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Matt Rhule Talks Defense, Officiating Ahead of Nebraska's Game Against UCLA

“I don’t want any more apologies on Sunday … It can’t keep happening to us,” coach says after conference acknowledges bad ball placement at key juncture of Ohio State game.

Joe Hudson

HuskerMax Practice Report, Oct. 28, 2024
HuskerMax Practice Report, Oct. 28, 2024 /
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Bad officiating and good defense.

Those were a couple of key topics Monday as Nebraska football head coach Matt Rhule discussed the Huskers' narrow loss at Ohio State and the game coming up Saturday against UCLA. Nebraska is 5-3 and needs at least one win in its four remaining games for bowl eligibility.

Speaking a few minutes after the Big Ten publicly acknowledged an obvious officiating mistake that went against the Huskers against the Buckeyes, Rhule said, “Before we worry about the officials, we’ve got to worry about ourselves.”

Still, he did express some frustration: “I don’t want any more apologies on Sunday … It can’t keep happening to us.”

Rhule said the Huskers' defense was relentless against Ohio State, and he thinks it was "the best some of our guys on defense have played to date." Defensive coordinator Tony White's preparation last week, Rhule said, was “head coach-like.”

Below are Kaleb Henry's notes from Rhule's session Monday. Scroll down further for links to more coverage. | HuskerMax discussion

  • Proud of the guys for Saturday but made crucial mistakes.
  • Have to play fearless in order to be successful with the championship mindset that the team was united with Saturday.
  • Rahmir Johnson is back to practicing. Tommi Hill not back yet.
  • Dylan Raiola is finding stuff to improve on each week, including finding spots to run.
  • Rhule thinks Raiola sped up on the open wheel route he missed, but likes that the young QB checked into that route which resulted in an open opportunity.
  • Good running team when there aren’t blitzes; struggle against pressure.
  • Commends the league for putting out a statement on officiating mistake before halftime of the Ohio State game.
  • One of the hardest jobs to do right now is to be an official.
  • League told Rhule that both times he got a personal foul this season there should not have been a flag.
  • Doesn’t want more apologies coming the next day. “Can’t keep happening.”
  • Willis McGahee playing really well.
  • Focused on UCLA instead of what are we good at or bad at right now.
  • Learned a lot the last two weeks and need to carry that forward.
  • Need to have same mindset against UCLA as Ohio State.
  • Understands why people are frustrated by screen game but wants people to understand taking on the Ohio State front without running any screens.
  • Were 5-3 last year and lost out. Gotta play free like last week.
  • Learning the league can be a tough transition. UCLA is going through that now.
  • Long time between home games right now.
  • Thomas Fidone went to Rhule and OC Marcus Satterfield a few weeks ago about wanting to catch the ball more. Has put together a couple of good games since then.
  • Jaylen Lloyd “is an excellent receiver.” Should see him continue to emerge with more opportunities.
  • Lost fullback Barret Liebentritt for the year (6-8 weeks). Broke a bone in his back.

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Joe Hudson
JOE HUDSON

Joe Hudson has operated a Husker-related website since 1995 and joined forces with David Max to form HuskerPedia (later renamed HuskerMax) in 1999. It began as a hobby during his 35 years as a newspaper editor and reporter, a career that included stints at the Lincoln Star, Omaha World-Herald, Philadelphia Inquirer and Denver Post. In Denver, Joe was chief of the copy desk during his final 16 years at the Post. He is proud to have been involved in Pulitzer Prize-winning projects in both Philadelphia and Denver. Joe has been a Nebraska football fan since the mid-1960s during his childhood in Omaha. He earned his bachelor of arts degree in journalism and economics at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1976. He resides a few freeway exits north of Colorado Springs and enjoys bicycling and walking his dogs in his spare time. You can reach him at joeroyhud@outlook.com.

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