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Matt Rhule loves Penn State. That doesn’t mean PSU should hire him

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Matt Rhule loves Penn State. That doesn’t mean PSU should hire him


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  • Penn State needs its very own Curt Cignetti.
  • Matt Rhule’s best attribute is that he’s a program builder. You could say the same of James Franklin.
  • Penn State needs a closer, not a builder.

Matt Rhule has a big ol’ crush on Penn State.

Don’t take my word for it. Listen to Nebraska’s coach gush with affection for his alma mater.

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“I love Penn State,” Rhule said, as his face lit up, during his weekly news conference one day after James Franklin’s firing. “Met my wife there. It’s my alma mater. Fan since I was born. I think I probably had a Penn State shirt when I was born. I love Pat Kraft,” the Penn State athletic director.

That, folks, sounds like a man waiting on a job offer. A man experiencing a bout of infatuation — and not for the Huskers.

I half expected Rhule to rip off his Nebraska hoodie, reveal a mountain lion’s head on his undershirt, and start swaying and singing “For the Glory.”

Oh, sure, Rhule also said he loves Nebraska and he wants to “turn this thing into a beast,” but how much are we to believe that pledge while Rhule is rubbernecking Penn State?

This whole situation smells a little too obvious. Rhule played at Penn State as a walk-on under Joe Paterno, then started his career as a volunteer coach there. Kraft previously was Rhule’s boss when he coached Temple. They’re pals.

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Rhule also hinted Nebraska’s not bankrolling his roster to the extent he’d like.

It’s clear why Rhule would flirt with well-heeled Penn State, but why should Penn State settle for the easy choice? Hiring Rhule would amount to hiring a Franklin 2.0. This one just smiles more.

Matt Rhule credentials are a lot like that of James Franklin

By every indicator, Rhule’s a solid coach. He’s a program builder. He’s steady. He worked wonders at Baylor and Temple, just as Franklin did at Vanderbilt. He leaves programs better than he found them.

Each of those descriptors applies to Franklin, too.

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By firing Franklin, Penn State signaled it desires to be elite, not solid.

By every indicator, Rhule’s not elite. Like Franklin, he loses the big games. He lost to Michigan a few weeks ago. He’s 8-13 against Big Ten competition in 2½ seasons at Nebraska.

It should be said he’s got Nebraska trending up, with a 5-1 record. Year 3 consistently marks a crescendo for Rhule’s tenures, and this one is no exception.

Sophomore quarterback Dylan Raiola is flourishing. Might Raiola follow Rhule to Penn State, if his coach left?

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If Penn State hired Rhule, nobody could say it hired a bad coach. I would say Penn State spent tens of millions of dollars and triggered the second-largest buyout in college football history, just to replace Franklin with a more charismatic Franklin.

Rhule’s chops for program building cannot be questioned, but Penn State doesn’t need a rebuild. It needs a closer, a cut-throat like the one Big Ten rival Indiana cooked up.

Will Penn State go for obvious hire or challenge its imagination?

Rhule is the unimaginative, tug-on-the-heart strings choice. That’s worked elsewhere. Mario Cristobal, a Miami native who played for the Hurricanes, has “The U” humming.

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Kirby Smart, Jim Harbaugh, Phillip Fulmer and Steve Spurrier won national championships coaching their alma maters. Ohio native Urban Meyer did his thing at Ohio State. Bear Bryant suited Alabama beautifully.

There are just as many examples of the obvious choice going splat. Including the guy Rhule replaced at Nebraska. Scott Frost seemed like a slam dunk. He stunk.

So did Charlie Weis at Notre Dame, his alma mater. So did Kliff Kingsbury in his Texas Tech homecoming.

Mike Shula flopped coaching his alma mater. Alabama replaced Shula with a West Virginia native who played at Kent State. Nick Saban went on to become the GOAT. Alabama built him a statue.

None of the four coaches in last season’s CFP semifinals was at his alma mater. Of that quartet, only Franklin was a native of the state where he coached. A lot of good that Pennsylvania upbringing did Franklin against UCLA and Northwestern.

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You think Indiana cares Curt Cignetti is from Pittsburgh, played at West Virginia and came to Indiana by way of James Madison? Indiana wouldn’t trade its Yinzer for any born and bred Hoosier.

