Nebraska Football Featured on Big Ten Network's Training Camp Show

Matt Rhule's Checklist Before Cincinnati

Nebraska coach Matt Rhule was asked by Big Ten Network's Dave Revsine what would be on his checklist to get accomplished through camp before the season opener.

"There's a lot of things on that checklist," Rhule said. "The biggest thing is, sometimes you come to camp and you're like, 'Hey, I wanna stay healthy.' We wanna get good."

Rhule added that games early in the year come down to missed tackles and special teams. That's why he wants to "consistently work on situations that win games."

"Special teams is a big point of emphasis for us. When it's been good to us, we've won. When it hasn't, we've lost," Rhule said.

Rhule went on to talk about what he views as the point of camp, which isn't necessarily "for like the big, big, big games that everyone loves."

"The point of camp is to build the competitive stamina and the ability to handle adversity, or sometimes when you're not necessarily 'on' emotionally," Rhule said. "What's the standard of play that you have?

"We want to be a killer instinct team that plays the same way every day. We have not been for a long time"

Dana Holgorsen's First Full Year Leading the Husker Offense

Nebraska offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen said he was approached by Rhule just a couple of weeks after he had been fired from Houston in December of 2023. Holgorsen said the timing wasn't right to take over as the offensive coordinator at that time.

"I just wasn't ready," Holgorsen said. "It wouldn't have been fair to me, my family. It wouldn't have been fair to Coach Rhule and his Husker family."

Since spending two decades working his way up in collegiate coaching, Holgorsen was a head coach for 13 years between West Virginia and Houston. He said he needed the break in 2024 but still watched every Husker game.

Holgorsen said as the season went on, he "had a feeling that call was coming."

"It took me about five days to agree to be the OC, to step in and call the plays," Holgorsen said. "A week later, I was in the Coliseum calling plays against USC. That was wild."

Holgorsen said when he took over, he saw "a lot of cluttered minds" that weren't playing free or fast. He attributed some of that to the size of the playbook.

"I took the entire spring semester, with basically the same staff and we added players, and we fine-tuned what we wanted to do," Holgorsen said. "What I'm looking at right now is a lot different. It's a lot different schematically. It's a lot different with players. And it's flowing a lot better as well."

Dylan Raiola Entering Year Two

Nebraska sophomore quarterback Dylan Raiola is entering year two as the starter in Lincoln. With that experience, Raiola's processing has picked up.

"The game's definitely slowed down," Raiola said. "And I think more now it's about having fun and playing football and not trying to figure out everything that's going on because I've seen a lot of things."

Raiola also talked about leadership.

"Just having coaches and players empower you to be a leader. You don't just get that handed to you. Having the guys around me pushed me to lead every single day," Raiola said.

Jake Butt's Impressions

Color analyst for the Big Ten Network Jake Butt was among the crew in Lincoln. He gave his impressions in a series of posts to X.

"Could it be this year? Well, the schedule is favorable, I expect a major jump in year 2 for Raiola- his command, poise, leadership, and processing all look noticeably improved. The value of Holgerson at OC is he will bring the best out of Dylan and all his talent.

"Speaking of which, I really like the talent at WR- particularly the 1st unit. That was without Dane Key practicing who will start. The OL looks physically bigger but fit and lean. They have high standards for themselves and should improve this season. Johnson is a stud RB1, but it remains to be seen who will be RB2.


"Defensive structure remains the same, secondary is veteran and should be one of the better units in the B1G. Fun to watch. Them compete with the offense today. DL has different body types and will likely rely on rotation and depth replacing Nash and Ty.


"If the Def unit can even remain stable, with an improved offense and special teams, and a favorable schedule, this season has a chance to be specia.l"

But added another note on what has defined Nebraska football.

"1 score, close games. Winning or lack thereof in November. Small details. So how do you fix/ change that?

"It’s not one massive, sweeping change. In fact it’s the exact opposite… it’s the small, seemingly insignificant details, done on a daily basis that add up to a lot. Taking pride in every small detail, done over weeks and months of practice, and all of a sudden you have a massive pile of evidence that 'you are who you say you are.'

"How’d that show up today? Few instances.

"1) OL went through a great individual period. Group looks big but lean. Athletic. Rocco Spindler has mentioned he wants to group to aim for a Joe Moore award. Indy went great. Coach blows the whistle to signal it’s time for team… well the group jogged onto the field without enough energy. Coach blows the whistle and sends them back in, in order to take the field with pride.

"On the surface this may seem silly, but it isn’t. It’s a mindset. You want to practice being *those dudes*, so when it’s the 4Q in November you can break the huddle with your shoulders high, calm but energized demeanor, and to watch the opposing DL be the ones taking knees or having their hands on their hips. Practice that in everything you do, and it will show up on gameday.

"2) offense is going through 2 min on air. 1st group great. 2nd group great. 3rd group gets in, and immediately they throw the ball to the sidelines. WR catches it and, instead of running the ball in and handing it to the official, he throws the ball to the official. Every team is taught to hand the ball directly to the official or your center. Why? Bc the official may drop it. Or the defense may “get in the way” and bat it down. That is a literal difference of 15-30 seconds on one play. That’s the difference between winning and losing. Small details.


"3) 2nd team period, first substitution. Defense doesn’t communicate. 12 men in the field. Rhule blows his whistle and has them run a gasser. Before hand, though, he tells them “this will be what you want it to be.” Letting them know, take pride in what you do, you guys set the bar. Communicate, focus, be detailed, that penalty could be the difference between 3rd&4 Vs. 1st&10.

"Most of the key coaching points were small details about situational football. That will decide what season this will be for Nebraska football. It’s clear to me they have a top tier QB, Wr are studs, OL looks lean, strong, deep, they’ll be better. Def secondary is deep and exp. They have plenty of talent, combined with the schedule, to be very much in the hunt for a playoff spot. But they are not built to blow out most of the teams on the schedule. Meaning, expect close games. Small details, focus, communication, execution will separate Neb (or someone) from the pack.


"Excited to watch this team. Will be amazing and electrifying whenever the day comes for Nebraska to host a playoff game. Remains to be seen if that will be this year or not."

If you missed the show on Friday, you can catch it multiple times on Saturday at 2 p.m., 6 p.m., and 11 p.m. on the Big Ten Network.

Nebraska Football 2025 Schedule

• Aug. 28 (Thursday) vs. Cincinnati (Kansas City) 8 p.m. ESPN
• Sep. 6 vs. Akron 6:30 p.m. CDT BTN
• Sep. 13 vs. Houston Christian 11 a.m. FS1
• Sep. 20 vs. Michigan 2:30 p.m. CBS
• Oct. 4 vs. Michigan State 11/2:30/3
• Oct. 11 at Maryland TBA
• Oct. 17 (Friday) at Minnesota 7 p.m. FOX
• Oct. 25 vs. Northwestern TBA
• Nov. 1 vs. USC TBA
• Nov. 8 at UCLA TBA
• Nov. 22 at Penn State TBA
• Nov. 28 (Black Friday) vs. Iowa 11 a.m. CBS

Home games are bolded. All times central.