The vibes coming out of the Indiana game were pretty good, all things considered. One play away from knocking off the defending national champs. Nebraska led 17-6 early in the fourth after Colandrea’s 39-yard run, Memorial Stadium was electric, and for a minute it felt like the Huskers had finally brokethrough. Indiana found a way, as national champions tend to do, but the performance itself left the program with some hope to hang onto.
Then came Oregon.
The Ducks started a third-string walk-on at quarterback. The Huskers led 14-6 heading into the fourth. And then Dylan Raiola—the former five-star, the one who was supposed to be the face of this program, the guy who started two seasons in Lincoln before transferring—came off the bench and broke everybody’s heart. He led the two scoring drives that flipped the game, capped it with a four-yard touchdown to Jamari Johnson with 28 seconds left, and walked off Autzen with the win. Just like that, the good vibes were gone.
The vibes were different from the head man on Monday too. Matt Rhule spent nearly 40 minutes tackling everything from dancing in the fourth quarter to special teams fundamentals, the offensive line, tampering, and more. It was a loaded press conference. I’d highly recommend watching the whole thing yourself, guys. Clear some time. It’s almost 40 minutes, but it’s worth it.
Here are the highlights and takeaways. Please note, this is a mashup of quotes that fit the same topic. Please, consider watching the entire press conference.
On the last two losses and where things stand
“Two things can also be true: You can be really, really disappointed, but also really encouraged. Saturday is a game we should have won. Losing the last two weeks, that is unacceptable and not okay. We are also a team two plays away from being a top-ten team. I have failed in each of those last two games. Both are true. We are going to battle on, fight on. We won’t win the games we want to win until we win the fourth quarter, win the line of scrimmage, win fourth down. You don’t get to say I’m going to go play in the pros, then play a pro player and not block them.”
On injuries
Mozee is out for a while. Jamal is hopefully back for Washington. Anthony Jones has a broken foot and needs surgery. Genatone is done for the year after surgery. “That’s kind of the Big Ten. Every team in the Big Ten is beat up.”
Nothing new for October in this league. The bye is well timed for a reason. Depth is going to get tested especially in the running back room, and the teams that keep functioning when the roster looks like this are usually the ones that win the physical battles up front.
On the offense
“You want to run the football and win third down. Those were two of the best third-down defenses in the country. You have to win up front. We have not won enough up front. Traditional offense hasn’t been as good for us.”
Rhule isn’t asking for anything exotic—just the ability to run it and stay ahead of the chains against good fronts. That hasn’t happened enough lately. Early scripts have been good for Holgerson and the offense. But as the game settles in and the offense becomes more traditional, scoring has dropped. This has to change.
On special teams, running backs, and the dancing
They came out of last year deciding they weren’t going to return any kick with over a four-second hang time or anything in the end zone. “Was odds at Ekeler over it, we made a change. Told them to start fair catching it. A lot of fundamental stuff with punt catching that we don’t do. Demand that running backs turn a 6-yard run into an 8-yard run, put their heads down. Jamal and Mehekhi are both elite running backs. Four weeks of camp, seven weeks of football. Bye is well timed. I let them dance at the start of the fourth quarter, I will never let them do that again. Hopefully you can sense my energy. I am not the one out there playing. I do not like using my timeouts until the last two minutes of the game—that’s a core philosophy.”
The dancing part is the one that stuck with people. Leading 14-6 before the fourth at Autzen, the Huskers joined in on Oregon’s “Shout” tradition. Rhule owned it and said it won’t happen again. He called it embarrassing. I am not sure I agree.
The rest is about details: fair catches, punt fundamentals, backs finishing runs instead of dancing in the hole.
The timeout philosophy will raise eyebrows. He says one thing, but consistently shows another. Maybe this will finally change.
On Anthony Colandrea and the support around him
“Gilmer is as good as there is in the Big Ten. Luke is as good as there is at tight end. Oregon had an elite defensive front. Anthony is not doing too much—we have to play better up front. Sometimes the first progression is open and he is waiting for the second one, just throw the first one. He already has SEC schools calling him. We have to run the ball better. Blocking people and handing the football off. They are spying Anthony, that should open more things. We need to look at that.”
On the tampering: “It’s just part of the deal.”
Rhule pushed back on the idea that Colandrea is carrying the offense by himself, in fact he made clear he strongly dislikes that narrative. The skill guys are there. The issue keeps coming back to the front and decision-making on the first read. The spy note is interesting—if defenses are keying him, the run game and intermediate stuff should open up if the line creates lanes.
On the 24-team playoff and looking ahead
“I think it’s great. When they have to come to Lincoln, Nebraska to play a playoff game that will be well, well, well within our favor.”
Rhule mentioned that everyone said preseason Nebraska had no chance against Washington. That game is next after the bye. A blackout game. At night. against a pissed off husker team. I'm excited.
