Well, hello, Nebraska has a new head football coach. Hit or miss? Amie Just and Luke Mullin break down the hire.
Nebraska’s coaching staff grew closer to completion Friday as the team announced the hires of a new defensive coordinator and a familiar offensive line assistant.
The Huskers made official the additions of former Syracuse defensive coordinator Tony White to the same position and the return of Donovan Raiola for his second season in Lincoln working with the offensive line. Both moves had been previously reported and give NU seven assistants under new coach Matt Rhule.
“We are pleased to add Tony White and Donovan Raiola to our coaching staff,” Rhule said in a statement. “They each bring a high level of energy and competitiveness to our staff. Both Tony and Donovan were outstanding players at the highest level of college football, and also have professional playing experience. Their success has carried into their respective coaching careers. I look forward to them developing the players in our program and helping bring the nation’s top talent to Nebraska.”
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White’s hire is pending completion of a University of Nebraska background check. His departure from Syracuse — where he quickly flipped a struggling ACC defense there during his three seasons there — left many on the East Coast to publicly praise the effects of his attacking 3-3-5 scheme on a group nicknamed “The Mob.”
Nebraska now has seven of its 10 on-field assistants secured, along with a strength coach. The school has also reportedly been in talks with Los Angeles Rams offensive assistant and O’Neill native Jake Peetz as quarterbacks coach. Nebraska additionally has remaining vacancies to coach linebackers and receivers.
The 43-year-old White, a standout outside linebacker at UCLA in the late ’90s, instantly becomes one of the most veteran coaches on Rhule’s staff after spending nine years as cornerbacks coach at San Diego State (2009-17) and two at Arizona State (2018-19) before Dino Babers hired him as DC.
Raiola is the lone holdover from coach Scott Frost’s staff and will continue at NU after three seasons as an assistant O-line coach with the NFL’s Chicago Bears and one as a position coach at Division III Aurora University. He was a multiyear starter at Wisconsin in the mid-2000s.
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