Matt Rhule looking to take a step forward with Nebraska
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The Huskers’ coach has been around….but is just four games over .500 in his career
Andrew previewed Rutgers’ 10th opponent of 2026 the other day.
I like Matt Rhule. I think he’s a pretty good coach. And look at the photo accompanying this post? It was taken at this year’s Kentucky Derby — think Greg Schiano is gonna wear that outfit?
Rhule spent 15 years as an assistant at various places, from D3 Albright to Buffalo to UCLA and Western Carolina. In 2013 he got the head job at Temple, not an easy place to win. The Big East years at Temple were disasters; the school was unceremoniously booted from the conference after the 2004 season. But Al Golden resurrected the program, followed by Steve Addazio and then Rhule. In four years in Philly, Rhule went 28-23, including two 10-win seasons with first place finishes in the American Athletic Conference East. That was enough to get him a bigger gig at Baylor.
Rhule took over at Baylor following a sexual assault scandal that brought down its highly successful coach, Art Briles. Rhule took over a winning program and under him, the Bears went just 19-20 in three seasons. It was enough, though, to catapult him to an NFL job with the Panthers. Just like Greg Schiano. And like Schiano, the move seemed like a good idea at the time; but we can forget his NFL stint, an 11-27 record in 2-plus seasons.
Whatever Rhule did at Temple and Baylor, whatever good will he had built up, it carried him to Nebraska without so much as a season off. On November 26, 2022, literally weeks after his firing from the Panthers, Rhule signed an eight-year, $74-million contract to become the 31st head coach of the Huskers. His seat in Carolina hadn’t even cooled off!
Matt Rhule was brought in to restore the glory of Nebraska football that had disappeared under Scott Frost. Frost never had a winning record in four-plus seasons. In his first three seasons in Lincoln, Rhule is just .500 (19-19) but with the last two seasons finishing at 7-6, a big step up from Frost’s dismal results (16-31). Overall, in ten years as a head coach, Rhule is 66-62. And, to be honest, I was surprised at Rhule’s overall record; not the juggernaut I thought it would be.
The Rutgers intersection
While an assistant on the staff at Temple between 2006-11, RU and Rhule’s Temple never met on the field. As a head coach versus Rutgers, Rhule is 1-1 . His Temple Owls lost 23-20 in 2013 (vs. Kyle Flood) and he was the victor in 2024 with the Huskers, 14-7. This will be the second match up with Schiano.
There have been those who see the Nebraska game as winnable for Rutgers. It’s a maybe, for me. It’s at home, a switch from the location of the close loss in Lincoln two years ago. But, like I said at the top: I like Matt Rhule. I think he’s a pretty good coach.
We shall see.
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