Jeremy Pernell’s Mailbag: Contending for a Title and Keeping Tony White

Don’t count on Nebraska winning the Big Ten West, but do expect to see a hefty pay raise for the Huskers’ defensive coordinator

Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports

Nebraska football is coming off a 31-14 win over Purdue, improving to 5-3 and inching another step closer to its first bowl birth since 2016. The Huskers have won five of their last six games and have now won three straight for the first time since 2016.

I've gotten several emails about the current state of the program, so I decided to pick a couple out that I've edited for succinctness and give my thoughts.

Do you think Nebraska can win the West? - Marcus (St. Louis, Mo.)

Let's take a cue from head coach Matt Rhule and just try and go 1-0 this Saturday against Michigan State. With this offense it'd be irresponsible to look ahead.

In my first mailbag installment, Ray in Grand Island (Neb.) asked if I thought Nebraska would make a bowl game this year. That was prior to the Michigan loss, and knowing the Huskers would be coming out of that game 2-3, I said the current four-game stretch was going to be crucial if they were to get to six wins.

Nebraska has gone 3-0 thus far and just completed its first undefeated month of October since the 2001 season. The Huskers are in a four-way tie for first place in the Big Ten West Division with Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Technically the Gophers control their own destiny, but with a road game still to come for Minnesota against Ohio State on Nov. 18, Nebraska is basically in that position with four games left in the regular season.

If I had told you before the season that Nebraska would be heading into November with a shot at playing in Indianapolis for the Big Ten championship, would you have believed me? The fact that's where we sit is a testament to the direction Matt Rhule has this program headed.

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For the sake of the question, I'll put the cart before the horse. I think Nebraska gets bowl eligible this weekend and then you're basically playing with house money at that point.

They get Maryland at home and the Terrapins are 1-2 on the road this year with their only win coming against Michigan State. They've lost three straight and welcome Penn State to College Park this weekend. Their season is on the verge of collapse.

The following week the Huskers travel to Wisconsin to face a Badger team that's dealing with injuries to several key players and just added Braelon Allen and Chimere Dike to that list.

The Huskers finish with Iowa at home on Black Friday. If there's an offense that Marcus Satterfield can snicker at, it's the Hawkeyes.

Do I think Nebraska can win the West? Yes they can. Do I think they will? I just have a tough time getting there with the way the offense struggles and continues to turn the ball over.

Like I pointed out, Maryland isn't the team it was to start the season, but with Taulia Tagavailoa and that offense, they're no gimme.

Even with the injuries, in my opinion Wisconsin is still the most complete and talented team in the division. They've beaten the Huskers nine straight times dating back to the 2012 Big Ten Championship Game.

Iowa's offense is dreadful and it finally cost Brian Ferentz his job, but going back to 2015, the Hawkeyes have won at least eight games every year (6-2 during the COVID season) with this formula. Their team has been built like this for a long time. The Huskers had lost seven straight to Iowa until getting off the schneid last season.

Despite the rash of injuries and the continued issues on offense, overall this Nebraska team has gotten better each week. Matt Rhule has done a tremendous job improving the team's mental fortitude, so I don't put anything past this team. But at the same time, I can't see them not stubbing their toe and falling short of winning the division in Year 1 under Rhule. If the Huskers do win the West, then Matt Rhule should be Big Ten Coach of the Year.

How long before Tony White gets a head coaching job? - Steven (Kearney, Neb.)

He's certainly going to get looks from schools in the next year or two, so it depends on what kind of opportunity Tony White is looking for. Would he leave for a job at the Group of Five level or will he follow the example of a coach like Brent Venables and wait for an ideal situation with a Power Five program?

Either way, I can almost guarantee you he'll be getting a significant raise in the offseason. He's currently making $1 million a year, which places him in a tie with Cincinnati's Bryan Brown for 20th nationally among defensive coordinators. Glenn Schumann (Georgia), Jim Knowles (Ohio State), Matt House (LSU) and Kevin Steele (Alabama) are the nation's highest paid at $1.9 million.

After that you have Tosh Lupoi (Oregon) and Pete Kwiatkowski (Texas) making $1.7 million.

I'd expect a raise to at least $1.5 million, which would put him in the top 10 nationally with DJ Durkin (Texas A&M), Tim Banks (Tennessee) and Brad White (Kentucky) making that this season.

I don't want to go negative here, but I would be remiss if I didn't point out that at $1.4 million, offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield is the highest-paid Husker assistant of all time. He's tied with Kirk Ciarrocca of Rutgers as the sixth highest-paid offensive coordinator in college football.

I point that out mostly to show Rhule has already set the bar. Tony White deserves to be paid significantly more than Satterfield and I would argue he should be asking for closer to $1.8 million - or more.

Like it or not, you've put yourself in a position where you need to open up your checkbook to keep him happy. How can you justify paying Satterfield what he's making and not give White a huge bump?

Through eight games, the offense is 113th in scoring and 110th in total offense.

Conversely, the Blackshirts rank among the nation's best in several key categories: total defense (13th), scoring defense (21st), rushing defense (5th), pass efficiency defense (22nd), sacks (15th) and tackles for loss (t-28th).

Not only do you have to worry about him leaving for a head coaching opportunity, you also have to try and safeguard against him leaving for another coordinator job elsewhere too. Making White one of the highest-paid coordinators (not just defensive) in the country helps with that.

Your best hope is that he will wait for a Power Five opportunity and turn down the Group of Five offers he'll inevitably receive. The five highest-paid head coaches at the Group of Five level are Willie Fritz ($2.84), Jeff Traylor ($2.55), Alex Golesh ($2.5), Mike Houston ($2.36) and Craig Bohl ($2.34). So you can see where putting him at an exclusive pay scale helps negate the financial benefits of leaving.

If White gets an opportunity at a Power Five school, there's nothing you can do to keep him. At that point you wish him the best.

With any luck that's at least two or three seasons away. Glass half-full, Matt Rhule could parlay White's career trajectory as a selling point to his wish list of replacements.