Rob Aurich plans to stay in Lincoln with Nebraska football for the foreseeable future, and he’s excited.
Coach Matt Rhule announced the defensive coordinator signed a two-year contract extension on Monday, and Aurich addressed the deal Tuesday. He said his family’s stability along with Nebraska’s growth made it the right move for him.
“I think there’s an opportunity here to build a consistent, championship-level defense that meets not only the program’s expectations, but my own expectation for the type of defense I want to oversee,” Aurich said. “And then additionally, I think there are some jobs that are tough to beat. You talk about having the opportunity to lead the Blackshirts and what that tradition is, it means a lot to me, so the opportunity to do it further was really important.”
Those Blackshirts have done well under Aurich’s guidance. It ranks 17th nationally in scoring defense at 16.6 points allowed per game, and 12th in total defense at 282.4 yards allowed per game. The Huskers are also 11th in rushing defense (90.33) and No. 3 in the big Ten with 25 sacks.
The Husker players want to continue that momentum as the season moves forward. That includes junior defensive lineman Jahsear Whittington and senior defensive lineman Cam Lenhardt, who said they’ve enjoyed learning from Aurich.
“When he stood up here and said that I would be good on or off the field, I respected him just more as a man, especially not knowing him as much,” Whittington said. “And then just ever since that comment, and just stacking days, our performances, little talks that we have about what he wants to do — he’s a great man, I’ll definitely say that. He brings the energy, and I love him.”
Lenhardt echoed the sentiment.
“It’s not even technique-wise, it’s just a way of play,” Lenhardt said. “We want to play violent and physical, and that’s just something that he’s teaching me, is more mental to the game.”
With the extension in hand, Aurich is focused on preparing his unit to face Rutgers (2-7) on Saturday. The Scarlet Knights will be without their best weapon as star wideout KJ Duff has undergone season-ending ankle surgery. He’s caught 45 passes for 774 yards and nine touchdowns but missed Rutgers’ last game.
“When he’s not on the field they spread the resources around a little bit more,” Aurich said. “More people are touching the ball which makes them probably a little more difficult to plan, but they rely on their two running backs a lot to get going.”
With the coach’s future secured, Nebraska’s defensive players can begin planning for their futures as well.
“Just knowing that he’s going to be here next year, it’s like a lot of those guys who have the extra year and stuff like that, it gives them options of wanting to come back just to play again for him, which is something good,” Lenhardt said. “I just think it’s more for the culture of the defense. It’s something that you love to hear and be around.”
For Aurich, he hasn’t addressed the extension a lot with his players, but he’s ready to see where he can take his unit.
“I hope it’s a great move for the program,” Aurich said. “Obviously, it’s hard to speak about yourself that way, but I’m excited for all of our recruits coming in, and all of our players returning that we have a plan going forward.”
