Matt Rhule talks Dante Dowdell, navigating new landscape of roster management

Many Husker fans were caught off guard and surprised when they saw Dante Dowdell’s name pop up in the transfer portal.

The big and physical downhill runner played in every regular-season game this season with seven starts. Dowdell rushed for 614 rushing yards and 12 rushing touchdowns in 2024.

With Emmett Johnson and Dowdell, the Huskers looked to have a nice 1-2 punch in the backfield in 2025. Johnson as the shifty all-purpose back with plenty of make-you-miss and receiving ability in him. Dowdell, a young back who’s still developing in certain areas, as the 6-foot-2, 225-pound north-south bruiser who was money in short-yardage and goal-line situations.

But the days of being caught off guard and surprised by anything dealing with college football are over. With the way the sport is operating right now, Rhule wasn’t surprised Dowdell is looking elsewhere.

According to Nebraska’s head coach, the process of Dowdell’s departure started well before the transfer portal opened.

“There was nothing sudden about it,” Rhule said with a laugh Friday during a press conference inside the Hawks Championship Center. “There’s nothing sudden about any of this.”

As college football fans are coming to learn, tampering between college programs is rampant. With little to no regulations, situations like these will continue to happen.

“I love Dante. Dante loved it here. I have nothing but elite things to say about Dante,” Rhule said. “This was a long, hard, arduous process for him, and in the end he went in the portal and took an opportunity.”

Rhule and his staff — and everyone else — are learning and adjusting to what life is like in this new roster construction era where NIL is causing player movement at an unprecedented rate. It certainly has a wild west, wheeling-and-dealing feeling to it.

“These aren’t kids going into the portal to see what’s out there, these are decisions and offers being made before they’re in the portal to go into the portal,” Rhule said.
“This isn’t like, I’m unhappy so I’m leaving. This is, hey, I’ve got this (an offer).”

And the numbers Rhule is seeing and hearing are high. Very high.

“The numbers are a lot. Hard decisions for kids,” Rhule said. “Once you play for me one day, you play for me for the rest of your life. So I love Dante.”