‘Time to cowboy up!’: Nebraska’s John Cook buys horse after contract extension

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Nebraska volleyball coach John Cook has bought No. 415.

Cook — who received a contract extension last week — said he would use his retention bonus of $70,000 to buy a horse in central Nebraska.

The Big Ten Coach of the Year proposed to Nebraska Athletic Director Troy Dannen to buy him a horse rather than giving him an escalating salary.

“Troy loved the idea and while they couldn’t specifically write that into the contract, the retention bonus will be used for No. 415,” Cook said in a statement.

In a post to X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, Cook posted a picture of the “Mark Wray trained horse.”

“Time to cowboy up!” Cook said in the post.

The #415 A Pitzer Ranch bred and Mark Wray trained horse. Time to cowboy up! pic.twitter.com/o1OpLT9TZF

— John Cook (@jcook2) June 7, 2024

Cook’s new contract also includes a salary of $825,000 and eligibility for bonuses if the team meets “certain levels of athletic achievement.”

Since 2000, Cook has led the Huskers to four NCAA championships, nine Big 12 titles and four Big Ten titles.

Cook is also a three-time American Volleyball Coaches Association national coach of the year.