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Rhule is the right HC for Nebraska

He’ll be here at least 3 more seasons, minimum…I’m as pissed and cranky as anyone on this board but sometimes you just have to ride out the hand you’re dealt…we’ve sucked for the past 20 years…if this is peak Rhule, what’s a few more years of sucking?
Who knows. Maybe Dana and Dylan are great next year and save our bacon.
 
And what would that “young and hungry” coach do differently?

I can assure you that Rhule is working harder than any coach I’ve seen other than Callahan who is his equal. So the younger coach wouldn’t work harder. He wouldn’t recruit harder.

So what would that hypothetical coach give us?

And what would a young coach’s staff look like? What tenured coaches would come with him?

We saw what Frost brought with him. He was young ((and not hungry). Coaches build their Rolodex over a long period of years. Young coaches do not have a lengthy list of contacts they can lean into when hiring to fill a staff.

Be careful about what you’re asking for my friend.
Working hard does not equal to being a great coach, far from it.
 
Rhule got exactly what he wanted. A long term padded contract.

In my profession if you pay someone a guarantee the results are poor compared to those who are hungry and work for it

We look clueless. I get why people are rallying behind him, why not? Take the high road. We are stuck with him.

We’ve been stuck. This guy is no different. We lost to every decent coach on the schedule sans Deon
Being stuck with Matt is no different than lots of guys who are stuck with a wife they'd love to divorce but can't afford to because the child support or alimony would financially destroy them for years. No difference.
 
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Being stuck with Matt is no different than lots of guys who are stuck with a wife they'd love to divorce but can't afford to because the child support or alimony would financially destroy them for years. No difference.
At least Rhule is likeable. On the other hand nobody but HUSKERBILL is willing to sleep with him. 🤡
 
One of the greatest athletes to ever play?

You have some mighty high standards

Also, he took a team from the very bottom to 9-3 in two seasons. I’ll take that mediocre launch as well.
13-11 at Colorado. Looks mediocre to me.
 
Working hard is just wasted energy if you don’t have a solid plan of where you are going. Rhule’s plan was to load up with walkons and track stars that don’t know football. I am not sure what value Rhule really adds. He’s had two seasons to put his stamp on this team. What are we good at? Where are we clearly better than before he arrived?
Good defense, but at the cost of offense and apparently special teams.
 
He’ll be here at least 3 more seasons, minimum…I’m as pissed and cranky as anyone on this board but sometimes you just have to ride out the hand you’re dealt…we’ve sucked for the past 20 years…if this is peak Rhule, what’s a few more years of sucking?
Matt will be here for a few more seasons due to finances. I have no problem with that.
Those who think he is gonna turn this into a championship program are fooling themselves.

The college football world is totally different in Year 3 unlike his other two schools. Lose a ton of experienced, senior talent, others moving into the portal, the roster reduction to 105. It's not the same as Temple or Baylor.
Just because he did it there, doesn't mean he'll do it here.
 
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At least Rhule is likeable. On the other hand nobody but HUSKERBILL is willing to sleep with him. 🤡
Riley was likeable too.
If we wanted a likeable coach we could have just kept him and saved ourselves the aggravation and not be on the hook for a shit ton of money besides.
 
I’ve seen some complete idiocy written here since last night. So here goes.

Work ethic
NO ONE has worked harder in his position since Bill Callahan. I’ve spent some time in the offices at the stadium over the last 20 years and can tell you that Callahan was the hardest worker I had seen. Rhule is the only one that is gis equal. Where Rhule exceeds him is in his ability to connect with people and reverence he has for Nebraskas past. For those who are wondering, Frost was the laziest coach we have ever had and the gap between him and 2nd worst is the Grand Canyon.

At Nebraska, you have to be absolutely tireless in your approach or it won’t work. The recruiting and the pressures from the local Legion guys, ex players, women with babies on the street for your attention require it. There aren’t many coaches out there that have what Rhule has in this department.

