My last article was titled ‘CEO Matt Rhule Needs to Hire a Football Coach’. To do that, you must first have an opening. Head coach Matt Rhule created one today with the firing of defensive coordinator John Butler. I can’t say I’m surprised after the Blackshirts performance this season, but I honestly didn’t expect it to happen.
Butler spent two seasons with Nebraska, being hired as the defensive backs coach in July of 2024 after Evan Cooper suddenly resigned. At the end of the 2024 season DC Tony White left Nebraska to take the same position at Florida State. With the Pinstripe Bowl upcoming, Rhule named Butler the interim DC for the game against Boston College. Many considered it a test run and after the Blackshirts performed reasonably well under Butler he was named the DC for the 2025 season.
With the firing of Butler, this time around, Rhule has named Associate Head coach Phil Snow as interim DC for what many think will be the Las Vegas Bowl. Snow served as Rhule’s DC at both Temple and Baylor. He also was with Rhule at the Carolina Panthers. When Rhule took the Nebraska job he tried to hire Snow as his DC, but Snow declined, suggesting he was ready for retirement. However, with Rhule naming Butler as DC for the 2025 season and adding new defensive coaches Terry Bradden, Phil Simpson, and Addison Williams, he talked Snow into the position of Associate head coach. Snow was to oversee the defense and keep Rhule up to speed.
This is the confusing part for me. Until today when Rhule named Snow the interim DC, when was the last time you heard his name? For someone who was supposed to be Rhule’s right hand man monitoring the defense he’s been relatively non-existent. We’ve all watched the Blackshirts struggle to defend the run, contain mobile QBs, and prevent explosive runs all season. Yet, we’ve never heard Rhule or Butler talk about collaborating with Snow and what could be done differently. What input has Snow had during the season, just how involved has he been? Was Butler left to his own doing or was there a communication breakdown.
I wrote before the season that I had high hopes for the Blackshirts. When you consider Rhule was once a DC, Snow made a living as a DC, Butler was Penn State’s DC at one time, and defensive backs coach Addison Williams served as Gus Malzahn’s DC at UCF, there was a world of knowledge and experience available. So, what happened?
Were there too many cooks in the kitchen, and if so, where does Rhule go from here? I also said when suggesting Rhule hire a football coach, that he brings in someone with experience and not a first time DC or promoted from within. That means hiring someone from outside the program. If so, does Rhule continue a variation of the 3-3-5 or find a 4-3 guy. Does he give him the same autonomy that he gave Holgorsen? And what does that mean for the rest of the defensive staff. And the last question, does he go with the best he can find, someone he doesn’t have a past with like Mike Ekeler, or does he hang on to those old Matt Rhule tendencies of someone he knows.
The answer should be simple. Rhule needs to do what is best for the University of Nebraska football program. That is what he has been hired to do. So, if it requires Rhule to get outside his comfort zone, so be it.
As of now I haven’t heard many names being thrown around, however, I did see a video where Ravi Lulla of Hurrdat Sports suggested the following candidates.
First off was Jim Leonhard who was the defensive backs coach and defensive coordinator at Wisconsin before serving as the interim head coach when Paul Chryst was fired. He left with the hiring of Luke Fickell and has since been with the Denver Broncos.
Next up is SMU defensive coordinator Scott Symons. Lulla suspicioned Symons was in Rhule’s sights before hiring Butler. Symons has been with SMU for four seasons and led them to the college football playoffs last season. Before that he was the DC for the Liberty Flames.
And finally, Justin Wilcox, who was fired this season as the head coach at Cal after nine years. Wilcox served as DC under Chris Petersen at Boise State, under Derek Dooley at Tennessee, again under Petersen at Washington, and under Steve Sarkisian at USC before becoming the head coach at Cal. While he experienced success with multiple teams as a defensive coordinator, he had limited success as a head coach, going 48-55.
With the current coaching cycle there are multiple coaches looking to fill out their staff. It will be interesting to see if Rhule has someone in mind or has had a back-up plan all along. Whoever it might be, one would think Rhule would like to be able to tell his players and recruits who that guy is going to be. Knowing Rhule, I’ll bet he’ll promote from within and I’m not sure that is what’s best for Husker football.
GO BIG RED!!
Stay on top of Husker football at CarrikerChronicles.com