LINCOLN, Neb. \u2014 The task for Nebraska football players and coaches over the next five months, aside from the training and the preparation that happens from April through August, is simple: Tune it out.<\/p>\n
Turn off the noise. Put your heads down and move forward.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve had a look outside. It\u2019s not inviting \u2014 by Nebraska standards \u2014 for anyone who isn\u2019t actively winning a game. And until Sept. 5, that\u2019s impossible. Based on my interactions with members of the Huskers\u2019 famously loyal fans, some 40 to 50 percent of them have heard enough.<\/p>\n
Nothing but wins in the fall can lift their malaise. Welcome to the dog days of an offseason filled with restlessness and impatience.<\/p>\n
Spring practice came and went in March without the normal hype. With some help from a Huskers men\u2019s basketball team that shattered ceilings and advanced to the Sweet 16, Matt Rhule\u2019s team largely avoided the big stage \u2014 just as the fourth-year coach envisioned and planned.<\/p>\n
\u201cFloat under the radar and just get better,\u201d Rhule said halfway through spring practice.<\/p>\n
He said he wants the Huskers to \u201cshow up every day\u201d in an \u201cindustrious\u201d manner.<\/p>\n
Rhule possesses a keen understanding of the temperature around his program. I\u2019ve wondered if he monitors it too closely. Undoubtedly, his read helps shape his demeanor in public.<\/p>\n
This winter and spring, Rhule appeared less often on TV and radio. He made fewer cameos and stayed in the shadows when he attended NCAA Tournament games in Oklahoma City and Houston.<\/p>\n
Social media activity from the program slowed and did not call out attention. The Huskers didn\u2019t manufacture viral moments. This is new for Nebraska football, accustomed to cooking up spring and summer wins.<\/p>\n
Rhule was subdued in media sessions.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought they had a really good spring,\u201d he said of the Huskers after their 118-play scrimmage Saturday at Memorial Stadium. \u201cI thought it looked like football out there.\u201d<\/p>\n
“He’s got the same last name, no ‘H.’ But he does not have my genetics, I can tell you that.” \ud83d\ude06<\/p>\n
Jamal Rule breaks free for the 75-yard @HuskerFootball<\/a> TD while Matt Rhule is talking to our crew. pic.twitter.com\/7GUyEI0V3y<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) March 28, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n He got slightly more specific about the big picture.<\/p>\n \u201cRight now,\u201d Rhule said, \u201cwe\u2019re less looking for leadership and more looking for good football, to be quite honest. We\u2019re looking for production. We\u2019re looking for grit, looking for gritty guys who show up every day and want to be part of a brotherhood.\u201d<\/p>\n This is not a coach who\u2019s worried about his team. Rhule is refocused, recognizing that no goodwill or big gestures can erase the disappointment of three losses by big margins to end the season in 2025 \u2014 37-10 at Penn State, 40-16 in Lincoln against Iowa and 44-22 against Utah in the Las Vegas Bowl.<\/p>\n Yes, Nebraska played in the postseason and won seven games for a second consecutive season after seven years without doing either. But the year ended on a sour series of notes.<\/p>\n Whatever Rhule says about improvement is met with more skepticism than he faced in the months ahead of his first three seasons in Lincoln.<\/p>\n All he can do is grind. Nebraska started spring practice a full month earlier than last year. On Monday after the spring game, the Huskers held a 7:30 a.m. meeting. Their spring work is not done. It turns back to conditioning for six weeks until the semester ends, then a short break before organized team activities on the practice fields in June.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are in a sprint,\u201d Rhule said.<\/p>\n In a vacuum, there\u2019s reason for excitement. New quarterback Anthony Colandrea brings a degree of swag that is not contrived<\/a>. He matches well with offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen, whose play calling stands to benefit from a QB with natural tendencies to take risks.<\/p>\n The running backs might be better than imagined after Emmett Johnson\u2019s departure left a group with minimal experience. Colandrea\u2019s receivers are legit. The offensive line is revitalized and more versatile, with three transfers in line to start.<\/p>\n Defensively, new coordinator Rob Aurich and his assistants appear more aligned than staffs in the past two seasons. The Huskers added at least two potential difference-makers among a group that is maturing up front. They reloaded nicely in the secondary.<\/p>\n \u201cI think this group is pretty good,\u201d said safety Dwayne McDougle, who arrived with Aurich after starting last year on the No. 12-ranked defense nationally at San Diego State.<\/p>\n McDougle paused mid-answer.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re not pretty good,\u201d he said. \u201cI think we\u2019re going to be great this year. I think we may be the best defense in the Big Ten. That\u2019s my opinion.<\/p>\n \u201cI think we can compete with anybody.\u201d<\/p>\n Nebraska on defense last year ranked 10th in yards per play allowed (5.44), 13th in scoring (24.6 points per game) and last in rushing touchdowns allowed (30).<\/p>\n But McDougle likes what he sees. It\u2019s part of his job, as a veteran defender, he said, to instill teammates with confidence. So what is he supposed to say?<\/p>\n \u201cI feel like I need to be a vocal leader,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Problem is, the Huskers don\u2019t operate in a vacuum. The people who fill Memorial Stadium \u2014 or could elect not to fill it in the fall \u2014 have perspective. Whether it\u2019s a mature and measured perspective, that\u2019s irrelevant.<\/p>\n What they think matters.<\/p>\n Man\u2026.Are yall gonna let us rebuild or keep criticizing every little thing , then calling yourself a \u201c fan\u201d ??\ud83e\udd23 ! #gbr<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Antayvious \u201cTay\u201d Ellis\u271d\ufe0f (@AntayviousEllis) March 30, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Fans have seen offseason hype fizzle. Many of the Huskers and their recruits have not. The players\u2019 and coaches\u2019 best course of action is to turn off the noise. They\u2019ve got plenty on their plates.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve got to train,\u201d Rhule said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to get stronger. We\u2019ve got to get healthier. And each guy knows what they have to work on.\u201d<\/p>\n Tunnel vision. Otherwise, five months could get long.<\/p>\n