Think Oregon minds Dan Lanning, he of the defending Big Ten champion Ducks, is from Missouri and ascended as Smart’s defensive coordinator, three time zones away from Oregon? Nope.

Plundering a coach from a big-brand program isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, either. Texas A&M tried that with Jimbo Fisher. LSU is attempting that with Brian Kelly. Southern California is trying it with Lincoln Riley. None of those guys made the playoff after changing jobs.

Hiring Rhule would be the easy move, the obvious hire, a choice who ensures a high floor. He’d charm the skeptics at his introductory news conference, and he’d love Penn State, and, at first, Penn State would love him back.

And when Rhule proves he’s the second coming of Franklin, Penn State would wonder why it spent all that money to hire the coach it just fired.

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Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s senior national college football columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer.





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Where to watch Nebraska vs UCLA today: Time, TV channel for Week 11 game

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Where to watch Nebraska vs UCLA today: Time, TV channel for Week 11 game


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An intriguing Big Ten matchup will take place in the Rose Bowl in Week 11 with Nebraska visiting UCLA.

The Cornhuskers’ slim chance of making the College Football Playoff were wiped away when they lost at home to USC. Even worse, Nebraska lost its quarterback with Dylan Raiola out for the season with a broken fibula. Now, Matt Rhule turns to freshman TJ Lateef to end the campaign on a high note.

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It’s a fresh UCLA team returning to action, coming off a bye week after it got steamrolled by Indiana. At 3-5, the Bruins are eyeing bowl eligibility while having three games against ranked opponents left, making this game an important one to win.

Stream Nebraska vs. UCLA football live with Fubo (free trial)

Here’s how to watch the Nebraska-UCLA game, including time, TV channel and streaming information, and game odds:

What TV channel is Nebraska vs UCLA on today? 

Nebraska vs. UCLA will be broadcast nationally on Fox in Week 11 of the 2025 college football season. Tim Brando (play-by-play) and Devin Gardner (analyst) will call the game from the booth, with Josh Sims reporting from the sidelines. 

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Streaming options for the game include the Fox Sports Go app (with a TV login) and Fubo, which carries Fox and offers a free trial to new subscribers.

Nebraska vs UCLA time today 

  • Date: Saturday, Nov. 8
  • Time: 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT

Nebraska and UCLA are set to kick off at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT on Saturday, Nov. 8 from the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California.

Stream Nebraska vs. UCLA football live with Fubo (free trial)

Nebraska vs UCLA predictions, picks, odds

Odds courtesy of BetMGM as of Wednesday, Nov. 5 

  • Spread: UCLA (-1.5)
  • Over/under: 43.5
  • Moneyline: UCLA (-120) | Nebraska (+100)

Prediction: UCLA 19, Nebraska 16

Expect this one to be a defensive battle with both offenses not really having much firepower. Without Raiola, Nebraska is unable to find a rhythm and falls to UCLA for the second straight season.



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Huskers facing upstart UCLA Bruins in late-night west coast meetup

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Huskers facing upstart UCLA Bruins in late-night west coast meetup


PASADENA, Calif. (WOWT/KOLN) – Nebraska’s crisscrossing adventures in the recently expanded Big 10 find the Huskers in a late-night showdown against the upstart UCLA Bruins.

Nebraska comes to the west coast more underhanded than usual, as star QB Dylan Raiola suffered a season ending injury in the third quarter of the loss to USC the previous week.

Sophomore Tackle Gunnar Gottula is also out for the rest of the year, suffering a knee injury and adding on to a increasing laundry-list of injuries on the offensive side of the ball.

Backup QB TJ Lateef, a true freshman with athletic upside and plying experience in Nebraska’s two big blowouts, will have to take the reins against a UCLA squad that has found new life since firing their head coach, but still boasting a 3-5 record with wins over Penn State, Michigan State, and Maryland all in sequence.

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Head Coach Matt Rhule said the team is focused on setting Lateef up for success in his debut.

“You know this week to me is not about TJ, at least my message to our guys,” Rhule said. “It’s about everyone else making this where every single person has to do their job at such a high level that TJ can just do his job and not try to do anything more. But TJ can do his job. He’s an excellent player and I think everyone’s going to see him play really, really well.”

