Slow yer Roll
Special Teams Player
Horses in the trenches.
Makes coaches look good.
Makes skill players look good.
Makes coaches look good.
Makes skill players look good.
Coaches, players or both?
- Thread starter lo country
- Start date
And I am excited to see one guy go on the last day...And count the UFA's as "drafted". It's telling how few we put into the league right now.
floridacorn
Five-Star Recruit
If it's the players, it's still the coaches. They should know better than anybody what they have. If it isn't ready or good enough, it's exponentially easier to address that immediately today than it was in the past.
I'm trying to give Rhule every benefit of the doubt possible, but next season is a year in which a lot of guys he recruited and developed will be 2nd & 3rd year players. There needs to be dramatic improvement in those players individually for me to have any faith he's the right coach. Keona Davis is a prime example. As a RFre, he barely played. As a Fre, he started & struggled. Next season, he should be poised to parlay that experience into dramatically better play.
The Raiola question is an interesting one because I see things from him I can't imagine these experienced QB guru's are OK with. Specifically, the deep balls that he throws. The back shoulder fades are moon balls. I've never seen that from anybody, ever. The 50/50 balls are generally not accurate & are thrown in much the same manner. If anything, he's turning them into 20/80 balls and this is an area where truly special QB's flip those odds in their favor significantly.
I'm trying to give Rhule every benefit of the doubt possible, but next season is a year in which a lot of guys he recruited and developed will be 2nd & 3rd year players. There needs to be dramatic improvement in those players individually for me to have any faith he's the right coach. Keona Davis is a prime example. As a RFre, he barely played. As a Fre, he started & struggled. Next season, he should be poised to parlay that experience into dramatically better play.
The Raiola question is an interesting one because I see things from him I can't imagine these experienced QB guru's are OK with. Specifically, the deep balls that he throws. The back shoulder fades are moon balls. I've never seen that from anybody, ever. The 50/50 balls are generally not accurate & are thrown in much the same manner. If anything, he's turning them into 20/80 balls and this is an area where truly special QB's flip those odds in their favor significantly.
floridacorn
Five-Star Recruit
I would add speed makes geniuses out of coaches
presidentjlh
All-Conference
If we go 8-4 or better next season I’ll be placated.
Looking through and reading Bios of the staff, here is one concerning thing on D. We lost White, Knighton and Cooper to FSU and the guys Rhule brought in were guys he'd coached with before. I know familiarity is important, but bringing in guys from Temple and UCF to me is an issue. They don't understand the culture of the B1G. The physicality of the B1G. Its another example of square peg meets round hole. Even Bradden was the asst to the asst regional manager DL coach at KC....Yes he was on the KC staff, but how much did he "coach" vs being around it. KS runs a base 4-2-5, but he's brought in to run a 3-3-5 DL with no legit NT. Same with Butler. He's not a 3-3-5 guy.
Bo had to adjust to the B1G, Riley, Frost and now Rhule....Maybe look to the B1G or SEC to find coordinators.
Unsure the purpose of Snow, Satt, or Thomas TBH. Satts playbook or Dana's "dislike" if TE's have them basically an after thought. Unsure what happened to Nelson. Can't grasp this level of play? Not developed? Just not good...
I know we can't get rid of Rhule, but here are some guys that'd have to be looked at:
Satt-TE's....we don't use, Carter is MIA
Thomas-Co-OC. We are paying Dana, to use Satt's playbook...And Dylan has same issues as year 1. No QB 2 behind TJ.
Donnie (looked better in run blocking/still iffy in pass pro) But a legit tackle or 2 could change things
Snow-D was really poor this year. Pass D inflated stats because everyone ran
Butler-Average at PSU. Average here.
Berthal-year 3 no RB2
Dana, with his playboook, not Satts
Butler-switch to a 4-3 or 4-2-5. If he continues to play that NFL stop the pass first, he's not a fit for the B1G
We need to get staff for what Rhule wants or he needs to let his OC/DC run their schemes/plays and get their own staff.
OL/DL appear to be biggest area of concern. I also feel that we need receivers who can win 50/50 balls and get better separation. Good upgrades, but still "average". Ironically, some of our better past receivers were taught by a "golf coach"....
This team currently has a Big 12 staff and a Big 12 team.
Bo had to adjust to the B1G, Riley, Frost and now Rhule....Maybe look to the B1G or SEC to find coordinators.
Unsure the purpose of Snow, Satt, or Thomas TBH. Satts playbook or Dana's "dislike" if TE's have them basically an after thought. Unsure what happened to Nelson. Can't grasp this level of play? Not developed? Just not good...
I know we can't get rid of Rhule, but here are some guys that'd have to be looked at:
Satt-TE's....we don't use, Carter is MIA
Thomas-Co-OC. We are paying Dana, to use Satt's playbook...And Dylan has same issues as year 1. No QB 2 behind TJ.
Donnie (looked better in run blocking/still iffy in pass pro) But a legit tackle or 2 could change things
Snow-D was really poor this year. Pass D inflated stats because everyone ran
Butler-Average at PSU. Average here.
Berthal-year 3 no RB2
Dana, with his playboook, not Satts
Butler-switch to a 4-3 or 4-2-5. If he continues to play that NFL stop the pass first, he's not a fit for the B1G
We need to get staff for what Rhule wants or he needs to let his OC/DC run their schemes/plays and get their own staff.
OL/DL appear to be biggest area of concern. I also feel that we need receivers who can win 50/50 balls and get better separation. Good upgrades, but still "average". Ironically, some of our better past receivers were taught by a "golf coach"....
