Tag: Head coach Matt Rhule

A closer look at Nebraska’s victory over UTEP

The Nebraska Cornhuskers took care of business in week one of the college football season.

The Nebraska Cornhuskers took care of business in week one of the college football season. The Huskers defeated UTEP 40-7 in front of 86,072 fans on Saturday afternoon.

The victory was the Cornhuskers’ first season-opening victory since the 2019 season. Following the game, head coach Matt Rhule praised the fans for creating a home-field advantage.

“There’s not many places in the country where people stay for the whole game. The way that our fans do that is unbelievable, right? Usually, by the end of the game, you can yell out like ‘Hey. Give it to so and so run it.’ We were still having to use the headset. If you noticed in the game, I started off with a single and had to go to a double earphone because it was so loud on the field.

Freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola finished the game 19-of-27 for 238 yards and two touchdowns. Isaiah Neyor led all receivers with six catches for 121 yards and a touchdown.

Malcolm Hartzog Jr. led all tacklers with five solo tackles and an interception. Rahmir Stewart also had a pick during the victory.

Nebraska will now host the Colorado Buffaloes this Saturday at Memorial Stadium. The game will kick off at 6:30 p.m. CT and can be seen on NBC/Peacock.

Find a photo gallery of Nebraska’s victory over UTEP below.

Nebraska announces salaries for Matt Rhule’s coaching staff

The University of Nebraska recently announced the contract and salary details for offensive coordinator and quarterback’s coach Glenn Thomas.

The University of Nebraska recently announced the contract and salary details for offensive coordinator and quarterback coach Glenn Thomas. Thomas will make $800,000 a year, which makes him the third highest-paid member of the coaching staff behind defensive coordinator Tony White and offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield.

White will earn $1.6 million annually after he renegotiated his contract during the offseason. Satterfield will earn an annual salary of $1.4 million. The salary pool for Nebraska in 2024 is $7 million and Matt Rhule is spending approximately $6.78 million this season.

Following Glenn Thomas’ $800,000 salary is secondary and defensive pass game coordinator Evan Cooper, who will earn $670,000, and special teams coordinator Ed Foley, who will be paid $550,000 per year.

You can find the entire Nebraska coaches’ salary breakdown below.

Nebraska falls in overtime to Wisconsin

Based off the first two drives, it seemed as though Nebraska came to dominate on offense against Wisconsin.

Based on the first two drives, it seemed as though Nebraska came to dominate on offense against Wisconsin. But those hopes were soon extinguished on a gutsy fourth-down call by head coach Matt Rhule. Instead of attempting a 50-yard field, the Huskers went for it on fourth and one, only to be halted by the Badgers.

Then everything changed. Wisconsin outscored Nebraska 24-3 from there on out, resulting in a 24-17 overtime win for the Badgers.

Chubba Purdy earned the start for the Huskers and delivered the best showing by a Nebraska quarterback in the last few weeks. Purdy threw for 169 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 105 yards and a touchdown. Purdy’s touchdown pass saw him throw a dot to freshman Jaylen Lloyd, who broke a tackle and took off for a score.

But Nebraska never found its way into the endzone after that. Tristan Alvano sent the game into overtime with a 30-yard field goal after missing a 42-yarder earlier, but the inconsistent offensive play resulted in the loss.

Despite surrendering 24 points, the defense made big stops on the night, including back-to-back fourth down stops and holding Braelon Allen to just 62 yards rushing. Allen did score two touchdowns as Wisconsin slowly but surely worked its way into the endzone each time.

Nebraska falls to 5-6 on the season and will return home to host Iowa on Friday afternoon. The Huskers need to win their season finale to become bowl-eligible. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. and can be viewed on CBS.

Rhule excited about primetime slot against Wisconsin

Nebraska will have a primetime audience for their final two games of the season.

Nebraska will have a primetime audience for their final two games of the season. This Saturday’s against Wisconsin will air on NBC. NBC Sports has announced a broadcast team of Noah Eagle, Todd Blackledge, and Kathryn Tappen.

Head football coach Matt Rhule told the assembled media on Thursday afternoon that he’s looking forward to the spotlight.

“The lifeblood of our program is both player development for the guys we have and recruiting. I want recruits all across the country to watch our defense and say ‘man, I want to go play in that.’ I want recruits to watch our offense and watch us play well this week and say ‘man, I want to be a part of that.’ If we struggle in any one area, I want a guy to say ‘hey, I can come there and help in that.’ But most importantly, I want them to see that N, that iconic white helmet with the red N that I grew up watching as a kid in New York City. I want people all across the country to have a chance to see it.”

The Huskers travel to Madison to take on the Wisconsin Badgers. That contest is set for a 6:30 pm central time kickoff on NBC.

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Husker quarterback discusses relationship with coaching staff

Nebraska starting quarterback Heinrich Haarberg met with the media earlier in the week.

Nebraska starting quarterback Heinrich Haarberg met with the media earlier in the week. The Nebraska native was confirmed as the starting quarterback for this Saturday’s game against Maryland. Haarberg was asked about his relationship with head coach Matt Rhule and offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield as the season has evolved.

