Matt Rhule was lured away from a highly successful tenure at Baylor by the NFL’s Carolina Panthers in 2020 and awarded a seven-year deal worth $62 million.
However, his teams only won 11 of 38 games over parts of three seasons, and he was fired in November 2022.
Now the head coach of Nebraska, Rhule is attempting his third such program resurrection after successful stints at Temple and then Baylor.
He could not immediately break the string of losing seasons for the proud Cornhuskers, and 2023’s 5-7 finish marked the seventh straight campaign under .500.
But Rhule continues to be optimistic, and he credits his tough tenure in the NFL with readying him for yet another pressure cooker.
Rhule told The Joe Klatt Show that his time as an NFL head coach prepared him to take the top job at Nebraska.
Matt Rhule says his NFL coaching experience prepared him to be the head coach of @HuskerFootball 🤝 pic.twitter.com/EsYO67W8Yc
— The Joel Klatt Show: A CFB Pod (@JoelKlattShow) July 3, 2024
The state is frenzied about its flagship college football program, and every decision regarding the team is “magnified 10x over.”
Rhule said such an atmosphere could overwhelm a coach who is not confident in who they are, and a weaker person could end up compromising when they shouldn’t.
He recalled going from the highs of being named National Coach of the Year to being a meme and the butt of jokes on SportsCenter.
The experience of hearing tens of thousands of Panthers fans screaming for his job grounded Rhule and made him realize that the game is not about him.
As he explained, all achievements are a credit to the players, and he wants most to be a coach known for caring for his team.