This team currently has a Big 12 staff and a Big 12 team.
TGHusker
Heisman Trophy Winner
Coaches period. Rhule in particular - he is responsible for everything. As a manager, I know I have to select the right employees for the right job, I have to train/develop them - I help them to be successful. If they aren't, I"ve either placed them in the wrong position (even if they are a good employee), I've not trained them well or given them the resources, or I've chosen the wrong employes for the particular competitive market that we are in. It is all up to me as a manager. My boss won't listen to - "well so and so hasn't been trained". It is on me! Why in the world do we hold head coaches to a different standard. Why do we extend their contract when they have accomplished anything yet or proven themselves?? My boss wouldn't give me a raise( an extension is an added benefit so that counts as a raise in my book) if my team was performing poorly. Yet of our 3 lopsided losses this year, the team was totally unprepared and Rhule acted amazed that they weren't up for those games.
I was all for Rhule when he came. I guess I swallowed his used salesman talk. But 3 years is long enough. Due to the stupid move by the AD, we can't fire Rhule now. With all of the openings, this would be a horrible time trying to find a new coach as well. 2026 will likely be a losing season unless Rhule makes wholesale changes - New DC/OC - the only coach worth retaining is Ekler maybe our secondary coach. Plus, we need a huge infusion of talent from the portal. Coaches who bring in their friends who don't have successful P4 experience are doomed to fail. We've all have talked about the lack of development - no excuse for not having a #2 RB, a poor front 7 on D, and OL that can't pass block.
We still don't have an identity on offense. Without EJ we'd most likely be 4-8 this year.
I suspect that after 2026 we will be looking for a new HC. We probably lose a great 2027 recruiting class as a result. This will put us back several years once again. Rhule seems to be enamored by the fringe things like podcasts, interviews, & fancy videos but not by truly developing this team. Is he better than Frost and Riley - yes. Will he take us to where we all want to be - relevant, a part of the discussion, playoffs? Doubtful. I think we've seen his ceiling. I hope a year from now I can eat my words and someone can remind me of this post if I'm wrong.
I was all for Rhule when he came. I guess I swallowed his used salesman talk. But 3 years is long enough. Due to the stupid move by the AD, we can't fire Rhule now. With all of the openings, this would be a horrible time trying to find a new coach as well. 2026 will likely be a losing season unless Rhule makes wholesale changes - New DC/OC - the only coach worth retaining is Ekler maybe our secondary coach. Plus, we need a huge infusion of talent from the portal. Coaches who bring in their friends who don't have successful P4 experience are doomed to fail. We've all have talked about the lack of development - no excuse for not having a #2 RB, a poor front 7 on D, and OL that can't pass block.
We still don't have an identity on offense. Without EJ we'd most likely be 4-8 this year.
I suspect that after 2026 we will be looking for a new HC. We probably lose a great 2027 recruiting class as a result. This will put us back several years once again. Rhule seems to be enamored by the fringe things like podcasts, interviews, & fancy videos but not by truly developing this team. Is he better than Frost and Riley - yes. Will he take us to where we all want to be - relevant, a part of the discussion, playoffs? Doubtful. I think we've seen his ceiling. I hope a year from now I can eat my words and someone can remind me of this post if I'm wrong.
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I bought into the salesman stuff for sure. Said all the right things. I tried not to buy into the year 3 hype. This isn't the B1g 12 or AAC. It's a black and blue physical league. I also had reservations about a year 4 under Rhule. Could he sustain a team at the turn around level? We don't know as he always left after the "rebuild". We still haven't surpassed the 9 win record Riley set in year 2 and he was fired after year 2. As you mentioned, Dannen locked us into a no win situation. Can't fire the guy now. Fire him in 2026, what happens to the class he's put together for 2027....
I think if we have a dismal season in 2026, the 2027 class will probably decomit. Get some solid new guys on the staff to shore up areas in need. Hit the portal and hope for the best. Our luck both Dylan and TJ hit the road this season.
Another concern is depth and quality guys. EJ set the world on fire. Who else? Some guys had flashes for sure and will hopefully improve. But lack of "developing" guys is concerning. Why through 12 games couldn't guys put repeat performance together week after week....Rhule talked about team and coaches not prepared for Minnie....Maybe this is why only EJ has shined week after week. Rhule-you hired them and recruited them. Chew some a$$. Fire some guys. As you put it above, YOU as the manager are responsible. You either hired or failed to train the right folks or promoted the wrong people. But Rhule got a sweet extension. Great coaches don't let their team or staff celebrate kicking the crap out of Akron or HCU....The demand they kick the crap out of a USC/PSU/Iowa etc....
Winning the bowl would be great, but at this point it putting lipstick on a pig.
TGHusker
Heisman Trophy Winner
Agreed. In a way, a win will deceive us once again that we are better than what we really are. I NEVER WANT NU TO LOSE. The 2025 3rd year hype began with the bowl win last year. We finally win a bowl game, we will be a dark horse for the playoffs - we should win 9 games maybe 10 if it all bounces our way, the curse is over, etc. Yet reality tells us that we limped into that bowl game and barely won it over a less than stellar opponent. The lipstick just hides the truth, underneath it all, outside of a few aspects, we are still an ugly pig - to put it bluntly - The good: ST, fewer turnovers and penalties, secondary, and EJ and our QBs when pass pro doesn't breakdown. The bad we all know about. We are still a low middle ranked conference team or high lower ranked conference team.
We still haven't beaten anyone of note. Cinci was our best win and that was only because the QB underthrew the TD pass.
Nebraska has been a place where poor coaches get rich while faithful fans are left holding false dreams.