“Coach Rhule it’s weird as a first year, especially when I’ve been here. He didn’t recruit me, he met my family for the first time a couple weeks ago, he didn’t know what kind of environment I grew up in, how I handled things and he’s seen how I handled it. He’s just kind of ran with it and as we finish out this year, going into next year he’s getting to know me better and I’m getting to know him better too. How he treats me, some weeks he’s been on me really hard and other weeks he’s kind of backed off, just let me do my own thing. I think it’s a good balance of both.”

The quarterback will lead the Huskers against Maryland this Saturday at Memorial Stadium. Kickoff is set for 11:00 a.m. and the game can be seen on Peacock.

Find a photo gallery of Heinrich Haarberg’s season below.

Rhule uncertain of Sims’ health after ankle injury

Nebraska head football coach Matt Rhule met with the media following the Huskers 36-14 loss to Colorado.

Nebraska head football coach Matt Rhule met with the media following the Huskers 36-14 loss to Colorado. One of the first questions Rhule was asked about was the status of quarterback Jeff Sims, who exited the game with an ankle injury.

“I don’t know anything other than you know. They said hey look maybe like a high ankle (sprain). Then he wanted to go back in and I didn’t see any point of putting him in there you know?”

Sims finished the game nine-of-15 passing for 106 yards with one interception and two fumbles. He also had ten carries for 67 yards and a touchdown.

The loss drops the Cornhuskers to 0-2 on the season. They’ll return home to host Northern Illinois next Saturday at Memorial Stadium.

Find photos from Saturday’s loss below.

Watch: Recap Nebraska’s 36-14 loss to Colorado

Watch: Recap Nebraska’s 36-14 loss to Colorado

Nebraska couldn’t keep up with Colorado through all four quarters. In what was a close game in the first half, Colorado quickly showed why they are one of the new teams to watch this season.

Nebraska now falls to 0-2 on the season. They will return to Lincoln for the home opener against Northern Illinois next Saturday.

Colorado will now host Colorado State next Saturday. Following their game against CSU, the Buffs will travel to Oregon and host USC for their toughest stretch of the season.

Below are all the major highlights and moments of the games that showed the difference between Nebraska and Colorado for the afternoon.

Watch: Matt Rhule gives analysis after first quarter vs Colorado

Watch: Matt Rhule gives analysis after first quarter vs Colorado

Nebraska and Colorado are putting on a defensive showing that sees both teams level at zero a piece. Rhule knew the key to addressing the newfound Colorado attack would be to slow down their tempo that pins the defense on their heels.

Watch Rhule speak to FOX Sports on the sidelines after the first quarter.

WATCH: Three Huskers earn single-digit jersey numbers

We’ve previously reported on the importance Matt Rhule and his staff have placed on single-digit numbers.

We’ve previously reported on the importance Matt Rhule and his staff have placed on single-digit numbers. The head football coach is implementing a system that awards single-digit jersey numbers to the toughest players on the team, a tradition he utilized at Temple and Baylor.

“What we decided was 0 through 9 would go to the nine or 10 toughest guys on the team” Rhule said. “When I say ‘toughest’, we define that for the guys. Really the guys who best exemplify what it means to be a Cornhusker, to be accountable, to be dependable, to be tough, hardworking, competitive every single day. As we get into training camp, the players will vote on it, and we hope it becomes a tradition. As we have embraced all the great traditions that are here, hopefully this will be something new that people will get in to.”

The Nebraska reality show ‘A Look N’ (available on YouTube) gave a behind-the-scenes look at three Huskers earning their single-digit jerseys. Those three Huskers are Nash Hutmacher, John Bullock, and Nick Heinrich.

Watch the special moment below.

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What role did Tom Osborne play in Nebraska’s new 3-3-5 defense

Nebraska head football coach Matt Rhule recently appeared on the Husker Radio Network. The conversation touched on various topics, including Nebraska’s new defense. The Huskers will be running a 3-3-5 scheme this season. Rhule has had some …

Nebraska head football coach Matt Rhule recently appeared on the Husker Radio Network. The conversation touched on various topics, including Nebraska’s new defense.

The Huskers will be running a 3-3-5 scheme this season. Rhule has had some experience with the defense.

When I was at Temple we were really good on defense. We were in the Top 25 for three of the four years. We always mixed around with some three-down (lineman) stuff. We’d run some 3-3 stuff. Then when we got to Baylor, you know it’s a wide-open offense. We played a little bit of it but the last year we ran a true 3-3 and jumped through the roof and won 11 games. That was my history with it, I knew Tony and knew the success he was having.

As Rhule explained to host Greg Sharpe, former Nebraska coach Tom Osborne helped plant the seed of trying something different.

It was really listening to Coach Osborne talk about making Nebraska a place where people have to adjust to something in just two or three days. Again, he was talking about the option. On defense, let’s do something I know a little bit about from my history. Is it simpler? Our guys have taken to it and learned it but a lot of it has to do with their hard work as well.

Nebraska defensive coordinator Tony White has been among the more popular topics of conversation among the Cornhusker faithful. White runs a 3-3-5 base defense. That’s three down linemen, three linebackers, and five defensive backs.

He learned the defense under Rocky Long, who was considered one of the significant influences on the modern spread defense. White’s defenses are known for their aggressive and unorthodox style.