a horse named Bud. Lauren was the starting setter for UCLA during the 2009 season and garnered National Freshman of the Year honors.She transferred to Nebraska in 2010 and finished her career there in 2012 as an All-American.
Head coaching record
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wisconsin Badgers (Big Ten Conference) | |||||||||
| 1992 | Wisconsin | 14–17 | 9–11 | 7th | |||||
| 1993 | Wisconsin | 19–13 | 11–9 | 5th | NCAA second round | ||||
| 1994 | Wisconsin | 21–12 | 11–9 | 5th | NCAA first round | ||||
| 1995 | Wisconsin | 22–15 | 9–11 | 7th | |||||
| 1996 | Wisconsin | 25–8 | 13–7 | 5th | NCAA regional semifinals | ||||
| 1997 | Wisconsin | 30–3 | 19–1 | T–1st | NCAA regional final | ||||
| 1998 | Wisconsin | 30–5 | 17–3 | 2nd | NCAA regional final | ||||
| Wisconsin: | 161–73 (.688) | 89–51 (.636) | |||||||
| Nebraska Cornhuskers (Big 12 Conference) | |||||||||
| 2000 | Nebraska | 34–0 | 20–0 | 1st | NCAA national champions | ||||
| 2001 | Nebraska | 31–2 | 20–0 | 1st | NCAA final four | ||||
| 2002 | Nebraska | 31–2 | 20–0 | 1st | NCAA regional final | ||||
| 2003 | Nebraska | 28–5 | 17–3 | 2nd | NCAA regional semifinal | ||||
| 2004 | Nebraska | 30–2 | 20–0 | 1st | NCAA regional final | ||||
| 2005 | Nebraska | 33–2 | 19–1 | 1st | NCAA runner-up | ||||
| 2006 | Nebraska | 33–1 | 19–1 | 1st | NCAA national champions | ||||
| 2007 | Nebraska | 30–2 | 19–1 | T–1st | NCAA regional final | ||||
| 2008 | Nebraska | 31–3 | 18–2 | T–1st | NCAA final four | ||||
| 2009 | Nebraska | 26–7 | 16–4 | 3rd | NCAA regional Final | ||||
| 2010 | Nebraska | 29–3 | 19–1 | 1st | NCAA regional semifinal | ||||
| Nebraska Cornhuskers (Big Ten Conference) | |||||||||
| 2011 | Nebraska | 25–5 | 17–3 | 1st | NCAA second round | ||||
| 2012 | Nebraska | 26–7 | 15–5 | T–2nd | NCAA regional final | ||||
| 2013 | Nebraska | 26–7 | 16–4 | 2nd | NCAA regional final | ||||
| 2014 | Nebraska | 23–10 | 14–6 | 4th | NCAA regional final | ||||
| 2015 | Nebraska | 32–4 | 17–3 | 2nd | NCAA national champions | ||||
| 2016 | Nebraska | 31–3 | 18–2 | 1st | NCAA final four | ||||
| 2017 | Nebraska | 32–4 | 19–1 | T–1st | NCAA national champions | ||||
| 2018 | Nebraska | 29–7 | 15–5 | T–3rd | NCAA runner-up | ||||
| 2019 | Nebraska | 28–5 | 17–3 | T–2nd | NCAA regional final | ||||
| 2020 | Nebraska | 16–3 | 14–2 | 3rd | NCAA regional final | ||||
| 2021 | Nebraska | 26–8 | 15–4 | 2nd | NCAA runner-up | ||||
| 2022 | Nebraska | 26–6 | 16–4 | 2nd | NCAA regional semifinal | ||||
| 2023 | Nebraska | 33–2 | 19–1 | 1st | NCAA runner-up | ||||
| Nebraska: | 689–100 (.873) | 419–56 (.882) | |||||||
| Total: | 850–173 (.831) | ||||||||
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Awards and honors
Single-season awards
- AVCA Division I Central Region Coach of the Year: 1997, 2000, 2005, 2008, 2016, 2023
- AVCA Coach of the Year: 2000, 2005, 2023
- Big Ten Coach of the Year: 1997 (co), 2016, 2017, 2023
- Big 12 Coach of the Year: 2001, 2005, 2008, 2010
- Volleyball Magazine Coach of the Year: 2008
Career awards
- AVCA Hall of Fame (2017)
- USA Volleyball All-Time Great Coach (2008)
Career achievements
- 4 national championships (2000, 2006, 2015, 2017)
- 8 national finals (2000, 2005, 2006, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2023)
- 11 national semifinals (2000, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2023)
- 14 conference championships
- 21 top-10 finishes
- 55 All-Americans coached at Nebraska
- World attendance record for women’s sporting event (92,003)