× Thanks for reading! Log in to continue. Enjoy more articles by logging in or creating a free account. No credit card required. Log in Sign up {{featured_button_text}}

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — One of the reactions when it was announced this summer that John Cook had been chosen to go into the American Volleyball Coaches Association Hall of Fame was surprise.

You mean, he wasn’t already in the hall of fame?

But it seems appropriate that the Nebraska head coach went into the hall of fame during a year when he got the Huskers to the NCAA Final Four, a place where he’s spent a good amount of time in his career. Nebraska reached the Final Four for the eighth time in Cook’s 18 seasons as head coach and defeated Penn State 3-2 on Thursday in the national semifinals.

And it comes during a season that was arguably one of Cook’s best as a coach, taking a team with a lot of turnover in players and staff to a share of a Big Ten Conference championship.

Early in the season the Huskers had a 6-3 record and had slipped to 14th in the national poll. But the Huskers improved, knocked off Penn State to start the Big Ten season and now have an 18-match winning streak.

Cook was officially inducted into the hall of fame during a luncheon on Thursday afternoon at the Kansas City Convention Center. Cook arrived after the final practice before Thursday’s match.