FULL VIDEO: Nebraska QB TJ Lateef | USC Post-Game Press Conference (11/1/25)

While the Huskers are already bowl-bound, one would imagine a new version of the Big Red will be taking the field once Saturday rolls around.

GAME INFO

  • WHERE: Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California
  • WHEN: 8 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 8
  • WATCH: FOX
  • LISTEN: Huskers Radio Network
  • VEGAS ODDS: UCLA -1.5, O/U 43.5

PRE-GAME UPDATES

PREVIOUS NEBRASKA FOOTBALL COVERAGE



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Chris Backemeyer runs in Nebraska’s 1st District Democratic U.S. House primary

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Chris Backemeyer runs in Nebraska’s 1st District Democratic U.S. House primary


LINCOLN, Neb. (Nebraska Examiner) – Democrats have another candidate in eastern Nebraska’s 1st Congressional District primary.

Former U.S. State Department diplomat Chris Backemeyer will face renewable energy advocate Eric Moyer in the Democratic primary. Both are vying to challenge Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Flood.

“Frankly, I see our country is just going really in the wrong direction,” said Backemeyer.

Backemeyer has worked for the State Department for 20 years in Washington, D.C., with a focus on counterterrorism, economic policy and the Middle East. He moved back to Lincoln last month after accepting a buyout from the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency, which thinned out the ranks of the federal bureaucracy in the early days of the second Trump administration.

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He said he felt there was “no mission or purpose left” in working for the State Department after the DOGE cuts, and that serving in Congress was the only way to push back against Trump’s approach to governing. Backmeyer’s pitch to voters is a moderate focus on affordability, reasserting congressional authority over tariffs and addressing rising health care prices and the national debt.

“Both parties are moving in opposite directions … I think there’s a lot of people in the middle that just want good … middle-of-the-road policies that will solve the problems that they see on a day-to-day basis,” Backemyer said.

Whoever emerges from the Democratic primary will most likely face Flood, who as yet has no GOP opponent and has won his past two elections by 20 and 16 percentage points, in a seat considered safely Republican by the nonpartisan Center for Politics, The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections.

The 1st District comprises 12 Nebraska counties, including heavily Democratic Lancaster County, which is often drowned out by the region’s more conservative rural areas.

Backemeyer said while it will be a “tough race,” the district being considered a safe seat isn’t a good reason not to “get into the fight.” He pointed to his work at the State Department as an example of his being able to work with people regardless of political differences.

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One of Backemeyer’s areas of emphasis as a diplomat was Iran. He was a senior State Department negotiator for Obama’s Iran nuclear deal in 2015. During Trump’s first term, He was replaced by Andrew L. Peek in 2017 as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Iranian Affairs and moved to a new role. Trump withdrew from the nuclear agreement in 2018.

Backemeyer was also a national security advisor to former Vice President Kamala Harris.

Daniel Bass, a spokesperson for the Flood campaign, criticized his work with former President Joe Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris. He said Backemeyer has “spent more of his life in Washington than in Nebraska, so it’s no surprise that he was inspired to run by coastal Democrat wins this week.”

“Meanwhile, Mike Flood has fought for Nebraskans,” Bass said. “To represent us, you have to be one of us.”

During Flood’s Lincoln town hall in August, Backemeyer asked Flood a question: “Who do you work for?” referring to his vote on Trump’s “big beautiful bill.” He used it as a part of his campaign lunch video. The Flood campaign pointed out that Backemeyer was still living in D.C. at the time.

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Moyer, asked about a new opponent, said the entrance of another Democratic candidate in the race validates that there is “no such thing as a safe congressional seat when Donald Trump’s failed policies are on the ballot.”

“My campaign is building momentum throughout the district, and a competitive primary will serve the people of Nebraska well,” Moyer said.

Backemeyer said a competitive Democratic primary will only make the Democratic nominee stronger. He said he respects Moyer, but argues his experience in Washington prepares him for Congress.

“I’ve been working on some of the country’s most difficult national security challenges … I’ve briefed presidents and vice presidents and secretaries of state. I think I have the ability to hit the ground running,” said Backemeyer.

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