​This was the scene after Jordy Frahm led off the WCWS elimination game against Texas with a solo shot to the Huskers’ preferred landing area at the bottom of the center field bleachers in Devon Park. For 5 1/3 innings it was enough to keep the Huskers on top as Frahm no-hit the Longhorns. Then two singles followed by a Katie Stewart bomb to left stunned Nebraska and four batters later, the greatest season in team history was suddenly over.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBut like all things in sport, the end of one journey is the beginning of the next, and in softball there is no rest when it comes to reloading for the coming season. The Huskers are no exception and the post-WCWS was even crazier with the announcement of Associate Head Coach Lori Sippel’s retirement and the subsequent announcement that Frahm would assuming the open spot on the coaching staff. As detailed previously, this was not a planned succession as Sippel kept the news of her retirement to herself so as not to distract the team in any way as they pursued their WCWS bid.As soon as that was over, things turned immediately to the staff hitting the 2028 recruiting trail and acquiring players out of the transfer portal to complete a roster which had just dropped from 23 players to 10 by way of losing 11 seniors and 2 others through the transfer portal (Olivia DiNardo was also a senior but had an additional year due to an injury redshirt in 2026).Below will begin by showing how things ended up post-season as far as rankings and ratings. Roster additions/subtractions through the transfer portal will be covered next and then the 2027 recruiting class will be revisited so where the current ‘27 roster numbers currently stand can be shown. In the final Part 4, after detailing the returning player info, we will take a look at what a 2027 roster, as far as lineup and rotation, could look like.#5 – Consensus final ranking in all four servicesCLICK HERE for full list – ESPN/USA Softball.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementCLICK HERE for full list – D1 Softball.CLICK HERE for full list – On3/Softball America.CLICK HERE for full list – NFCA/GoRout Coaches PollAfter a strong finish to the 2025 season, Nebraska’s preseason rankings for 2026 ranged from 9th to 11th. And for the second straight season, they exceeded their projections finishing at #5. Of the WCWS teams who failed to make the final four, Nebraska was ranked the highest finishing 5th in all four polls.It will interesting to see where next season’s rankings place the Huskers after making the WCWS but losing Frahm and having to replace over 50% of the roster.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement#2 – Final Ranking RPI – CLICK HERE for full list.RPI is a formula based on your team’s winning %, your opponents’ winning percentage and your opponents’ opponents winning percentage. It’s a simplistic, but fairly effective, way of taking not only your record into consideration, but also the strength o