'He Wants More': Dana Holgorsen Says Freshman RB Jamal Rule Is Ready for a Bigger Workload as Big Ten Play Begins

Jamal Rule is pacing towards a record-breaking true freshman campaign, and Dana Holgorsen isn't letting lack of opportunity get in his way.

Jamal Rule runs for a touchdown against the Bowling Green Falcons. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Any and every expectation for true freshman running back Jamal Rule has been exceeded to this point.

The former three-star recruit from Salisbury, North Carolina, is the third-leading rusher in the Big Ten through Week 3 of the college football season, and Nebraska offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen said the first-year ball carrier is ready and willing to take on even more.

When meeting with the media on Tuesday, Holgorsen also discussed several other offensive players who could begin to get more involved as Big Ten play begins.

Jamal Rule celebrates after defeating the Bowling Green Falcons at Memorial Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Despite seemingly everyone across the country being surprised by Rule's performance through the first three games of his collegiate career, Holgorsen said Rule's play has only given him more confidence in what the freshman can eventually become.

“He’s handling the moment well,” Holgorsen said. “He settled in throughout the course of the spring and started playing better. Then when he came back in the summer, he was back to being a nervous, anxious kid. So, we didn’t know going into game one, but he attacked that thing great. He wants more.”

“I think he’s done a great job,” he continued. “He’s just such a great kid, and he’s a competitor. He’s a really good player. He doesn’t look like a freshman to me, so we won’t treat him like one.”

Justin Evans | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

The good news is that, in large part, the players around Rule make up for his inexperience. Holgorsen sees that as an advantage, too, and though he may not have a major say in Nebraska's roster construction, NU's offensive playcaller appears to be very much on board with having a veteran team.

“It certainly helps,” he said. “There are studies with the older your team is, the better your team is. My best team at West Virginia was 2018, and our average starting age was like 22.75 or something like that. I’m not incredibly involved in building the roster, but attacking older, more experienced guys is what the portal is all about… It’s the reality of college football, where we’re at.”

Seven starters on the Huskers' Week 4 depth chart, offensively, are players who did not start their careers in Lincoln. To this point, they've managed to assimilate well. However, there's little doubt a Big Ten foe will be their toughest test to date.

Tree Babalade during a pre-fall camp photo shoot, | Nebraska Athletics

Luckily, that's what depth is for, and Nebraska seems to have plenty of it at different positions across the roster this fall. Specifically, though, Holgorsen was asked about the Huskers' willingness to rotate players along the offensive line. Through three games, we've seen Elijah Pritchett, Gunnar Gottula, and Tree Babalade rotate with one another nearly every offensive series with the starting group on the field.

Holgorsen said it has been by design. Still, he noted there's a reason Gottula and Pritchett have earned a notable amount of snaps over Babalade.

“Tree needs to practice better, then he’ll play better, and he’ll play more,” said Holgorsen. “I think that’s a good three-man rotation right there. You need a third, and Gunnar’s so flexible to the point where you can flip him around back and forth, left, right, all that to be able to keep those tackles fresh.”

“Michigan State’s got some guys that can come off the edge,” he continued. “So they need to be fresh. They get worn down, then that’s not good for us. So, I like the rotation. I like getting all those guys in there, and the more Tree comes on, the better we can even out those reps.”

Anthony Colandrea catches the snap against the Ohio Bobcats during the first quarter. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Though Holgorsen wants to continue seeing Babalade improve, he has shown a high level of confidence in UNLV transfer quarterback Anthony Colandrea after watching what he's done for the Big Red over the last three weeks.

Holgorsen has seen his starting quarterback make a ton of highlight-reel plays. However, it was a back-shoulder throw to Jacory Barney Jr. against the North Dakota Fighting Hawks that NU's offensive playcaller called “outstanding” because of both the execution and decision-making.

“I don’t know how to coach that," said Holgorsen. "We’ve experimented for years on how you coach the back shoulder... You don’t know how to teach it. Guys can either do it or they can’t. (Colandrea) has a report with the receivers that’s important. They work it all the time; they play catch all the time.”

“It’s one-on-one,” Holgorsen continued. “Whose ball skills are better? I’ll take Jacory Barney.”

Luke Lindenmeyer stays inbounds after a catch against a Cincinnati Bearcats safety. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Heck, after watching Barney make plays up and down the field for Nebraska over the last three years, so would I. However, Barney is far from the only capable pass catcher on the Huskers' roster this fall. With that in mind, Holgorsen identified Luke Lindenmeyer as a player capable of taking on a bigger load.

After showcasing an elite ability to generate yards after the catch against the Fighting Hawks, Nebraska's offensive coordinator said he's told his signal-caller to look Lindenmeyer's way a bit more.

“I did put a little bug in his (Colandrea's) ear on Wednesday,” he said. “About ‘You’ve made that throw to Luke in practice a lot. I haven’t seen it in the game'. It’s good to see that, because Luke’s a weapon… When I called it, it didn’t surprise me that it went there… Luke’s a valuable player, man… We need to get him going more in the pass game a little bit more”.

As Holgorsen and his offense prepare to travel to East Lansing this weekend, they'll likely need contributions from every player who sees the field to win. Luckily, there's no shortage of talent on this year's team. Even so, they'll need to prove it against a Spartans defense that will likely be the most talented unit they've faced so far this fall.

Nebraska vs. Michigan State kicks off at 4 p.m. CDT. The game will be available via the Big Ten Network, and NU enters the matchup as the favorite to win. Still, the Huskers will rely on players like Rule, Colandrea, Barney, and Lindenmeyer to help make that happen.

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