Nebraska’s Las Vegas Bowl Is Less About Utah, More About What’s Next

The future is now for Nebraska football, and what fans see on New Year's Eve against Utah may not be very indicative of that.

New offensive line coach Geep Wade is one of many new faces who are still getting their feet settled as Nebraska preps for the Las Vegas Bowl. | Nebraska Athletics

It’s an extremely cliché saying, but it rings true for the Nebraska football team this week.

“The future is now.”

You’ll find it on all of the cheesy motivational posters in your favorite bookstore, but Nebraska coach Matt Rhule wouldn’t be doing himself a disservice to have a few of those hung up throughout the team hotel this week in Las Vegas.

The New Year’s Eve showdown between the Huskers and No. 15 Utah can be dissected a multitude of ways, but for a Nebraska football team that’s not playing with their starting quarterback, running back or basically any of their original starting linemen from the bulk of the season, Wednesday’s game will be a test this coaching staff hasn’t exactly taken yet.

After a standout season with Nebraska, star running back Emmett Johnson has opted out of NU's bowl game against Utah. | Cory Edmondson, KFGE

NU’s bell-cow running back Emmett Johnson has opted out, so the offense will need to come from other areas against a Utes team that will be playing this game with their own level of motivation after longtime coach Kyle Whittingham hopped on a plane to Ann Arbor, Michigan, to be named the new head coach of the Wolverines.

Like Nebraska, Utah is playing on Wednesday with their fair share of opt-outs, but there’s also another wrinkle that both teams are also getting used to – the transfer portal. Fortunately for both coaching staffs, the portal jumps won’t happen until after the new year, but you have to know it’s still a focus for both teams as they also try to draw up a gameplan for each other.

In fact, Nebraska will actually be taking the field with guys who have already announced they’ll be entering the portal afterward.

Even if they're entering the transfer portal, Matt Rhule is allowing several players to suit up one last time as Huskers in the Las Vegas Bowl. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

“We’ve just said, ‘Hey guys, let’s all be adults about this. If the best thing for you to get on the field is to go somewhere else, we understand that,’” Nebraska coach Matt Rhule said in his bowl week press conference. “I told everybody (to) come have a conversation with me.”

What that conversation has looked like more times than not is players saying they need to go to a school where they have a better chance of seeing the field. Frankly, it’s a reasoning Rhule says is more than understandable given the new state of college football.

“They just want to find a place where they can maybe get on the field more, but they love this school and they love their teammates and they want to finish it the right way, and I really respect that,” Rhule said of letting them suit up one last time as Huskers. “I encourage it. I don’t know how to handle all the portal stuff all the time. I have to adjust.”

Sources: Nebraska has agreed to a three-year deal to make San Diego State's Rob Aurich the school's next defensive coordinator. San Diego State finished No. 5 in scoring defense this year at 12.6 ppg, an improvement from up from No. 97 last year at 29.6 ppg. pic.twitter.com/cgf0CRb5zl

— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) December 7, 2025

Nebraska’s been going through a transfer portal of its own over the past few weeks, as Rhule has already begun overhauling his coaching staff for next season. So much so that some of his new hires are already working with the team ahead of the bowl game.

Out is Donovan Raiola as offensive line coach and John Butler as defensive coordinator and in are the likes of former Georgia Tech offensive line coach Geep Wade and former San Diego State defensive coordinator Rob Aurich, now serving in those capacities for the Huskers.

When it comes to the offensive front, Rhule admits that what fans will see on Wednesday might not be a true snapshot of what to expect long term from Wade.

New offensive line coach Geep Wade has his hands full with plenty of inexperience up front ahead of the Las Vegas Bowl. | @huskerfootball/Instagram

“There (are) a lot of guys injured,” Rhule said of the Husker offensive front. “We’re in terms of numbers depleted, but it’s been a great opportunity for some young guys to get a lot more reps, and I think you see them really stepping up and playing well. There (are) some things (Wade) can’t implement yet that he’ll implement in the offseason, but for the most part, I think it’s gone really well. I think they’ve responded well to him.”

