3 thoughts on hire of Dana Holgorsen for Nebraska football

Nebraska football head coach Matt Rhule showed that he’s not afraid to make a bold move on Monday, with the hire of former Houston and West Virginia head coach Dana Holgorsen as an offensive consultant with three games left in the season.

Rhule said on Monday he was bringing in some outside people and Holgorsen was one of them. Former Baylor defensive coordinator Phil Snow, who also worked with Rhule in Carolina, has been another.

Holgorsen is the name that got everyone’s attention though. Nebraska football flirted with hiring him last offseason but went with Glenn Thomas instead.

The former head coach surely wants to call plays again but will that chance come at Nebraska? Will it be this season or next? What does it mean for Marcus Satterfield and the future of Dylan Raiola?

Here are some thoughts on an interesting hire by Rhule.

Marcus Satterfield’s days as OC are numbered, if not over already

Satterfield won’t be back with Nebraska football next season. I’m confident in making that prediction. He may have already had the play-calling duties taken away from him — we just don’t know it.

Rhule was carrying a play sheet on Saturday. I don’t want Rhule calling offensive plays but I don’t want Satterfield to do it anymore either.

I said two weeks ago that Nebraska should turn things over to Glenn Thomas. Some people can call plays and some can’t. Satterfield can’t. Don’t waste the rest of the season letting him flounder.

Allow Thomas to call the plays, while Holgorsen and Satterfield can assist with game-planning. It would have been easier just to fire Satterfield after the Indiana game but Rhule is loyal and will likely wait until the season is finally over.

Or maybe Satterfield stays on as tight ends coach but is no longer offensive coordinator.

This move is about Dylan Raiola

The first season for Dylan Raiola as the Nebraska football quarterback has been less than ideal. Over the last four games, Raiola has one touchdown pass and six interceptions.

That’s not how anyone expected this season to go and the narrative is much different than it was earlier in the season. Some pundits are talking about benching Raiola if he struggles again after starting 3-for-10 with an interception against UCLA.

Holgorsen has mentored a number of quarterbacks who eventually went to the NFL such as Case Keenum and Geno Smith, who are among the most prominent. Whether it was at Texas Tech, Houston, Oklahoma State, or West Virginia, Holgorsen has been the architect of some impressive offenses — especially when it comes to throwing the football.

So not only should this help Raiola this season, but if Holgorsen is indeed going to be the offensive coordinator next season, it could prevent Raiola from looking around for a situation that’s more conducive to quarterback development.

Dana Holgorsen is a weird fit for the Big Ten

Holgorsen has been good for quarterbacks throughout this career but he strikes me as a weird fit for Matt Rhule and the Big Ten.

This isn’t the Big 12 Conference. To be fair, three of his West Virginia teams averaged over 200 rushing yards per game including a couple that averaged 228. So it’s not all about throwing the ball.

Yet, it would be a move away from the pro-style system Rhule has tried to install. Holgorsen isn’t the kind of guy who’s using a fullback or putting the quarterback under center.

That could be a good thing for Raiola and the pass offense but it remains to be seen if it will work out in the Big Ten if that’s the system Nebraska chooses to go with.

Maybe Holgorsen won’t be around for more than a few games, but if he is the OC it will be a pretty dramatic change for the offense.

For More Nebraska content, follow us on Twitter, like our Facebook Page, and Subscribe to the Husker Big Red YouTube Channel. You can also find our podcast on Apple or Spotify.