Matt Rhule Explains Promotion of Dana Holgorsen to OC: “We Needed Some Help“

The Huskers’ offense has not been living up to its potential this season. Maybe Holgorsen can change that.

Houston head coach Dana Holgorsen walks around before the game against Texas Tech, Saturday, Sept, 30, 2023, at Jones AT&T Stadium. / Annie Rice/Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

Last week, Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule made waves when it was reported that Dana Holgorsen was joining his offensive staff. Then on Monday, Rhule announced that Holgorsen was taking over for Marcus Satterfield as offensive coordinator.

It was a surprising move that seemingly came out of nowhere, but it could turn out to be the perfect move for the Huskers to have made. The offense has not been consistent enough throughout the season. There have been several games where the Huskers’ defense held strong, but their offense was unable to deliver on its end of the deal. Now with three games left in the season, Rhule felt he needed to make a move.

“I felt like we needed some help, and I just thought that this was the right thing to do at the end of the day,” Rhule said. “It might be bold and it might be unique, but I didn’t bring him (Holgorsen) in at first with that (idea). I said, ‘Hey, come and see,’ and I think as he got here, he felt comfortable.”

It seems that Rhule did not know he would be promoting Holgorsen to be his offensive coordinator so quickly. However, it is not surprising to see the change get made, considering Holgorsen‘s reputation as a great offensive mind. If you have someone like him in the building, you may as well utilize him to his full potential. As Holgorsen got more comfortable, Rhule felt comfortable in making the move to promote him to play-caller.

“I think it gives us a great opportunity to have one of the great, great offensive minds, a guy that I’ve been friends with before and that I trust,” Rhule said. “… This is not about next year; this is about right now. This is about us giving our guys the best chance to go out there and win at USC."

USC is led by Lincoln Riley, a head coach with one of the best offensive reputations in the country. The Huskers will need to score points in order to win on the road against the Trojans. Just like Rhule said, this move is about giving his team its best chance to win.

Rhule also knows that the offensive system cannot be completely remade this late in the season. Holgorsen will not be installing his famous Air Raid system in just a few days. Instead, he will have to work with the players Nebraska has and tune the offense to fit their strengths. If he can do that effectively, Nebraska has a chance to close the season on a strong note.

“He can’t come in and change the offense and he can’t come in and install the Air Raid; we’re in Week 11,” Rhule said. “He can come in and say, ‘Hey, what are the things that we do well? Who are the guys that can make plays? And let’s figure out how to do it with those guys.’ That’s the big picture that I think he’s doing right now.”

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