Matt Rhule Discusses NFL, NIL
Today's Friday Feature focuses on Matt Rhule, the newest Nebraska Football Head Coach, who brings experience from the NFL back to the world of CFB.
Matt Rhule on Culture, “Free Agency”
Prior to his time in the NFL with the Carolina Panthers, where Rhule struggled for two years before ultimately being fired in his third, he enjoyed two successful coaching stints at Temple and Baylor. At Temple, Rhule inherited a roster coming off a 4-7 season in the Big East. Rhule’s Owls struggled in year one, falling to a 2-10 record before finishing 10-4 each of his last two years. Rhule similarly struggled his first year at Baylor, where the team went 1-11, but similarly turned the program around, culminating in a 11-3 record in his third year as he departed for the Panthers and the NFL. Although his time at the highest level was unsuccessful, Rhule claims that experience, particularly with NFL free agency, will greatly benefit his upcoming time at Nebraska.
Rhule on NIL
Rhule interviewed with Greg McElroy this week to discuss his approach to NIL during college recruiting. Rhule acknowledged the impact of NIL, while downplaying the importance it has in his approach:
“To me? I want guys who are interested in the NFL, not NIL,” Rhule stated. “It doesn’t mean I don’t want them to get NIL. But that’s a means to an end. I want guys who want to come here, who want to get an education, who want to get coached, who want to get developed, and who want to be great.”
During a separate interview this week, Rhule shared more on his experience in the NFL, particularly comparing Free Agency and NIL:
“I think being in the NFL really helped me,” Rhule said. “You go through this free agency period. What I learned was — let everyone go handle their business, handle their money. And, when they come back, they’re kind of signed up.”
“I don’t think there is anything wrong with investing in young people. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with guys having some money to fly their parents to a game. Obviously, people are all different levels of the spectrum but I’m pretty comfortable with it.”
Rhule’s commitment to building culture—and letting NIL opportunities follow—appears to be paying off. After finishing 41st in 247’s team recruiting rankings in 2022, the last season fully under former Head Coach Scott Frost, Nebraska finished 25th in 2023, and currently sits at 22nd in the 2024 recruiting class.
Other Approaches
In contrast with Rhule’s approach to recruiting in the NIL era, a recent interview series was conducted with a number of college basketball coaches to discuss their experience in recruiting. The general consensus? “Money talks.”
SEC: “Money talks. If you want a kid, you’re going to have to pay for him. It’s a win-now era in college basketball. You can turn a program around in one year with a roster flip. If you’re a top ten transfer portal team, and your team doesn’t perform, what does that say about you as a coach?”
Big East: “The ‘process’ begins (and almost ends) with the financial benefit of the school. If it was even part of the process, it was nearly last (or non-existent) pre-NIL. The money/NIL has no equivalent now in the process, and there is almost no way to overcome a substandard ‘offer.’”
Atlantic-10: “NIL has significantly changed how we recruit. If we know early on that the decision is all bout money, we may choose to move on. We have a solid collective; however, we don’t think we want to ‘outbid’ anyone. We think our program’s history and the university have a lot to offer; unfortunately, a lot of kids, agents, and advisors only care about the bottom line. I think recruiting is mostly about two things, 1) role definition and 2) NIL, “Will I play and how much will I get paid?”
More comments from basketball coaches are available HERE.
Head to www.OptimumSportsConsulting.com to find important resources and features relating to all things NIL. These resources include State by State Resources for Admins, Agents and Athletes, including our initial “OSC Summaries” for over a dozen states coming soon.
More to come too, including links to helpful state information- agency laws and information about school policies, as well as seminar/congressional notes, worksheets, and much more!