What Does Dana Holgorsen Bring to Nebraska Football’s Offense?

On Tuesday, it was reported that Nebraska is hiring Dana Holgorsen as an offensive consultant.

The move comes after Nebraska had another tough offensive outing against UCLA. The Huskers scored 20 points Saturday in the loss to the Bruins, but that point total does not tell the whole story of how much the offense struggled. 

Holgorsen will work with the offensive staff to solve some of the issues the Huskers have been having. It seems like a move that could work out well for Nebraska, as Holgorsen has plenty of experience coaching on several different offensive staffs. 

He was on Mike Leach’s staff at Texas Tech and was a part of incredible offensive teams. Leach’s Red Raiders helped revolutionize college football with their offensive production. From there, Holgorsen went to Houston to be the Cougars’ offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.

While he was in Houston for two years, he mentored record-breaking quarterback Case Keenum and also Kliff Kingsbury, who was on the Cougars’ staff. Next, he spent one season as the offensive coordinator for Oklahoma State. In his only year in Stillwater, the Cowboys’ offense went from No. 61 to No. 1 in the country in total offense.

Holgorsen then became the head coach of West Virginia, a position he held from 2011 to 2018. He had a record of 61–41 there before leaving Morgantown in 2018 to return to Houston as head coach. 

His time in Houston did not go as well as his years leading West Virginia. However, in 2021, he led Houston to a 12–2 record. Every year that Holgorsen was a head coach, his teams were among the best offensive teams in the country. He is being brought in to infuse some of his offensive experience into a Nebraska offense that badly needs some juice.

His arrival should also help the development of Dylan Raiola, the Huskers’ true freshman quarterback. Holgorsen has worked with the likes of Keenum, Graham Harrell and Geno Smith. Being coached by someone who has coached that many great quarterbacks should be great for Raiola.

Bringing Holgorsen in is a sign that Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule knows he needs help on offense. The first step to fixing a problem is admitting it exists. It seems Rhule understands the problem and is hoping Holgorsen can help fix it.

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