Time
There are a lot of ghosts here. Lots of people with long memories. For as much blame as people have for the players losing games like tonight, how many of us were waiting for the inevitable late turnover vs Iowa so we would lose 13-10. It takes time to erase those completely. Just does. We are a unique fan base here with incredible knowledge. But that knowledge also brings a burden of remembering every loss. That alone keeps a dark cloud here that makes it a little tougher to break through. It’s a pressure that everyone feels and makes us our own worst enemy.

Despite “us” we had a freshman QB starting this season. The kid is still learning and had to do it under an absolutely awful OC for his first season. Freshman QBs make mistakes. The kid is a student of the game and will learn. Kid needs time. So here we are.

Contract
Are we really going to fire him right now and pay yet another coach to not coach Nebraska. We paid $32M to previous coaches when we fired them. Frost got $15M.

Rhule has the 6th largest buyout in college football. If we fire him today we owe roughly $58M. He gets 90% of his contract if we fire him. And it’s due within 24 months of his firing.

The next coach that would come in would require a similar contract.

Do you buffoons really want to be paying $25M in head salaries next season to have another guy running the ship (who history shows may or may not work!) or would you rather just calm down and realize that

1. We made progress this season and are going to a bowl
2. We just hired arguably the best OC in college football
3. Our S&C coach is one of the best in the business. We look different than in the past and our lack of injuries on the field support what coach is doing.
4. Our defense has been good. Our DC has shown that he knows what it takes requires to shut down too running games in the Big 10. Ty Robinson surely helped with that.

The future is fine. Take a deep breath and support Rhule. He’s the right man for the job and, frankly, you don’t have a choice.


With that being said, if he doesn’t fire his special teams coach, then that’s on him and deserves all of your vitriol you give him. Our special teams literally cost us 2-3 wins this season.
Kqfp.gif
 
Riley was Joe Biden in disguise he was a joke he was lost only reason he took the job was money
If Matt wasn't about money he wouldn't have Carolina's feet to the fire to get his in addition to holding up NU for a contract more fitting for an actual proven winner as a coach. If Matt's not in it for the money, see if he'd take a reduction in pay.
 
Matt will be here for a few more seasons due to finances. I have no problem with that.
Those who think he is gonna turn this into a championship program are fooling themselves.

The college football world is totally different in Year 3 unlike his other two schools. Lose a ton of experienced, senior talent, others moving into the portal, the roster reduction to 105. It's not the same as Temple or Baylor.
Just because he did it there, doesn't mean he'll do it here.
So glad someone here can predict the future! What stocks should I buy?
 
Well he’s right. We’re not going to pay a 50 million dollar buyout. That said when firing a head coach you HAVE to have a good idea of a better coach to replace him with. Not only do you have to buy out Rhule, you likely have to buy out the contract of the guy you want to hire. Rhule isn’t going anywhere. You fire a coach who gets you to a bowl game for the first time in 7 years and good luck hiring the next guy.
If he has 6 losses next season like this year, which is a high probability, then I'd say he very well could be shown the door, it's hard to get to season # 4 when nothing gets better. Hope I'm wrong, but until he proves in season 3 that he is a good coach, I will say next year will be lot of this year.
 
If Matt wasn't about money he wouldn't have Carolina's feet to the fire to get his in addition to holding up NU for a contract more fitting for an actual proven winner as a coach. If Matt's not in it for the money, see if he'd take a reduction in pay.
Why don’t you take a cut at work now that the price of bullsh!t has dropped.
 
If Matt wasn't about money he wouldn't have Carolina's feet to the fire to get his in addition to holding up NU for a contract more fitting for an actual proven winner as a coach. If Matt's not in it for the money, see if he'd take a reduction in pay.
With the payout from Carolina would we actually be on the hook for 50 million plus?
 
I’m tired, I’m bitter and still in disbelief.

Trying to look at the positives here but understand why we bitch and complain. Because us long term fans remember when we were good and I have never, ever accepted what we have become. I hurt because I care and I think that’s what pisses me off more than anything. I can want, wish and hope for greatness but they (the coaches and players) have to want it more than me or any of us.

