OMAHA, NEB. - The Omaha Supernovas are less than a week away from beginning their first season.

Working with the Pro Volleyball Federation, it took months of planning, commitment, and coordination for everything to come to fruition. News Channel Nebraska spoke with Supernovas General Manager Diane Mendenhall to learn more.

“It’s exciting, number one, how the league is built. Its foundation is just like the NFL, NBA, NHL,” Mendenhall said. “It’s founded on community ownership. And that’s what guarantees some of our success… When our owners first talked to me about the position, that’s what they said, they said to think if the start of the NFL and that’s what we’re doing.”

Diane Mendenhall has been many things in her life. She spent years as Director of Volleyball Operations for the Huskers, and even worked as a color analyst for Husker Volleyball with John Baylor. Now she works alongside an ownership group consisting of musician Jason Derulo, as well as Omaha businessmen Chris Erickson and Danny White - a group she has confidence in to lead the Supernovas through year one.

“The amount of support they’re surrounding us with, to make sure our operation is first class,” Mendenhall. “To make sure we have the best of the best and all that we need to ensure these players they’re successful.”

Nebraska is known as the volleyball capital of the universe. No matter if it’s for the Huskers, or one of the eight other college teams to make a national tournament, the excitement for volleyball is high. But what about around the country? Of the eight teams in the PVF, five have at least one major professional sports team in their city. Mendenhall again leans on ownership as reason for the league to be successful.

“The local ownership that each team has is significant,” Mendenhall said. “When you think about the investment going into the community, that’s what separates s. It goes back to the NFL and NBA model as for insuring success… It’s part of the community, it’s part of the state. We’re very intentional, we’re the Supernovas, but we’re the Nebraksa pro volleyball franchise. I’m very proud of that.”

Mendenhall notes players are provided housing. Supernova players moved into new furnished apartments upon arriving to Omaha. With venues, salaries, living expenses and many other things, owners and teams are taking a financial risk, but a risk Mendenhall says is a calculated one, and one well worth it.

“They [owners] didn’t come into this to dabble,” Mendenhall said. “One of the final conversations I had with them, I asked, ‘When do you expect to be in the black?’ They said that’s not why we’re doing this. They’re doing this for the passion of the sport and what we want to do for women. Offering these women the opportunity to do something special in the United States, that has never been here at this magnitude.”

The Supernovas begin their season on Jan. 24, hosting Atlanta.