‘Pissed’ Matt Rhule talks about Nebraska football course correction

It’s fair for Nebraska football fans to be angry after the Huskers’ 24-6 loss to Minnesota last Friday. Matt Rhule, the program’s head coach, is right there with you.

“I’m pissed off. I’m mad,” Rhule said on Monday.

He should be, and he’s not alone. It’s also worth remembering that, especially when it comes to football, it’s never as good, or as bad, as it seems.

Nebraska wasn’t as good as we thought after its 5-1 start. But it’s not as bad as it looked in the 24-6 loss to Minnesota either. The truth is probably somewhere in between.

We’ll find out in the next two weeks where the story of this season will be written.

Nebraska football faces two big tests

Beat Northwestern and USC, and every goal is essentially on the table. Nebraska would be 7-2. It might even have a top-25 win over USC depending on what happens this week. Yet, with two 5-2 teams coming to Lincoln in consecutive weeks, it’s crunch time for Rhule and his Nebraska football team.

Rhule talked about what went wrong against Minnesota. He said Dylan Raiola needs to get rid of the ball quicker, the receivers have to get open, and the offensive line needs to play better.

However, the head coach also said Nebraska needs to run the ball. More pointedly, as though talking to Dana Holgorsen, Rhule said the Huskers need to focus on “what they can do, not what they want to do.”

To me, it means more running the ball — more Emmett Johnson. Getting Elijah Pritchett back this week will help. Rhule said that Rocco Spindler will be back, too, meaning he’s expected to play with a broken finger.

This feels more about attitude. Minnesota was tougher. It was more prepared. The Gophers were willing to do what’s needed to win in the Big Ten. Run and stop the run.

It’s a tale as old as time. Nebraska has to embrace it. That will make life easier on the quarterback, the offensive line, and the defense.

The problem is can.

Can Nebraska stop the run? Can it run whenever it wants? That will be tested over the next two weeks. Northwestern runs for 190 yards per game. USC ran for 224 against Michigan. It also held them to 109 rushing yards and sacked Bryce Underwood three times.

The Wildcats shut out Purdue last week. Minnesota put out the blueprint. We’ll see if Nebraska allows them to follow it.

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