Mike Farrell Sports

College Football Recruiting, Opinion, and Analysis

Nebraska Rhule’s B1G Media Days With Substance

Matt Rhule and Nebraska made the best impression at Big Ten Media Days and show the Huskers mean business

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Nov 24
Nov 24

By Rock Westfall

We must admit, we’ve heard it and felt it all before. In 2017, then-Nebraska head coach Mike Riley, fresh off a 9-4 bowl campaign, was touted at Big Ten Media Days as having a Nebraska team ready to contend for the Big Ten title in his third season. Instead, the roof caved in, and Riley was fired after a miserable campaign. In 2019, Riley’s successor, Scott Frost, and sophomore sensation QB Adrian Martinez arrived at Big Ten Media Days. The Big Red was touted as the dark horse team of the year with Martinez a betting favorite to win the Heisman Trophy. Instead, Nebraska floundered and was never a factor. Frost was out three years later, having been one of the biggest flops in college football coaching history.

This week coach Matt Rhule addressed Big Ten Media Days with three players who forsook the chance to play in the NFL to remain Huskers and finish the job of restoring the Big Red to glory. While skeptics can say, “We’ve heard it all before,” there is a much different vibe to the 2024 Huskers. Nebraska is a culture-based program based on reality and substance with zero shortcuts. And its confident head coach expects big things in the season ahead. In response, the media has given its unanimous agreement. 

Preaching the Big Red Gospel 

On Wednesday, Matt Rhule, the preacher’s son, was joined in Indianapolis by safety Isaac Gifford, defensive lineman Ty Robinson, and center Ben Scott. It was a virtuoso performance by all, especially the head coach.

“So now it’s our time to do our part,” Rhule said to the media. “We think we have a really good team, and we think we have a team that people are going to have to deal with this year. I’ve liked the way that they’ve worked.”

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Rhule’s secret to the rebuild is a culture unlike any other in college football. 

“If anything else, in a day and age of college football where everyone is always talking about who’s transferring out, talking about recruiting, these guys and a couple of others made the decision to come back and not go to the NFL, but play another year,” Rhule said of his three players joining him in Indianapolis. “So I’m so grateful to them. I think what we’ll see in this new era of college football is the teams that can stay together and have veteran staffs. Veteran teams are going to be really good, and I think they’ve given us a chance to have a really good team this year.”

Rhule of Readiness for Success 

Matt Rhule says that based on his read of the room, this is the year the Big Red finally returns to the national conversation.

“I think you can tell when a team is ready to make the turn in their body language, in the way that they walk around the building. It’s just confidence,” Rhule said. “For young people nowadays, there’s nothing more than confidence. There’s such a fear of failure because everything’s evaluated.”

Rhule remarked that Nebraska’s confidence is growing, and it shows.

“I think, when I walk through our locker rooms, and I walk through our weight rooms, and I walk out in the field, I see a confident team. I see a team that understands that games are going to come down to the final seconds. And the narrative about close losses, we’re going to turn that into close wins.”

Rhule added that Nebraska has a complete team ready to compete for big things.

“We have a deep receiver room, and we have a deep running back room. We have a veteran offensive line. And we have three quarterbacks that we know can play. I expect us to be great on defense, and I expect us to make a real jump on offense.”

The Challenge of the B1G Gauntlet 

Rhule says the Big Ten should get four teams into the College Football Playoff because it is the best league, calling it “the NFL of college football.”

“For us, we think every game is a big game because we’re playing in it. You didn’t come to Nebraska because you wanted to play an FCS slate. You came here because you want the challenge. I mean, we get to go to the Coliseum and play football. How lucky are we? That’s why you come to Nebraska. That’s why recruiting, competitiveness is my number one trait because I want guys who want to prove it on the field and not anywhere else.”

If Rhule is correct about four Big Ten Teams making the CFP, then, as I pointed out here earlier this week, Nebraska is a serious dark horse in that conversation. 

The Butler Serves Defense 

The ultimate proof that Matt Rhule is a man with a plan who can improvise is new defensive backs coach John Butler, who replaced Evan Cooper. Cooper unexpectedly resigned for “personal reasons,” but Rhule wasted no time getting a highly respected assistant from the NFL. Butler is likely an upgrade to an expected elite defense. Matt Rhule turned what looked like a devastating loss into an immediate win, shutting down the panicked despair of Husker Nation.

“Tony White is one of the best coaches in college football. He’s an amazing defensive coordinator. Terrance Knighton is an amazing defensive line coach. Rob Dvoracek (is an) excellent young linebacker coach. I think John will bring some experience, a second set of eyes, and a guy that the players can trust will make them better.”

A Complete Program Poised to Compete at the Highest Level  

Matt Rhule takes justifiable pride in Nebraska being a complete program of good citizens who contribute to society. Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs would be wise to take notice.

“We’re proud of the players. We have 20 graduates heading into the season. We’ll have ten more in December. So when we go to our bowl game, we’ll have 30 college graduates on our team. At the end of the day, we all want to win, but if you don’t have a purpose that states we want to raise great men, that we want our players — I want our players someday to look back and say, my life is better because I played at the University of Nebraska and I played for those coaches. I can think of no better way of doing that than education, followed closely by community service and giving back. So we’re going to try to win on the football field and off.”

It is a message that attracts quality recruits with maturity and purpose that will translate into wins. 

Nebraska’s Long National Nightmare is Almost Over  

When Nebraska’s favorite son, alum, and 1997 national championship QB Scott Frost came home to save the program, nobody doubted him. But he failed miserably. It was said if Frost couldn’t turn around Nebraska, nobody could.

Ironically, a native New Yorker and Penn State grad is on the cusp of restoring Nebraska to its rightful place as a national contender. Even more ironically, he has done it by being “More Catholic than the Pope” when it comes to Nebraska’s values, having reverence and pride for the state and the program. Rhule perpetually says how much he loves living in Nebraska because of its great people. It’s the genuine enthusiasm of the convert.

Matt Rhule is building a program based on hard work, tenacity, resilience, loyalty, grind, and grit. He knows there are no shortcuts. He recruits both ability and cultural mindset, daring players to turn him down or transfer out. Few do. Rhule offers a complete player experience instead of just the bag. Rhule challenges his players and coaches by demanding excellence without apology.

Nebraska has often put the cart before the horse with a quick-fix mentality when it comes to a return to glory. And it was a spectacular failure. Matt Rhule is taking the long approach, which is making a Nebraska renaissance quicker to achieve.

Nebraska won Big Ten Media days going away. And that’s not all it will win in 2024.

Everyone can see the Big Red is Rising.

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