I’m a coach. The greatest feeling you can have is when your players finally get it and are able to be that coach, that presence on the field and win for themselves. Don’t know if we’ll ever get there.
 
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If he has 6 losses next season like this year, which is a high probability, then I'd say he very well could be shown the door, it's hard to get to season # 4 when nothing gets better. Hope I'm wrong, but until he proves in season 3 that he is a good coach, I will say next year will be lot of this year.
Next year, he'll have that built in excuse that the roster reduction has changed the game and it will take a year or so to get a handle on it. Meanwhile, keep that money rolling right on in to this program.
 
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With the payout from Carolina would we actually be on the hook for 50 million plus?
I don't know nor do I care. Most of us like Matt, we know we're stuck with him.
Doesn't mean we can't ride his ass and expect better when he fvcks up. No coach is ever immune, ever TO.
 
Next year, he'll have that built in excuse that the roster reduction has changed the game and it will take a year or so to get a handle on it. Meanwhile, keep that money rolling right on in to this program.
Tom and only had 85 scholarships. Nobody better try to make 105 an excuse.
 
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I’m tired, I’m bitter and still in disbelief.

Trying to look at the positives here but understand why we bitch and complain. Because us long term fans remember when we were good and I have never, ever accepted what we have become. I hurt because I care and I think that’s what pisses me off more than anything. I can want, wish and hope for greatness but they (the coaches and players) have to want it more than me or any of us.

I’m a coach. The greatest feeling you can have is when your players finally get it and are able to be that coach, that presence on the field and win for themselves. Don’t know if we’ll ever get there.
In my case, I'm not hurt because its just a football game/team. I'd say its more disgusted.
 
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I don't know nor do I care. Most of us like Matt, we know we're stuck with him.
Doesn't mean we can't ride his ass and expect better when he fvcks up. No coach is ever immune, ever TO.
I’ve discounted the chance of us firing him anytime soon but I think Carolina still pays him for 2-3 more years. Our buyout might not be what I thought.
 
I’ve seen some complete idiocy written here since last night. So here goes.

Work ethic
NO ONE has worked harder in his position since Bill Callahan. I’ve spent some time in the offices at the stadium over the last 20 years and can tell you that Callahan was the hardest worker I had seen. Rhule is the only one that is gis equal. Where Rhule exceeds him is in his ability to connect with people and reverence he has for Nebraskas past. For those who are wondering, Frost was the laziest coach we have ever had and the gap between him and 2nd worst is the Grand Canyon.

At Nebraska, you have to be absolutely tireless in your approach or it won’t work. The recruiting and the pressures from the local Legion guys, ex players, women with babies on the street for your attention require it. There aren’t many coaches out there that have what Rhule has in this department.

Time
There are a lot of ghosts here. Lots of people with long memories. For as much blame as people have for the players losing games like tonight, how many of us were waiting for the inevitable late turnover vs Iowa so we would lose 13-10. It takes time to erase those completely. Just does. We are a unique fan base here with incredible knowledge. But that knowledge also brings a burden of remembering every loss. That alone keeps a dark cloud here that makes it a little tougher to break through. It’s a pressure that everyone feels and makes us our own worst enemy.

Despite “us” we had a freshman QB starting this season. The kid is still learning and had to do it under an absolutely awful OC for his first season. Freshman QBs make mistakes. The kid is a student of the game and will learn. Kid needs time. So here we are.

Contract
Are we really going to fire him right now and pay yet another coach to not coach Nebraska. We paid $32M to previous coaches when we fired them. Frost got $15M.

Rhule has the 6th largest buyout in college football. If we fire him today we owe roughly $58M. He gets 90% of his contract if we fire him. And it’s due within 24 months of his firing.

The next coach that would come in would require a similar contract.

Do you buffoons really want to be paying $25M in head salaries next season to have another guy running the ship (who history shows may or may not work!) or would you rather just calm down and realize that

1. We made progress this season and are going to a bowl
2. We just hired arguably the best OC in college football
3. Our S&C coach is one of the best in the business. We look different than in the past and our lack of injuries on the field support what coach is doing.
4. Our defense has been good. Our DC has shown that he knows what it takes requires to shut down too running games in the Big 10. Ty Robinson surely helped with that.

