Matt Rhule Says Fan Cussed Daughter, 13, and Vows He Won’t Quit

• Nebraska coach Matt Rhule said Monday, “I’m not leaving, I’m not quitting,” after a third straight loss in which the Cornhuskers led deep into the fourth quarter (per Fox Sports).
• Rhule said his 13-year-old daughter told him a man swore at her at the stadium after Saturday’s 17-10 home loss to Washington.
• Rhule defended offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen as “one of the best offensive minds of our generation.”

Rhule Draws a Line Between Angry Fans and the People in His Boat

Matt Rhule opened his weekly news conference on Monday with a long statement, the second week in a row he has done that. The Nebraska coach spent it on his job, his staff and his family.

“We’re going to keep fighting until the day they tell me to leave,” Rhule said. “I’m not leaving, I’m not quitting.”

The Cornhuskers are 5-3 and 2-3 in the Big Ten. Fans threw trash onto the field after the interception on Saturday. Rhule said his 13-year-old daughter told him a man accosted her at the stadium and swore at her and at her father.

A Third Late Lead Slips Away

Nebraska lost to Indiana and Oregon after blowing late leads. Against Washington, the Cornhuskers led 7-3 with under two minutes to play. Washington converted a fourth-and-18 two plays before it scored the go-ahead touchdown. Then Anthony Colandrea threw his third interception of the game, and Washington returned it for a touchdown that made the final 17-10.

Rhule said he would not worry about “the person who wants to throw something at Colandrea.”

The defense played well, in Rhule’s view. He praised its “dominance” for long stretches against the Huskies but lamented that it produced no takeaways.

Holgorsen took heat of his own. Critics widely faulted him for abandoning the running game and having Colandrea attempt 44 passes against Washington. Rhule waved off the calls for Holgorsen’s job. “Dana Holgorsen is one of the best offensive minds of our generation,” he said.

The Family Question

Rhule said his wife, Julie, asked their children if the high-profile coaching life was too much to bear. He said his 10-year-old daughter texted him that she loved the team, the players and living in Nebraska, and that she was tough enough to handle it.

Even so, Rhule set a limit. “I’m not going to keep coaching if it means my kids grow up screwed up,” he said.

He built the rest of his answer around a metaphor. The boat holds the players, coaches, staffers and fans, and he asked them to stay calm as the water gets rough. “Just steady in the boat, man. Steady in the boat,” he said. “Don’t take a rocking boat and a rocking sea and rock it even more, man.”

He drew a clear line on who he is working for. “Yeah, they get passionate, they boo, they throw a bottle. I get all that,” Rhule said. “The guy who attacked my 13-year-old daughter, I’m not coaching for him. I’m coaching for the people who are in the boat.”

What Comes Next

Rhule named the people he will fight for: the donors, the fans who spend what they earn on tickets, and the people at the L-Bow Room in Johnstown, Nebraska, who welcomed him. It is a pointed answer for a coach whose fan base is growing impatient.

Rhule is not the only coach answering critics in public. Deion Sanders called a claim that he once offered critics $50,000 to stay quiet a joke at his Colorado news conference last Tuesday.

Nebraska plays at Illinois on Friday night. Illinois is 5-3 overall and 3-2 in the Big Ten. Rhule told everyone to focus on “going back to work this week and understanding this game against Illinois.” He added that “if we play well, we’ll come down to the end and you have to make one more play than the other team.”

For now, Rhule says he is staying put and asking Nebraska to hold steady with him. Florida State fired Mike Norvell on Sunday, days after its president wrote to frustrated fans.