This off season has been a season of change for Matt Rhule at Nebraska.
Star quarterback Dylan Raiola opted to transfer to Oregon, where he will – in all liklihood – backup Dante Moore for a season before getting his shot to lead the Ducks. In two seasons as a starter in Lincoln he completed nearly 70% of his passes (including an impressive 72.4% this past season), and 31 touchdowns to 17 interceptions, but despite the Huskers entering 2025 with no shortage of playoff hype, they finished 7-6 for a second straight season under Rhule.
Following two off lopsided losses in November, Rhule decided to make some changes on defense, parting ways with defensive coordinator John Butler and defensive line coach Terry Bradden, as well as offensive line coach Donovan Raiola.
Rhule has also been tasked with finding a third special teams coordinator in as many seasons following the surprising departure of Mike Ekeler, who left for the same post with Lincoln Riley at USC.
Most recently, just over the weekend, assistant special teams coach Josh Martin left for the opportunity to become the head coach at Liberty Christian HS in Argyle, Texas.
Now, Rhule is set to lose another assistant coach.
Miles Taylor, who was hired to coach the safeties for the Huskers about a month ago, is set to leave for the NFL, according to multiple reports today.
Part of the Jesse Minter’s defensive staff with the Chargers last season, Taylor is reportedly joining Minter in Baltimore, where the Ravens recently tabbed him as their new head coach.
A former defensive back at Iowa from 2014-17, where he started 32 games at safety for the Hawkeyes, Taylor spent a total of six seasons as either a player or coach with the Hawkeyes, and was part of five teams that ranked in the top 20 nationally in scoring defense, and three teams that ranked among the top 10 in interceptions by the end of the season.
Taylor interned with the Ravens in 2019 as part of the Bill Walsh Minority Fellowship program and went on to serve as the co-defensive coordinator at South Dakota (FCS) before joining the Chargers staff.
At South Dakota, Taylor worked with new Huskers defensive coordinator Rob Aurich for two seasons. Aurich, the former defensive coordinator at San Diego State, signed a three-year deal that averages $1.2 million per year, starting with a $1.1 million salary this off season.
As Rhule begins the search to fill that role, new faces for the Huskers on defense heading into spring practices, along with Aurich, include Roy Manniny (edges) and Corey Brown (DL). Manning also came from San Diego State, while Brown was the defensive line coach at Miami (OH) previously.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.