LINCOLN, Neb. — The storm has raged around Matt Rhule since the Nebraska football team returned home after its regular-season finale last week, a 13-10 loss to Iowa that kicked up plenty of dust on its own. In the center of it all, Rhule said, he feels the calm.
“Everybody’s kinda flipping out a little bit right now,” Rhule said. “I tried to prepare everybody.”
Since Monday, the Huskers lost Tony White as defensive coordinator to Florida State and defensive line coach Terrance Knighton. Eight players entered the transfer portal or announced their intentions to jump when the portal opens next week for undergraduates.
But the Huskers are not falling apart, Rhule said.
“A lot of people want to come here right now,” he said.
Players want to come, Rhule said, evidenced by the 20 recruits out of high school who signed with the Huskers on Wednesday. The class ranks 21st nationally, according to On3, and sixth in the Big Ten. Nebraska flipped pledges from Oregon and Alabama ahead of signing day and turned wide receiver Cortez Mills of Homestead, Fla., from Oklahoma in the final hours.
𝙇𝙤𝙖𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜…
██▒▒▒▒▒▒▒ #2FiveCrew 🎨 pic.twitter.com/LjoZ0T71Jl— Nebraska Football (@HuskerFootball) December 3, 2024
Top athlete Jeremiah Jones of Murray, Ky., was the last to sign. He faced late pressure to flip, Rhule said.
“If no one’s trying to take our players and no one’s trying to take our coaches,” Rhule said, “it means we’re in trouble. And so that’s what it’s going to be. The thing I’m seeing is that people all over the country are saying, ‘Nebraska is one of those places with resources, so hey coach, I’d love to come coach there or I’d love to come play there.’”
The group includes eight four-star prospects and six of the top seven recruits from the state of Nebraska — a bellwether of the Huskers’ effectiveness in recruiting.
“It’ll all be fine,” Rhule said. “It’ll all be great.”
Other takeaways from Rhule’s comments on signing day:
Staff in transition
Nebraska announced on Monday that Dana Holgorsen, the offensive coordinator for the final three games of the regular season, signed a two-year contract. In addition to the departures of White and Knighton, Rhule announced on Wednesday that Nebraska has hired Daikiel Shorts from Kentucky as a wide receivers coach.
Shorts, 30, played for Holgorsen at West Virginia and coached for him at Houston. Shorts will be with Nebraska for its bowl game. No coaches have been let go, Rhule said. As Holgorsen used in previous stops, the Huskers might employ an inside receivers coach and an outside receivers coach.
GO DEEPER
Dana Holgorsen signs 2-year deal to remain Nebraska’s new offensive coordinator
The plan for Marcus Satterfield, who was demoted last month from offensive coordinator, is to continue to coach tight ends.
Rhule said he’ll hire a defensive coordinator before selecting an assistant to work with the defensive line. Secondary coach John Butler will coordinate the Nebraska defense in the bowl game.
Butler is a candidate to earn the permanent job, Rhule said. Butler, 51, joined the Huskers in July, several months after he stepped down from his job as secondary coach with the Buffalo Bills after he was passed over for their defensive coordinator position.
“I brought John in knowing that at some point Tony was going to leave,” Rhule said. “That’s one of the reasons we hired John, in case this happened.”
White made clear in his time at Nebraska that he aspired to climb the coaching ladder. Rhule said he didn’t want to lose White, but that move to Florida State made sense to help get him closer to some family members.
No timetable exists to find a permanent defensive coordinator, Rhule said, “other than just to get it right.”
“I can’t tell you the amount of people who are interested in the job. I’m talking about sitting, current Power (4) coordinators.”
Defensive plan remains
White’s defense ranked 11th in 2023 in yards allowed per game. This year, it’s 19th through 12 games. Rhule said he has no plans to change from the 3-3-5 defensive philosophy and scheme under a new coordinator.
“What’s important to me,” Rhule said, “is I like the way we play defense. I want to do this defense.”
It will be a new-look group. The Huskers lost multi-year starters in Ty Robinson, Nash Hutmacher and Jimari Butler up front, John Bullock, MJ Sherman and Mikai Gbayor at linebacker and Isaac Gifford, DeShon Singleton and Tommi Hill in the secondary.
Backups James Williams, Princewill Umanmielen, Stefon Thompson and Vincent Jackson also plan to enter the portal.
“We’re going to play great defense,” Rhule said, “and we’re going to have great defensive players who go on to get drafted.”
Busy portal season ahead
Rhule said he expects the Huskers to add 10 to 15 players from the portal in the offseason ahead. They plan to host visitors on campus on the weekend of Dec. 13-15 during bowl practice sessions.
“I don’t think there’s any position we wouldn’t look at,” he said. “We’re going to bring in competition and let guys compete, let the best players play and rotate.”
Nebraska is well positioned to land portal talent because of resources held by its collective, the 1890 Initiative, Rhule said. His stance on the portal has changed in the past year, he said, as the terms of the NCAA v. House settlement came into focus.
The 105-player roster limit essentially scraps the Rhule plan from two years ago to build depth through a robust walk-on program. He faces decisions that will lead to a roster reduction of 30 to 50 players before next season.
Rhule said he directed a presentation on Monday for the Huskers that covered the basics of the 105-player limit and revenue sharing, which is set to enter the equation in July 2025.
“We’re going to be aggressive in high school recruiting,” Rhule said, “and we’re going to be aggressive in the portal because that’s just the new way of doing things.”
The NCAA has forced Rhule’s hand, he said. He wants his players to understand the facts.
“I tried to warn people that there’d be a lot of attrition, a lot of scary attrition,” Rhule said, “but it’s all part of what has to happen right now. … I’m just telling you, this is like nothing you’ve ever seen before. I mean, it’s just completely different this year.”
Shifting QB picture
With the departure of freshman Danny Kaelin to the portal, the Huskers are left with Dylan Raiola and Heinrich Haarberg as returning quarterbacks who were recruited to Lincoln on scholarship.
Rhule said that Nebraska committed Haarberg, a fifth-year senior in 2025, to allow him to focus on other positions.
“He really wants to be a pro player with his athleticism,” the coach said.
The Huskers signed TJ Lateef of Orange, Calif. He took his high school, Orange Lutheran, to the semifinal round of the CIF-Southern Division 1 playoffs last month.
“We’re really high on TJ,” Rhule said.
Still, expect Nebraska to look in the portal for another quarterback.
“If we need to get a third guy to be in that room, then we would do it,” Rhule said. “We probably will. Heinrich obviously gives us some flexibility.”
Rhule said he thought that Kaelin “did everything the right way.”
“I respect him,” Rhule said. “I think he’s going to be a great player. We’d love to have him here.”
Jalyn Gramstad, a walk-on who joined Nebraska out of the NAIA ranks last summer, is practicing this month before the bowl game. Gramstad has one year of remaining eligibility — but he did take part in the senior day ceremony last month. Gramstad is undecided on a plan for next year, Rhule said.
(Photo of Matt Rhule, right: Dylan Widger / Imagn Images)
