Matt Rhule accepts Nebraska’s challenge after going through a “purifying fire” over three seasons with the Carolina Panthers
In his return to the college game where he made a name for himself, Matt Rhule is reflecting on the lessons learned in the NFL.
Rhule is set to take over the football program at the University of Nebraska this season after an inglorious end to his time in charge of the Carolina Panthers last season.
He was fired five games into his third season with the NFC South team, as the Panthers finished their season with a 7-10 record.
Rhule, who landed that job with the Panthers after success at Temple and Baylor, spoke about his time in Carolina with ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
“Going through the fire in Carolina was a cleansing fire that melts away all the impurities, all the arrogance, all the preoccupation with things that don’t matter,” Rhule told ESPN.
Matt Rhule called his tenure with the Carolina Panthers a ‘cleansing fire’ after he was cut in 2022
Rhule was fired midway through the season as the Panthers battled to a 7-10 record.
‘I learned a lot to care about what matters. I have a focus and a desire in me.
“I saw what my kids had to go through in Carolina, and we’re not going to let them go through that here.”
Rhule went 11-3 in his final season at Baylor in 2019, leading to his promotion to the NFL.
But there, he only managed an 11-27 record and never won more than five games in a season, all while working off a seven-year, $62 million contract.
Carolina had a lot of star power, including running back Christian McCaffrey. But Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield and PJ Walker proved not to be the most effective quarterbacks to lead his system.
Things won’t get any easier for him in Nebraska, a program in something of an identity crisis after racking up six straight losing seasons for the first time since a 1956-1961 stint.
After that 1961 season, the Huskers went on to win five national titles and 20 conference titles under Bob Devaney and Tom Osborne.
But after Osborne’s departure in 1997, with one final national championship to its credit, Nebraska hasn’t maintained its status as a national powerhouse in the sport.
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Now he’s tasked with reviving a Nebraska program that hasn’t had a winning season since 2016.
Nebraska has clinched just one conference title in 25 seasons, including six Big 12 conference championship losses.
Rhule isn’t daunted by his hopes of getting back to the top of the sport, but things could take time.
The Cornhuskers went 4-8 last season, which saw them fire Scott Frost just three games after a 45-42 loss to Georgia Southern.
“We absolutely can be a national power,” Rhule said. ‘I think we can be relevant in the [new world]since the College Football Playoff goes to 12 teams.’
Nebraska begins the Matt Rhule era on August 31 in a rivalry game against Minnesota.
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