The future is fine. Take a deep breath and support Rhule. He’s the right man for the job and, frankly, you don’t have a choice.


With that being said, if he doesn’t fire his special teams coach, then that’s on him and deserves all of your vitriol you give him. Our special teams literally cost us 2-3 wins this season.
He doesn’t need to just fire his awful ST coach. He needs to go out and hire the best ST coach there is to turn it around regardless whether he knows the guy or not.
 
I’ve seen some complete idiocy written here since last night. So here goes.

Work ethic
NO ONE has worked harder in his position since Bill Callahan. I’ve spent some time in the offices at the stadium over the last 20 years and can tell you that Callahan was the hardest worker I had seen. Rhule is the only one that is gis equal. Where Rhule exceeds him is in his ability to connect with people and reverence he has for Nebraskas past. For those who are wondering, Frost was the laziest coach we have ever had and the gap between him and 2nd worst is the Grand Canyon.

At Nebraska, you have to be absolutely tireless in your approach or it won’t work. The recruiting and the pressures from the local Legion guys, ex players, women with babies on the street for your attention require it. There aren’t many coaches out there that have what Rhule has in this department.

Time
There are a lot of ghosts here. Lots of people with long memories. For as much blame as people have for the players losing games like tonight, how many of us were waiting for the inevitable late turnover vs Iowa so we would lose 13-10. It takes time to erase those completely. Just does. We are a unique fan base here with incredible knowledge. But that knowledge also brings a burden of remembering every loss. That alone keeps a dark cloud here that makes it a little tougher to break through. It’s a pressure that everyone feels and makes us our own worst enemy.

Despite “us” we had a freshman QB starting this season. The kid is still learning and had to do it under an absolutely awful OC for his first season. Freshman QBs make mistakes. The kid is a student of the game and will learn. Kid needs time. So here we are.

Contract
Are we really going to fire him right now and pay yet another coach to not coach Nebraska. We paid $32M to previous coaches when we fired them. Frost got $15M.

Rhule has the 6th largest buyout in college football. If we fire him today we owe roughly $58M. He gets 90% of his contract if we fire him. And it’s due within 24 months of his firing.

The next coach that would come in would require a similar contract.

Do you buffoons really want to be paying $25M in head salaries next season to have another guy running the ship (who history shows may or may not work!) or would you rather just calm down and realize that

1. We made progress this season and are going to a bowl
2. We just hired arguably the best OC in college football
3. Our S&C coach is one of the best in the business. We look different than in the past and our lack of injuries on the field support what coach is doing.
4. Our defense has been good. Our DC has shown that he knows what it takes requires to shut down too running games in the Big 10. Ty Robinson surely helped with that.

The future is fine. Take a deep breath and support Rhule. He’s the right man for the job and, frankly, you don’t have a choice.


