Matt Rhule on Nebraska’s place in national NIL scene

It starts in the secondary, where John Butler has replaced former assistant Evan Cooper following his resignation, but the changes run much deeper than that.

That’s because of the NCAA Division I Council’s decision last month to remove a limit on the number of assistants who can provide on-field coaching. While there are still limits on the number of graduate assistants and strength coaches programs can have, the move cleared the way for former quality control assistants and analysts to now feature in more prominent roles.

In the defensive line room, for example, position coach Terrance Knighton will now be assisted by Ira Savage-Lewis, a former player under head coach Matt Rhule at Baylor who joined the Huskers as a graduate assistant.

“I’m trying to have, with our size of a roster, two coaches at each position who can work with the young people,” Rhule said. “You think about if you’re in the D-line room, you’ve got Ty Robinson who should be on level five of D-line play, and then you’ve got David Hoffken who’s not played football in the United States yet and Keona (Davis) who just got here.”

Nebraska fans can also expect to see a familiar face return to an on-field role: Ron Brown. A longtime offensive assistant who coached Nebraska’s tight ends from 2008-10 and running backs from 2011-14, Brown returned to NU in 2018 as the Huskers’ director of player development. Brown then moved into a role as Nebraska’s director of player support and outreach while remaining a constant presence on the sidelines.

He’ll now be able to coach again, with Rhule saying that Brown will take charge of Nebraska’s fullbacks and returners this season. The fullback position was previously under the arm of running backs coach EJ Barthel, while special teams coordinator Ed Foley worked with the returners.

To assist new secondary coach John Butler, Nebraska hired Rashaan Melvin, a former NFL cornerback who played for Rhule with the Carolina Panthers. Kevin McGarry, a former head coach and longtime associate of defensive coordinator Tony White, is also back with the Huskers as a defensive analyst.

Linebackers coach Rob Dvoracek will be assisted by Jack Potenza, who began coaching Nebraska’s “Jack” linebacker position in the spring. Jamar Mozee, a former high school coach who Nebraska hired from UCF, will assist with the offensive skill positions.

And along the offensive line, director of player personnel Keith Williams will help in an on-field role as Aaron Coeling moves into a quality control position.

“We’ve restructured a bunch, and the whole mentality is not to have a bunch more coaches but two coaches at every position to help aid in development,” Rhule said.

It’s hard to put a price tag on winning — but in the current era of college football, the programs with the largest NIL budgets are often the winningest.

As Nebraska attempts to compete with the nation’s best along the recruiting trail, it’s not always relationships, playing time and the personal fit that drive players’ commitments; the money makes a major difference.

“I would love it if all of us had the same amount because then you can really see who can recruit and coach,” Rhule said. “If you’re asking me to recruit against a team that’s got twice as much money to give players as I do, then I’m not going to win very often and that will then affect gameday.”

Rhule and athletic director Troy Dannen have not hesitated to speak publicly about NIL and what is needed for the future, with Dannen stating in his introductory press conference that he would “be beside and embrace everybody in the collective.”

Rhule’s comments last November that a top transfer portal quarterback would cost $1-2 million drew national attention, but it was a number thrown out by Dannen that may have surprised Husker fans even more.

During a spring event that raised funds for Nebraska’s NIL collective, the 1890 Initiative, Dannen said that Oregon and Ohio State had yearly NIL budgets of $23 million while NU’s budget was closer to the $10 million mark. Regardless of the exact numbers, Rhule agreed on Wednesday that Nebraska still has a ways to go in the NIL market.

“Make no mistake, we’re not at the level of those guys; we’ve got a long way to go,” Rhule said. “The truth is (that) we’re doing great, but we’ve got a long way to go and we’ve got to get a lot better. I’m pretty sure Oregon and Ohio State, LSU and the teams that have that type of money, they’re not sitting still now. They’re saying, ‘Hey, someone’s going to try and catch us.’ I think Nebraska is a great place and I think we should get the best players in the country and NIL’s one of the ways to do it.”