Maybe, just maybe, Matt Rhule wasn't the problem in Charlotte... As the Carolina Panthers continue to circle the drain in Frank Reich's first year at the helm and his predecessor Matt Rhule is doing remarkable things in Lincoln. That's right! Rhule has the Nebraska Cornhuskers 5-3 (3-2) on the year, winners of three in a row and one win away from most sacred bowl eligibility ... with room to spare!
After falling to 0-2 to start the year with losses to Big Ten West foe Minnesota and traditional rival Colorado, the Huskers have actually gone 5-1. They got back into the win column with victories over Northern Illinois and Louisiana Tech in the non-conference before running into the Michigan buzzsaw. Since falling miserably to the Wolverines at home, Nebraska has won its last three conference games.
Riding a three-game winning streak with victories over Illinois, Northwestern and Purdue, the 5-3 Huskers are one game away from achieving bowl eligibility, something that has not happened in the better part of a decade. With a road date at a completely lifeless Michigan State team coming up on Saturday, UNL could be celebrating its sixth win in East Lansing. Just how motivated are these guys?
Look no further than this pregame speech Rhule delivered ahead of the Purdue game to honor those who suffered from breast cancer. It is not strictly about playing for those who have fallen, it is about playing for something bigger. Nebraska went out and handled Purdue 31-14 at home to get to 5-3.
With a strong defense and a changing program that has completely bought into Rhule, UNL is frisky!
Matt Rhule has Nebraska program firing on all cylinders at the right time
While getting to Indianapolis may be a tad unrealistic, the fact we are even having this conversation about Nebraska is incredible. What he did to turn around Baylor and Temple previously got him that job with the Carolina Panthers. It may not have worked out for Rhule in Charlotte for meddling David Tepper reasons, but he is about to have Nebraska football back to being what it was under Bo Pelini.
Truthfully, the days of Nebraska being a national title contender like they were under Tom Osborne and Bob Devaney before that are long gone. However, Rhule is showing that with the right leader in place, Nebraska can get to heights previously achieved by Pelini, Mike Riley and Frank Solich. The Scott Frost era is firmly in the rearview mirror, as this Huskers team is about to go freaking bowling!
With NIL and the transfer portal, Nebraska may have its best chance since Eric Crouch was running the wishbone to perfection under Solich of becoming a national power. An expanded playoff gives Nebraska hope, but Big Ten expansion could make things a bit more challenging. Regardless, Nebraska seems to have struck gold with Rhule, and he is achieving success in Lincoln right away.
It usually takes a year or two for it to flip under Rhule, so what he is doing at Nebraska is remarkable.