Matt Rhule

Matt Rhule is a forward-thinking coach determined to lead his team to success. While earning his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science at Penn State, Rhule walked onto the football team as a linebacker, played four years under coach Joe Paterno, and was a three-time Penn State Scholar-Athlete. Later, he continued his education and completed his Master’s degree in Educational Psychology from the University of Buffalo in 2003.

Rhule has 10 years of head coaching experience under his belt between his time at Temple University, Baylor University, Carolina Panthers, and most recently, Nebraska Cornhuskers. Under Rhule’s leadership, Baylor became the first Power 5 program to go from 11 losses (2017) to 11 wins (2019) within two seasons. He was named Big 12 Coach of the Year and AP Big 12 Coach of the Year (2019). Following his successful head coaching terms at Temple (2013-2016) and Baylor (2017-2019), leading both programs to consecutive bowl appearances in his last two seasons, Rhule was named Carolina Panthers head coach before transitioning to head coach at the University of Nebraska—Lincoln.

Now entering his 25th year in a coaching position, Rhule has shared his determined mindset around coaching without the pressure of job status or winning every game. He shares how his main focus for his team’s success lies in inspiring his team to want to consistently improve and show up for one another, as well as the fans.