When Nebraska’s Matt Rhule Returns to Penn State Next Week, It Will Feel Like a Victory Lap

When Penn State head coach James Franklin got fired on Oct. 12 and the rumors started about the Nittany Lions being interested in Nebraska’s Matt Rhule, the teams’ Nov. 22 meeting had extra bite.

Some thought the matchup at Beaver Stadium would be something of an on-the-field interview and job tryout for Rhule, a Penn State alum and linebacker.

Turns out, the visit will be a victory lap for Rhule and Nebraska. He’s staying with the Huskers — saying sorry / not sorry to his beloved alma mater.

Lost opportunity for Nittany Lions

If Penn State wanted Rhule — truly wanted him — that ship has sailed. Rhule signed a contract extension a little more than two weeks after Franklin was fired. Rhule is under contract in Lincoln until 2032.

Penn State never publicly said it wanted to hire Rhule. The Nittany Lions never said they didn’t want to hire him, either.

But as the Penn State trip draws closer, the mind wanders. It thinks about Rhule, who played for Joe Paterno in State College, but who has said he and his family love Lincoln and consider it home.

”The University of Nebraska, the city of Lincoln and the state of Nebraska are special. It is a place our family is proud to call home,” Rhule said in a statement when the extension was announced.

Certainly, everyone should take Rhule at his word. But what if, somewhere deep inside, Rhule did more than casually consider the opening. Would anyone be surprised?

That wouldn’t make Rhule a bad guy. Would anyone seriously blame him if he had interest in Penn State? Sure, Nebraska fans wouldn’t be happy, but ultimately this is the way the game is played. Coaches come and coaches go. It’s a tale as old as time.

Fans don’t always agree with coaching decisions, whether it’s a punt on fourth-and-one at midfield, or a coach completely changing his life.

But who among the fans wouldn’t jump at what they considered a better job opportunity — and a chance to go home? What if Rhule ultimately believed Penn State was a better fit for him and his family?

Anyone want to begrudge him that?

The Penn State job opening

One thing about the Penn State job, and any job opening: It’s only a job opening until it’s filled. OK, that sounds obvious, but this might have been Rhule’s one and only shot at the Penn State job. Not that he cares at this point.

Rhule turns 51 years old in January. The guy who eventually gets the Nittany Lions’ job might be there 10 to 15 years. And Rhule might rue never exploring the Penn State possibility, especially if he really wanted to kick the tires.

And all of this is with the caveat that anything can happen to anyone at any moment. A coaching job can open up when it’s least expected, as we’ve seen around college football this season.

But once the job is gone, you gotta figure it’s gone for good, or close to it.

That might not be the way things play out — major college football is a tenuous profession — but the coaches who don’t get the Penn State job have to figure this might have been their only chance at what might be their dream job.

Rhule’s career moves

Rhule doesn’t strike us as a job-hopper. He left Temple after four seasons. He was 2-10 in his first season, 2013, and had 10-win seasons in 2015 and 2016.

Temple is a stepping-stone job. It’s way down on the food chain of Philly sports. Men’s basketball was more highly regarded than football as the hoops program was coached by the legendary John Chaney. He coached Temple from 1982 to 2006, with 17 NCAA Tournament appearances.

From Temple, Rhule made a career move that no one could complain about. He went to Baylor, in the football-crazy Big 12. Rhule was 1-11 in his first year with the Bears, in 2017. In his final season, 2019, Rhule was 11-3.

Nebraska coach Matt Rhule is in his third season with the Huskers. | Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

Then, Rhule made another move that seemed natural and upwardly mobile. The NFL’s Carolina Panthers pursued Rhule and he accepted their head-coaching position.

Rhule lasted two seasons and five games with Carolina before being fired. He was 5-11 in 2020, 5-12 in 2021, and 1-4 in 2022.

He landed the Nebraska job in November 2022, after the Huskers fired favorite son Scott Frost in September.

Penn State wants stability

Penn State would not consider Rhule if the Nittany Lions believed he were a job-hopper.

Penn State wants job stability. Franklin was in his 12th year coaching the Nittany Lions. Paterno coached Penn State for 46 years.

The Nittany Lions want a coach who lives, breathes and sleeps Penn State. They don’t want someone with a wandering eye. They don’t want someone who still has an NFL itch to scratch. Penn State believes it is the center of the college football universe.

Matt Rhule and his Temple team defeated James Franklin and Penn State in Philadelphia in 2015, 27-10 . | Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

As do other schools.

A little uncertainty

The guess is Rhule checks off these loyalty boxes and other boxes for Penn State.

Penn State also might check off the boxes that would intrigue Rhule, too. Remember, after Franklin was fired, Rhule didn’t come out the next day at his scheduled news conference and say, categorically, that he had no interest in Penn State.

Instead, he spoke the truth, saying he loved Penn State and its athletic director Pat Kraft, his former boss at Temple. But then for several weeks, there was uncertainty about Rhule’s interest and Penn State’s intentions — until the contract extension. In Nebraska’s eyes, all’s well that ends well — Rhule remains in Lincoln, where he says he wants to be.

So Rhule and his 7-3 team will march into Beaver Stadium next Saturday, not as a Penn State target but as the one who got away.

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