Upon Matt Rhule’s arrival at Nebraska he put on his red Nebraska hoodie, threw out his arms and embraced the fans. He talked about huddles and fullbacks while welcoming Frank Solich back. He put Ed Foley on the road and had him visit every high school coach in Nebraska. He made Nebraska kids a priority, signing the top-ranked players in the state over the last three cycles. We loved the idea of guys like Malachi Coleman, Daniel Kaelin, Carter Nelson, and Christian Jones staying home. It was even sweeter knowing we had kept them from going to Colorado, Alabama, Notre Dame or Oklahoma.
In Rhule’s first season we saw long quarterback runs and deep option passes for touchdowns. And in our blindness, we gobbled it up and ignored it was done out of necessity rather than choice. We got goosebumps while watching videos of Rhule saying things like, “If we die, we die,” and couldn’t wait for what he might show us next. Rhule handled us like a puppeteer as he tippy-toed his way into our hearts.
After winning the Pinstripe bowl we were all on board the Rhule train, guzzling the Rhule-aid and asking each other if we’d make the playoffs this coming season or the next. We puffed out or chest and shouted to one another, “We’re back baby!”
But it’s year three and Rhule decided to be Rhule. After he was forced to bring Dana Holgorsen in to save the season, he decided it was time to be his own man. Getting back to where we wanted couldn’t be done our way. Not if Rhule truly wanted to take this program to the top. Without saying it, Rhule told us, “Get out of my way. This is my show now.”
Before the bowl game we saw Coleman and Kaelin transfer out. Since January he’s cut back on access to the team, not letting us inside with videos. No longer able to have a 150-man roster, he killed the spring league, our Bug Eaters, Golden Knights and Rattle Snake Boys. He suggested the walk-on program was dead and that Nebraska kids would be getting cut from the roster. He dumped the series with Tennessee and dashed fan’s hopes of seeing Rocky Top in action. He cancelled our beloved spring game and told us it was all done because of the wild-west NIL and the new limited roster. He told us there would be no depth chart for us to study, scrutinize, and manipulate from spring to the first game. And finally, he passed on the state’s number one recruit in the 2026 cycle, quarterback Jett Thomalla.
Seeing all this, we acted like we were shocked. But we shouldn’t have been. We knew it was coming. We just didn’t want to admit it. We’ve been burned too many times over the last few years and the only way this fan base is ever going to heal is for Nebraska to win. Rhule knows that, and the only way that’s going to happen is for him to ignore what fans want and take control. We must stop dragging him down and let him go. Of course, we won’t like it, we’ll howl and kick like the spoiled brats we are until the wins pile up.
This is Rhule’s Nebraska now. It’s his facility, his team, his staff, his players, and his way. That’s how it was with Bob Devaney and that’s how it was with Tom Osborne. We may have whined about it, but we didn’t stand in their way. We supported them 100% as they won five national championships.
So, it’s time to step aside. Let Rhule be Rhule. If we get burned, we get burned. Believe me, it may be uncomfortable, but nobody’s going to die.
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