Better Know A B1G Q&A: Nebraska Cornhuskers

Hello friends, and welcome to a tradition like what we do during the football season! That’s right, the Better Know a B1G series rolls on and this time we’re looking at Nebraska, a place that has seen a lot of football talent over the years. The staff of SB Nation’s Nebraska site Corn Nation was kind enough to answer my questions about Cornhusker athletics. So without further ado, let’s learn more about the alma mater of Tommy Frazier and Ahman Green!

Previous entries are here:

Illinois

Indiana

Maryland

Michigan

Michigan State

UWDP: We talked about this on the podcast a bit, but with year one of Matt Rhule in the books after a rough couple of years under his predecessor (whose name I will not say), what are you looking for in year 2?

Patrick: The offense and defensive lines were improved in 2023. The expectation of those areas getting better are anticipated with all the talent coming back. We should also see improvement in special teams and getting an identity on offense. Hopefully a new quarterback and upgraded specialty positions will also be in the cards. Oh yeah, no more one score losses. Most of us are getting PTSD.

Nate M: Limiting turnovers from the quarterback position. The three quarterbacks combined for 16 interceptions and 10 touchdown passes. It is almost impressive that Nebraska got to five wins with numbers like that from the most important position on the football field.

Now, Nebraska is staring down the barrel of probably starting a true freshman at that position unless something changes. Apparently the NAIA national player of the year is looking to transfer to Nebraska but there may be an academic hurdle which they need to jump over. He has played a ton of football at that position though it is not at the Power 4 level admittedly.

Nebraska also hired a full-time quarterback coach which should help.

So what am I looking for in year 2? Immediate improvement at that position who takes care of the ball and is opportunistic. They don’t need to be All-Conference type players but just average and Nebraska should be successful.

Jon Johnston: WINS! Lots of WINS!

Last year was a continued hellscape of throwing games away in the worst possible ways. Nebraska look poised to get to a bowl game, getting a turnover against Iowa with a minute left, then giving them the ball back, and a last second lost to eliminate our bowl hopes, dreams, and desires.

This “rip your heart out, throw it at a curb, then stomp, stomp, stomp on it” way of losing has to end.

UWDP: What have you thought about Rhule in his tenure so far? What do you think is the “upper limit” for wins when Rhule is the head football coach at Nebraska?

Patrick: Matt seems to be doing, saying, and striving for everything one would expect in a football coach. He gives honest answers and doesn’t fluff facts up. Overall, he’s been a nice addition to the athletic department. Upper limit for this year is 7-8 wins and a bowl game. Looking at his recruiting and the development that has come under him I would say the upper limit overall is around 9-11 wins per year while pulling out 12 wins and semi regular appearances in the college football playoffs. This is Nebraska, we will expect it if he starts to really succeed.

Nate M: I have been impressed by Rhule so far because he hasn’t run from hard questions and takes issues head on. That is a breath of fresh air. It is not uncommon for his press conferences to go 20+ minutes where prior to Rhule those press conferences lasted less than 10 at the most.

His focus is on developing a physical style of football which requires that they have physically demanding practices which is apparently rare these days. He has been forthcoming with the fact that his practices will likely increase the likelihood of injuries but that it is so important that the cost/benefit analysis falls heavily in the favor of physical practices.

I believe that the Nebraska football program is a sleeping giant. It’s still slumbering and it is just waiting for things to blow up. Do I think Nebraska could be dominant like it was in the 90s? No. Do I think they could be Georgia and Ohio State? Probably not.

Do I think they could be Missouri, Ole Miss or a Utah type program? Absolutely. Those teams are all in the top 10 preseason for 2024. Could they be a Notre Dame? I believe that is the upper limit. It however would take a special head coach who is willing to do things differently and is opportunistic. To be clear, they are not that program yet and I’m not saying they will get there.

I think the “collective bargaining” process which will come at some point will smooth out some of the advantages/disadvantages of many schools around the country. How Nebraska comes out of that will be interesting.

Jon: The athletic departments who wish to compete for championships in this new coming age of collegiate sports will have to possess one specific quality. That quality is will.

