University of Nebraska's HuskerVision Deploys Fully IP-based Video Infrastructure

The University of Nebraska's HuskerVision has completed the second phase of a multi-year upgrade programme with the rollout of a fully IP-based video production infrastructure powered by Lawo.

The new deployment follows an audio-focused transformation in 2023, when HuskerVision first introduced IP workflows. The latest upgrade expands the system to video, creating a unified software-based production environment across the university’s major athletic venues.

The system allows multiple control rooms to run simultaneous productions while providing student operators with access to professional-grade broadcast tools.

The earlier audio upgrade introduced HuskerVision to Lawo’s IP ecosystem through mc²56 production consoles, A__UHD Core processing, A__stage 64 and A__mic 8 interfaces, and HOME Management for routing and orchestration.

"Doing audio first was key," recalled recently retired Chief Engineer Scott Guthrie. "We learned timing, stream management, PTP, device discovery—all the fundamentals. When it came time to roll out video, everyone was ready."

The video system, designed and integrated by BeckTV, is based on the SMPTE ST 2110 standard. It connects a wide range of athletic venues across the campus, including Memorial Stadium, Hawks Championship Center, the Devaney Center, Pinnacle Bank Arena, Haymarket Park and the Dillon tennis and Hibner soccer complexes.

All venues are now linked through a single IP backbone feeding three co-located control rooms at Memorial Stadium, enabling more flexible routing and consolidated operations.

At the centre of the infrastructure is Lawo's .edge platform, which functions both as a high-density gateway and as an IP processing node. The system supports 3G-SDI and 12G-SDI ingest while also offering native ST 2110 connectivity through quad-25GbE interfaces.

Garrett Hill, Director of Technology at HuskerVision, said the setup allows the production team to handle a wide variety of incoming feeds from different venues.

"We can bring in signals from any venue—whether five cameras from volleyball or a full football package—and everything just shows up in the fabric," he said. "Routing video or audio essences independently is as easy as moving blocks around."

The new infrastructure has also changed how HuskerVision interacts with outside broadcast trucks at Memorial Stadium. Using .edge for video and A__stage64 for audio, the facility can exchange 24×24 bidirectional signals with national broadcast trucks, supporting 12G-SDI, HDR, SDR and ST 2110 feeds.

"Trucks get whatever flavor they want," said Guthrie. "Up, down, HDR, SDR—it’s all handled right there in the IP edge."

Hill added that the expanded input and output capacity and native processing had transformed the workflow when working with visiting broadcast crews.

Production workflows are further supported by Lawo's HOME Apps, which run on commercial off-the-shelf servers. Tools such as the HOME Multiviewer and theWall layout builder allow monitoring setups to be quickly reconfigured for different events.

BeckTV Senior Engineer Brock Raum said the flexibility of the system was a major advantage.

"From season to season your shows change—and sometimes just from sport to sport. You might have soccer in one control room one day and football in another. With HOME Apps you shut down the tools you don't need and spin up the ones you do. We've played with the webRTC app, downstream keying, UDX—you name it. The flexibility of using COTS hardware with the HOME App system is the highlight of the whole solution. If I need an app for a set of shows, I use FLEX credits. When I don’t, I shut it down and reuse those credits for something else."

All production workflows, including video routing, tally, device control and multiviewer adjustments, are managed through Lawo’s VSM control system.

According to Guthrie, this simplifies the process of switching between different production setups.

"VSM lets us go from a big-screen volleyball show to a press-conference recording setup with one or two clicks. In a schedule where events overlap constantly, that's huge."

HuskerVision productions rely heavily on student operators, with seven full-time staff overseeing a large student team involved in every aspect of production.

Raum said the new system has expanded the technical experience students gain while working on live broadcasts.

"Students are doing real engineering tasks now. They're learning on the same tools used in the broadcast trucks."

Guthrie added: "They learn the backend—how to modify layouts, manage essences, fix routes. And they get it."

Hill said the experience gives students a significant advantage when entering the broadcast industry.

"Training on the best gear helps them get jobs. Our students leave here ready for the industry."

With the new IP backbone in place, HuskerVision can now scale productions more easily, move media between venues more efficiently and support multiple overlapping events.

As Guthrie put it: "Our business is making the fans happy. And with this system, we can do better than ever before."

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