Let me start by saying I have never once suggested Matt Rhule be fired. I’ve said all along that I think he is the right man for the job. But after the last two games I think his coaching abilities are being scrutinized, and frankly, it’s justified.

That’s what this article is about. I’m not lobbying for a coaching change. I’m looking at the areas I think Rhule needs to improve in and pointing out he is relatively early in his career.

Own Worst Enemy - Stop Oversharing

Rhule explained in his press conference he wants the fans to know what he said to his team. He said they need to hear it, his coaches need to hear it, and perhaps he needed to hear it as well. But let’s face it, he’s only sharing a fraction of what is said in that locker room, so why share any of it. There are two truths, the one he needs to share with the media and fans and the one he needs to share with his team. As he said, two things can be true.

A comment from Rhule in his press conference. “I ain’t the one out there playing. Players, you want to go win down the stretch? You go win down the stretch.”

Let’s face it, the media loved Rhule sharing as much as he did. It gives them more to write and talk about. And the narrative from media is that fans are taking Rhule out of context, that he wasn’t throwing his players under the bus because he took accountability for the loss throughout the rest of his presser.

If Rhule was in fact taking accountability, then his statement of not being on the field didn’t need to be said at all. But he felt the need to point that out. For me it came across as the captain worried about going down with his ship and climbing on his crew’s back to keep his head above water.

It’s these kinds of statements that cause some fans to call him a snake oil salesman. Rhule would be better served to cut his press conferences down to ten to eleven minutes because when he prattles on for thirty plus minutes it comes across as, “The coach doth protest too much, methinks.”

Again, his theme for the press conference, two things can be true. To his point, this is the most talented team he has had, and yet, they are unable to make winning plays when it counts most. Why?

It Falls on Rhule

When talking about Maryland before the game, and I’m paraphrasing, Rhule told his team this is the Big Ten, expect a four-quarter battle, and don’t think you’re going to go out and put 40 points up on this team.

Who says that? Do you think Curt Cignetti, Ryan Day or Dan Lanning tells their teams how many points they aren’t going to score. Rhule is feeding his team negative thoughts and unfortunately, they’re consuming it.

You can prepare your team for a battle, but you don’t tell them what they can’t do or aren’t capable of. As a head coach you must make your team believe there are no limits when it comes to scoring points or who they can beat.  

Your confidence carries through to your players and your assistant coaches. Nebraska’s body language was poor during the fourth quarter at Oregon and that’s a reflection of their head coach. Look at Rhule’s face on the sideline. It seldom ever exudes confidence.

Look at Cignetti’s or Lanning’s. Their players see the intensity and the belief they will win. And they play like it. Rhule’s face and demeanor portray nervousness and a form of panic, and his player’s actions display it when they fall behind.

I don’t know what Rhule says to his players in the locker room or on the sideline. But I see his movement and expressions on the sideline. I see his players on the field. I’ve seen the results in the fourth quarters in the last two weeks.

It’s so bad that as fans, we all expected what happened to happen. Some of that is because we too see Rhule and his actions, they do not instill confidence.

Just as Matt Rhule insists his players get better, fans are insisting that he gets better. We are seeing a better and more talented team, but we aren’t seeing any improvement from the head coach. Rhule must get better. Whether that’s coaching, learning how to use timeouts or becoming a superior motivator. Something needs to change.

Comparisons

People don’t like comparisons, but with Nebraska’s history it’s hard to avoid. And the point I’m trying to make here is that there is still hope for Rhule. In this case, hopefully old dogs can learn new tricks.

We’ve heard Rhule refer to Curt Cignetti and his success, and he’s always quick to point out his bringing players with him from JMU. But Cignetti’s success is due to far more than that.

Fans may look at Cignetti and wonder why Rhule hasn’t been able to replicate what he’s done, but for most Nebraska fans when you’re talking coaches, Tom Osborne is the gold standard. So, we’ll start there and add a similar coach in Barry Switzer. Then we’ll hit on the ‘GOAT’ and go to a couple of Wunderkinds from there. What’s Wunderkind?  It’s someone who achieves great success at a young age. Not to be confused with Wonderkid. Thank you, Ted Lasso.

Matt Rhule is 51 years old, and going into his 11th season he has coached 135 games, with a record of 71-64 overall. He’s in his fourth year at Nebraska and has a 24-21 record. We’ll use those numbers when comparing him. Rhule was 38 years old when he got his first head coaching job.

Tom Osborne was 47 years old and in his 11th season as Nebraska’s head coach when he hit 135 games. His record, 108-25-2. He was still 14 years away from winning the first of his three national championships. Was Osborne a Wunderkind? You decide, He took over as head coach at Nebraska when he was 36 years old. His record after four seasons, 37-10-2, three of his losses were to Switzer. Tom Osborne’s last season at Nebraska was 1997, he was 60 years old when he left with a record of 255-48-3.

Barry Switzer was 49 years old in his 11th season with a record of 106-21-3. He would reach 135 games with 4 more wins, 1 loss and 1 tie. He was a Wunderkind as he took over as OU’s head coach at the age of 37 and in his first four seasons his record was 47-3-2 with 2 National Championships. Switzer’s last season at Oklahoma was 1988, the same age as Matt Rhule, 51. He had been the head coach at Oklahoma for 16 seasons with a record of 157-29-4 and 3 national championships.

Curt Cignetti was 60 years of age in his 11th season and had a record of 100-31. He won three more games and lost 1 to reach 135. Too old to be a Wunderkind, he was 34-12 in his first four seasons. He is now 65 years old and currently has a record of 152-38. He’s in his 16th season and just as he told us, he’s won everywhere he’s been, IUP 53-17, Elon 14-9, James Madison 52-9, and now Indiana 33-3. He was 49 years old when he got his first head coaching job.

Nick Saban was 49 in his 11th season with a record of 91-42-1 with 1 national championship. Just one short of 135 games. He was 38 years old when he got his first head coaching job and in his first four seasons his record was 28-18-1, which doesn’t qualify for Wunderkind. After 28 seasons he finished with a record of 292-71-1 with 7 national championships.

Bob Chesney was 44 years old in his 11th season with a record of 82-38. He reached 135 games a little over a season later with 14 more wins and 1 loss for a record of 96-39. He went 29-14 in his first four seasons. Now 49 years old, he has a head coaching record of 138-52. Like Cignetti, Chesney has won everywhere he’s been, Salve Regina 23-9, Assumption 44-16, Holy Cross, 44-21, James Madison 21-6, and now 6-0 at UCLA. He was 33 years old when he got his first head coaching job.

Room to Grow

I’ve compared Rhule to some very successful coaches and a couple who are still hammering away. The point is, Rhule has room to grow. All the coaches I’ve listed got better as they coached more games and got more experience. Every one of them listed has more coaching experience than Rhule. Fans don’t want to hear it, but let’s see where Rhule is at in another 55 games. Or in Osborne’s case, 14 more seasons.

Games Coached

Nick Saban – 364, 7 national championships

Tom Osborne – 306, 3 national championships

Barry Switzer – 190, 3 national championships

Curt Cignetti – 190, 1 national championship

Bob Chesney – 190

Matt Rhule – 135

It’s not all about Rhule’s team getting better. It’s about Rhule getting substantially better as well.

GO BIG RED!! SIMPLE, FAST, VIOLENT!!

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