Nebraska head football coach Matt Rhule met with the media following the annual Fan Day and Big Red Preview on Saturday.
The Husker coach said that several players did not participate in the evening practice due to injury. Wide receiver Jackson Carpenter, running back Kwinten Ives, wide receiver Dane Key, defensive lineman Gabe Moore, and running back Trent Uhlir sat out on Saturday night.
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Nebraska will open the 2025 college football season on Thursday, August 28, when the Huskers face the Cincinnati Bearcats at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. The kickoff is set for 8:00 p.m. CT. Find comments from head coach Matt Rhule by scrolling below.
Rhule on fall camp and the players’ mindset.
“I’ve been really, really pleased this week with the effort and attitude every single day,” he said. “They’re trying to get better. They like football. They like practice. It’s a clear step in the right direction.”
Rhule on his message to the team ahead of an open practice.
“I’d like them to be very appreciative of all the people that came out here today,” he said. “I’d like them to be very appreciative of the fanfest. I’d like them to be appreciative of all the people that came out there. Last year was a little different – a different schedule. So this was me getting on the mic, it was kind of fun.
Rhule on the importance of a physical practice.
This is work today. This is our first day in full pads. In the NCAA right now, you get one day of full pads in the acclimation and then you get eight more times in full pads before the first game. Just think about that. You get nine times in full pads. Nine times you can actually, physically tackle someone before the first game. If you want to know why early-season football sometimes looks pretty sloppy, that’s why.”
Rhule on the need to be a business-oriented team.
We don’t have any time to waste. I’d like them to entertain the crowd with their effort, their physicality. I haven’t really said very much. To me, we have so much work to get done. This is a really business-oriented team. I want them to have fun, I want them to dap people up at the end and all that, but we just have to get better with football while we’re out there. That’s important to me, the fans are really important to me. That stadium is really important to me, and winning home field. This will be the first time under the lights at Memorial Stadium. I expect us to play to a certain standard when we’re in there.”
Rhule on transfer players and how they’ve meshed with the team.
“I’ll be honest with you, I don’t think anymore about who’s the transfers,” he said. “They’re all on our team. I guess that would be like Dasan (McCullough), (Andrew) Marshall, (Marques) Watson-Trent. The thing with those guys is they walked in from day one – we were really diligent this year about, I don’t want to bring anyone in here who complains about having to eat at the training table. I fixed that problem. I didn’t want to break anyone in here who complains about practice.
Rhule on coaching a team that likes to practice.
Practice on Thursday was shorter. Dylan (Raiola) is yelling at me, like, get another rack. They’re all like, let’s get another rack. Dylan walked off, he always makes fun of me. He’s like, ‘yeah, we like practice.’ I want guys who like practice. They brought that. Dasan has brought that. Not that they brought it to a team that didn’t have it, they’ve just assimilated into a bunch of guys who love practice. There’s not a deal where it’s like, that guy is a transfer, that guy has been one of us for a long time. It’s very much like, we’re all in it together. It’s a really healthy thing. They have a lot of talent. I’ll say this about Marshall. I don’t get asked a lot of questions about this guy. This guy is as professional as can be. He practices and behaves like a pro. He doesn’t say a lot. He’s a really good football player. He’s going to play really well for us. I respect the heck out of him as the competitor and professional he is.”
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This article originally appeared on Cornhuskers Wire: What Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule said following the Big Red Preview