The will to embrace the changes we’ve seen in the past 3-5 years, the changes we’ll see in the next 3-5 years, and have plans on how to deal with those changes going forward.

I believe Nebraska has that will across the board. Matt Rhule has shown he can change with the times, and for that reason, I don’t think there’s an “upper limit” on wins for Matt Rhule at Nebraska.

I am not declaring him to be Nick Saban – what I am saying is this: Since Tom Osborne has left I have heard from so many people that Nebraska will never compete for another national title. They are wrong.

Nebraska football will be fine in this new world. Matt Rhule is the coach we needed to hire at the time we hired him.

UWDP: Former NBA coach Fred Hoiberg just finished up year 5 at the helm of the Cornhuskers men’s basketball team, going 23-11 and winning Big Ten Coach of the Year, making the tournament as an 8 seed. What’s the state of the men’s team, and what do you think they can accomplish in the future? On the women’s side, Amy Williams just finished her 8^th season, going 23-12, earning a bid to the women’s tournament, advancing to the second round. What does the future look like for Amy Williams and her Cornhuskers?

Patrick: For Fred, he’s seemed to adapt to the current state of college athletics. He’s won off of the transfer portal and seems to still be working it well. This upcoming season will be no different. Unlike football, we have a little bit different view on basketball. Right now, he just needs to win an NCAA Tournament game which I believe he will do shortly. He has the talent and staff to pull it off.

Nate M: I am on the record saying that I consider last year as year 2 of the Hoiberg era even though he was hired in 2019. He realized that recruiting five star kids out of high school was not going to win in the Big 10. You had to get old and stay old and that is where Nebraska is at now. They are old and trying to stay old while supplementing the team with transfers.

I think Nebraska basketball can compete for the Final Four. I know that sounds ridiculous but NC State as an 11 seed made it in 2024. Florida Atlantic as a nine seed made it in 2023. UCLA as an 11 seed made it in 2021.

Fred Hoiberg for sure can get that done but obviously he has to win Nebraska’s first NCAA tournament game first. Get that monkey off the back and watch out as Nebraska has a fan base just waiting to explode.

As far as the women and Amy Williams, they had a great season and will have to replace some production. We will see how that goes going forward. They got one of the best players in the country to commit to Nebraska out of nowhere it felt like though she was an in-state kid.

If Amy Williams can use this momentum then the sky is the limit which is kind of my theme today. Nebraska fans are a lot of things and one of them is that they will come out in force if you build a winner. They will take over arenas and stadiums. Just have to give them a reason to believe.

UWDP: Are there any secret rivalries that the Cornhuskers have with other schools that Husky fans don’t know about?

Patrick: In basketball, that would be Creighton. Their rise in the college basketball world and domination of the series the past decade has not set well with the Husker faithful. As for football, I’d say Minnesota as they have seemed to have the Huskers number under P.J Fleck.

Nate M: Agreed with Patrick on Creighton. Another part of the Creighton rivalry is the term “Jaysker” who are people that rightfully should be shamed and never allowed in Lincoln ever again if they are a Husker football fan but a Creighton basketball fan. They should be sent to Council Bluffs, IA to live out the rest of their lives.

On the football side, Iowa has really turned into a rivalry even though they have won like 6 of the last 7 meetings (didn’t have time to look that one up).

Jon: Wisconsin Volleyball. They are soulless machines, those Wisconsin volleyball women. Giant, soulless machines. Giant, soulless machines who will eat your children given the chance.

UWDP: Besides rifle, volleyball and wrestling, are there any sports that Nebraska is really good at?

Patrick: Women’s Bowling. We are a big bowling school. The Husker women have 5 WBIC and 6 NCAA championships under their belt.

Nate M: I would add Wrestling to that list. Coach Manning has definitely been pumping up that program as of late.

Jon: We are rising in track & field. The men’s track and field team finished tied for 13th, with a champion in, Darius Luff, in the 110m hurdle. The women finished 9th overall.

Thank you Jon, Patrick, and Nate, and good luck to the Cornhuskers this season! If you’d like to hear my conversation with Jon from last week, in which we discussed some of these things in a bit more detail, and I fielded questions from Nebraska fans (a passionate bunch, for sure!) then the link is down below!