With that being said, if he doesn’t fire his special teams coach, then that’s on him and deserves all of your vitriol you give him. Our special teams literally cost us 2-3 wins this season.
I agree, but for different reasons.
1) This program was in an absolute talent black hole when Rhule arrived. We had zero drafted players in 2024. We had two 6th rounders in 2023 and both guys were one-year transfers. We've had a grand total of two guys get drafted higher than the 3rd round in 10 years. People for some reason don't believe the Jimmies and Joes applies to Nebraska, but then when we see an opposing RB run the length of the field against us we seem POed. Bottom line is talent MATTERS. A LOT. Go back and look at the number of players drafted in the 80s, 90s, and the first years of the 2000s. Rhule is finally getting a lot of these highly rated recruits to look at us.
2) We appear to now have two good coordinators and a pretty good staff overall. I wish that Satterfield had been fired earlier but I believe that Holgerson is a win for the program. I would like to see what Tony White can do with even more talent.
3) We have a good young group. The senior veterans (except for Ty Robinson and Nash Hutmacher) have been largely disappointing. Ty Robinson was the best recruit of the Frost years and he finally developed under Rhule. The other guys are marginal athletes that are probably better on this team than they would be elsewhere. Only two guys in all five seasons of Frost actually developed into good players: Cam Jergens and Cam Taylor-Britt. The rest floundered and left only to become better players elsewhere.
4) Our win over Colorado is an indication of what happens when you try to build a program almost all on transfers. They got better as the year went along but at the start of the season they were not a good team. The idea of blowing it up every offseason will have consequences as well. Indiana is a fluke and it appears they are coming back to Earth.
5) We need to get over the past. All of the shit coaches, all of the 'curse' BS. All of the crap about how great Pelini, etc was despite nobody else but a mid-major wanting him. Pelini won early on BECAUSE OF CALLAHAN's recruits. It was a fluke, along with playing in relatively weak conferences at the time. Solich took a program at the height of college football, the Alabama of the 90s, and turned it into a mediocre team that got boat-raced by good teams. Callahan was a good recruiter and it's entirely possible that given a chance to replace his DC (or had he been willing), he might have done reasonably well going forward. He has left HC and doesn't seem to want to do it anymore. Riley was a bad coach and a fit only at Oregon St where mediocre-at-best is fine. Frost was the all-time worst.
6) College football is a completely different world now. The super-conferences make it hard to win a majority of games. Iowa and Indiana avoided tough opponents the whole year and lost when they played anyone. That won't happen a lot going forward. Michigan is one year removed from an undefeated championship team and is going to finish 6-6. USC is full of NFL talent and appeared at the start of the season to be a sure-thing playoff team. They will finish 6-6. Don't be surprised if a 2 or 3 loss team wins the playoff. OSU spent 20 million and Texas close to that to position themselves for a chance. We will have to put up big NIL funds to get into the higher eschelon. Matt Rhule gets that. I'm not sure a lot of coaches from the old school will.
 
I’ve discounted the chance of us firing him anytime soon but I think Carolina still pays him for 2-3 more years. Our buyout might not be what I thought.
A lot of us see little upside to keeping Matt, but he's not going anywhere for a year or so. As bad as the NU reputation is we would be totally crucified in letting him go before his "magical" 3rd year turnaround happens.

After another dismal year next year, there may be a real topic of conversation to let him go regardless of cost.
 
A lot of us see little upside to keeping Matt, but he's not going anywhere for a year or so. As bad as the NU reputation is we would be totally crucified in letting him go before his "magical" 3rd year turnaround happens.

After another dismal year next year, there may be a real topic of conversation to let him go regardless of cost.
I think this next year costs us like 2 million. Sooo IF Dannen was sure Rhule couldn’t get it done next fall I don’t believe there’s as much keeping him from firing him as I thought. That said, I don’t see the guy out there that I’m sure would be better. I guess if I was in Dannen’s shoes I’m keeping Rhule for at least 3 more years and shuffling the staff deck. It’s a gamble regardless of what we do and churning head coaches hasn’t worked. Assistants are WAY cheaper. That said, I think he has an OC he can work with.
 
Frame it however you want. History will always now show that Matt Rhule was the head coach at Nebraska when we lost THAT GAME to Iowa. THAT GAME was exactly the reason Matt Rhule was hired—to avoid THAT GAME from happening again. Was this a result of some deep embedded expectation in the current players heads that whenever they play, they will probably find a way to lose? Maybe. But Rhule’s job was to change that mentality. To put together a coaching staff and roster of players who expect to win every Saturday. So far, he has failed. In a desperate move, Rhule brings in Dana Holgorsen and the end of the season to save the sinking offensive ship and replace Rhule’s pick, Marcus Satterfield, who frankly doesn’t have the acumen to be an OC at any level. And how about our Specials Teams Coach? Sigh, I don’t really need to keep going—action speaks louder than words. I get the financial aspect—that’s a lot of $ to send Matt packing. I’ll be interested to hear other’s opinions on where we should go from here, but in the meantime, Matt Rhule has etched his name in Husker football history as the head coach when we lost THAT GAME.
 
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