Mallet in hand, Matt Rhule focuses on Nebraska’s physicality

But Rhule still wakes up at night upset about this season’s one loss — 31-24, in overtime, to Illinois.

“God’s own truth,” Rhule said Monday in a bye week press conference that served as a recap of NU’s first six games.

It can sometimes seem like coaches endure victory because they prefer simmering in defeat, but NU learned lessons from its one setback that Rhule immediately applied to his team’s practices and pregame warmups.

“Oh, I’m a button-pusher,” Rhule quipped. “That’s my job. There’s no doubt.”

The second-year coach swayed at the podium like he had a big mallet.

“It’s like the whack-a-mole game, right?” Rhule said of the problems that a team has to fix.

Turnovers last year? Whack! It’s better in 2024 — Nebraska is plus-6.

Penalties this year? Whack! NU improved in a win over Rutgers.

Next up: Blocked kicks and the perpetual need to be one ounce grittier than the opponent.

At 5-1 overall — 2-1 in the Big Ten — Nebraska stands one fourth quarter incompletion against Illinois from being perfect and one magnificent goal line stand against Rutgers from having two losses. NU is scoring 28 points per game and allowing 11.3. A berth in the College Football Playoff and Big Ten title game remain within reach.

“I just want to be relevant,” Rhule said, “and so I think, at least, we’re relevant.”

In possession of one of the nation’s best defenses that both takes the ball and prevents opponents’ big plays. And NU also has, according to On3, a freshman All-American at quarterback, where Dylan Raiola has completed 67% of his passes for 1358 yards, nine touchdowns and three interceptions.

“He’s made wow plays,” Rhule said of Raiola, the five-star signee who’s lived up to his blue-chip rating. “He gets us into the right checks. He’s protected the football.”

Raiola and his receivers might be able to do more damage, Rhule intuited, if NU’s run game gets rolling better. Averaging 137 yards per game — 13th in the Big Ten — isn’t good enough for Rhule. NU’s skill guys don’t make enough defenders miss and they’re too easily brought down by low ankle tackles, so they’re missing the “home run” plays from their 2024 resume.

“I’m not just a ‘hey, just do your job,’ guy,” Rhule said. “I’m a ‘hey, do your job and go make a play.’”

Conversely, Rhule thought Illinois’ skill guys broke too many tackles against Nebraska’s defenders, so he installed a pregame drill — one offensive player vs. one defensive player, at midfield — just before kickoff of the Purdue and Rutgers games.

And last week, he had his defense tackle in practice like he hadn’t before. Two days of bringing teammates to the ground at game speed. Two extra set of car crashes. Why?

Because there’s a “natural inclination” as a season goes on, Rhule said, to back off being too physical in practice. NU even has a load management expert delivering that data to Rhule.

“But to play great defense, you have to practice great defense,” Rhule said. He repeated the phrase. “We practiced hard the Illinois week — don’t get me wrong — but I think we’re learning how to do things… we still have a lot of things to figure out about ourselves.”

And two daunting road games ahead. Moreso than anyone imagined before the season.

NU heads to undefeated and 18th-ranked Indiana Oct. 19 before another trip to currently-undefeated and 2nd-ranked Ohio State — which faces No. 3 Oregon on Saturday — on Oct. 26.

They’re foes with senior transfer quarterbacks who average 47.5 and 46 points per game, respectively. If all of NU’s goals are on the table now, they could be off before the Halloween candy jostles around in plastic pumpkin buckets.

So NU had what Rhule called a “normal Monday” that will be followed by practices on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Players get a three-day weekend before Indiana prep starts afresh on Oct. 14. Nebraska coaches could hit the road recruiting this week but they’ll save most of that work for the second bye week in mid-November.

If NU is exhaling after a successful first half of the season, it didn’t seem like it Monday. Too many sleepless nights still to avert.

“Illinois, I didn’t feel like we were the more physical team,” Rhule said. “We were looking at the scoreboard instead of playing the next play — worried about winning, which ultimately comes from me. I think we’ve been a very physical team. We have a long way to go, to be the team that we want to be.”