Today on Hurrdat Sports Radio, hosts Ravi Lulla and Damon Benning dive deep into the intricacies of building a successful football program, drawing parallels to the ongoing journey of Nebraska football under Coach Matt Rhule. They compare the Cornhuskers’ approach in the rebuild to other programs who have taken the same rebuild path. The essential point for success relies on elements of patience, coaching stability and long-term planning.
The Importance of Patience in College Football
Lulla and Benning analyze how many successful programs saw gradual progress over years rather than immediate turnarounds. They note that most quick-fix solutions, such as bringing in high-profile transfer players, often yield short-lived results. Instead, successful programs tend to prioritize a blend of high school recruits and transfer portal additions, emphasizing the importance of “building from the ground up.”
They bring up the statistic that 19 of the 63 power conference hires since 2016 took over programs with multiple recent missed bowl games. Programs with sustained success, like those led by Mike Norvell at Florida State, focus on high school recruits as their program’s backbone while carefully selecting transfer players to fill gaps. “The meat and potatoes have to be the high school recruits,” Benning emphasizes, pointing out that transfer players are more of the “dessert” for a well-rounded team.
Nebraska’s Unique Challenge and Comparisons with Other Programs
Lulla and Benning specifically focused on the Nebraska program under Rhule, likening it to teams like North Carolina under Mack Brown and Kansas under Lance Leipold, both of which had experienced extended periods without success before their coaches’ arrival. They note, however, that while Leipold and Brown had more immediate wins, Rhule’s strategy involves a longer-term focus on building team culture.
“I think Nebraska fans are looking at programs like Tennessee under Josh Heupel or Arkansas under Sam Pittman and asking, ‘Why not us?’” Lulla explains. They point out though that programs with instant success often benefited from inheriting stable foundations or standout players. In Rhule’s case, the situation is different, with the Huskers needing to completely overhaul their roster and team culture.
The Quarterback Question: Nebraska’s Struggle for a Key Piece
No discussion about Nebraska’s football journey is complete without addressing the quarterback situation. Jeff Sims, the highly anticipated transfer heading into Rhule’s first season at Nebraska, struggled early, and the need for a reliable, long-term quarterback has become evident. As Benning put it, “The quarterback is the cornerstone, and without the right fit, everything else is difficult.”
While many fans questioned why Rhule didn’t prioritize another quarterback in the transfer portal, they stress that Sims wasn’t Nebraska’s only option. They explore how other programs, such as Michigan, struggled when relying solely on transfer quarterbacks, often lacking stability once those players graduated.
The Road Ahead for Nebraska Football
As Nebraska faces teams with stable quarterback play, the Huskers’ challenges highlight the importance of long-term planning. The belief in Rhule’s strategy focuses on consistent progression rather than quick fixes, which may ultimately yield a more sustainable success model. Emphasizing that Rhule’s patience in waiting for the right players to fit Nebraska’s system reflects the coaching philosophy of slow-growth programs, underscoring his commitment to both team culture and incremental improvement.
Finally, Lulla and Benning argue that Husker fans should brace for a patient rebuild. With Nebraska’s history as a powerhouse, expectations remain high, but as they point out, programs built for sustained success are rarely the result of overnight turnarounds.
