Kenny Larabee photo, KLIN
Stukenholtz: Matt Rhule Has Done This Before
Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine.
This weekend, my 10-year-old son has a soccer tournament in Des Moines. My wife is accompanying him while I stay behind and play taxi driver for our other three kids. We’ve got dance practice, gymnastics, and preschool soccer, which I am coaching. That’s all in the span of three hours.
But again, you shouldn’t feel bad for me. I am not one of those helpless fathers who needs a six-pack after a long day without mom. I’m an involved dad who’s done this before.
Would it be easier if my wife were here so we could team up? Divide and conquer? Sure. But sometimes you must operate under different circumstances. Sometimes you gotta play a man – or woman – down. You can’t reschedule on account of bad timing.
Then again, when you are a rebuilding program, is it ever good timing to play the #2 team in the country?
As Nebraska hosts Michigan on Saturday, the Huskers will be heavy underdogs with a steep hill to climb. The Wolverines play the way head coach Matt Rhule wants to play, with a physical rushing attack at a slow methodical pace paired with a suffocating defense capable of winning ugly. Only Michigan does it with four- and five-star talent that they develop into NFL players. They haven’t lost a regular season game in 23 months.
Now, that slow pace they play lends itself to a relatively close game at halftime, within 7-10 points. That’s if NU doesn’t turn the ball over, which is a big if. The second half will likely be where Michigan puts their foot down. Like the Colorado game in that way, if the Blackshirts wear down as they realize reinforcements will not arrive on the other side of the ball.
Will it be cause for concern if the Huskers can’t cover a 17.5-point spread? No, not if the offense can’t keep pace. They aren’t playing with a full deck quite yet. There are shortages at wide receiver and running back due to attrition and injuries. The offensive line, while seasoned, doesn’t quite have it. Both quarterbacks practiced all week but are banged up. And this is still the first year of the rebuild.
But hey, kids get colds. Gotta have the tissues handy for the runny noses. Don’t forget to distribute vitamins and medicine in the morning, and you can’t leave the snack bag behind, either. Hopefully you get everyone going on time, so you don’t have to scramble too much early on.
Like I said, it’s no big deal for me. And I don’t think it’s a big deal to Matt Rhule, either. He’s done this before, too.
If Husker football media knew how often we would reference 2010s Temple and Baylor we probably would have paid more attention to them in the moment. Even though we didn’t, it’s still the most useful reference when projecting things into the future. Rhule is a builder. He knows what he wants, he does it, and at his only other two college football jobs it’s worked. Plus, he has the modern innovation of the transfer portal, something he didn’t have the last time he coached in college. Shrewd use of this new tool could accelerate the process.
That’s not likely to help on Saturday, though. Michigan should be able to handle Nebraska the way Nebraska handled Northern Illinois and Louisiana Tech. Don’t get cute, do your stuff, and get out with a win.
I am interested in the outcome of the game, the final score, the stats, all of that. But short of a four-quarter battle where the Huskers win or come close, I’ll probably pay the most attention to the response to an expected loss. Gauge the mood of the team, the message from Rhule in the locker room, and the way they bounce back next Friday on the road at Illinois. The way that looks will tell me just as much about the direction of the program as the game itself.
And if you see me out and about on Saturday morning, just know that I’ll do my best to be on time, making sure everyone is doing their job. I may not be firing on all cylinders with some of my coaching staff unavailable, but it’s a long season. Plus, I have the confidence of knowing how to do this. There will be easier days ahead.
Rhule has that confidence. Now comes another Saturday, and it could be an indication that the work is working. Or it may be a reality check of just how much distance there is between Nebraska and a College Football Playoff contender.
The job is never done. For a dad or a coach.