Defensively, with the firing of John Butler, the Blackshirts may look a bit different, too. For a fan base that just got done watching them get boat-raced by Iowa a month ago, it’s safe to assume they’ll allow it.

Nonetheless, the change means the game is being simplified for the Huskers when it comes to Wednesday’s game against Utah, and for some of the more dominant defenders, it’s allowing a slight smile to form on their face.

NU defensive lineman Cam Lenhardt says the team gets to go back to "playing fast" thanks to a simplified defensive plan for the Las Vegas Bowl. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

“We just simplified it now,” Nebraska junior defensive lineman Cam Lenhardt said during his bowl week press conference. “It just gives us the freedom to play fast and that’s one thing that I’m really enjoying about it. It’s just a new energy, new shift in energy. I think the whole defense is feeling it, and it’s a good vibe out there.”

Nebraska sophomore defensive back Justyn Rhett is in the midst of a bit of a homecoming this week, even practicing at his former high school in Las Vegas. While all of that is familiar for the young Husker, he said the new coaches are already building bonds with the players, including NU’s new defensive coordinator.

“He’s really good,” Rhett said of what he’s seen from Aurich so far. “A well-rounded man (who) cares about his players and I feel like he is a good coach so far. I haven’t really gotten to talk to him as much as any of my other coaches, obviously, but I really like him.”

Nebraska special teams coordinator Mike Ekeler is one of many coaches working with various position groups during bowl game prep. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

The beauty of a bowl game and an evolving coaching staff also means that some coaches on staff are adding to their résumés for the bowl game. Special Teams Coordinator Mike Ekeler and even head coach Matt Rhule have dipped down into the positional level to make sure the team is ready for a very stout Utah team on Wednesday, and it’s giving the players a chance to get more on a one-on-one level with them.

“That’s coach Red Bull right there,” Lenhardt said of getting to see coach Ekeler from the positional level. “He’s got a lot of energy, but he just has a lot of knowledge that he’s been sharing with us. He’s coached everywhere, so he’s got a lot of game that he could teach us. That’s one thing I enjoy about coach Ek.”

When it comes to the new coaches on staff for Nebraska, they’re also getting to work with a lot of new players thanks to both the opt-outs and the transfer portal. The team make-up will be make-shift for the Huskers come kickoff on New Year’s Eve, but for at least one senior on the team who has seen his Nebraska career through to the finish, he knows the snaps the “new guys” are getting this week will be vital well down the road.

Nebraska senior tight end Heinrich Haarberg is one of the many seniors who know it's time to pass the torch to the younger core of the team during the Las Vegas Bowl. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

“These reps are invaluable for a lot of guys,” senior tight end Heinrich Haarberg said during his bowl week press conference. “I mean, it’s tough during fall camp and during the season. Some of these guys, they’re talented, they’re going to play someday, but it’s just hard to get them the reps. The coaches do a great job of getting those guys reps while at the same time keeping some of the older guys focused and helping coaching those guys.”

It all comes to a head on Wednesday when NU and Utah take the field, but as one season ends, another has already begun for the Husker coaching staff.

After rounding out their final days in Vegas this week for the bowl game, Rhule and his staff will instantly get to work on the transfer portal possibilities for the 2026 team. Much like the team saw this year with the likes of wide receivers Dane Key and Nyziah Hunter, Nebraska will need to replenish its roster again through both recruiting and the portal.

While finishing up game prep for Utah, Nebraska coach Matt Rhule also has his eyes on the transfer portal in early January. | Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

In the new “wild, wild west” that has formed in college football with NIL and the transfer portal, anything can happen over the span of an offseason or two – just ask Indiana and coach Curt Cignetti. More than ever, coaches like Matt Rhule are under scrutiny for not turning a program around with the flip of a coin.

“Year 3” under Rhule didn’t live up to the hype of his previous year threes at other programs, but his other programs didn’t have a transfer portal or NIL to deal with either. It’s a money game now, and Rhule knows the weeks following the Las Vegas Bowl will be just as valuable, if not more than the week they’re experiencing right now.

“You’ll probably start seeing people all across the country going on visits maybe the 3rd, the 4th, the 5th,” Rhule said. “It’ll be interesting to see. I think we all understand what’s happening in sports right now.”

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