Nebraska head football coach Matt Rhule recently signed a contract extension with the Cornhuskers. That essentially ended all speculation that Rhule would leave Nebraska for Penn State. Rhule had played for the Nittany Lions, and was seen by many to be a shoe-in for that job.
Rhule, who recently lost to Penn State, sent a message to his athletic director about his feelings on leaving Lincoln for State College.
“Matt's message to me was: ‘I grew up there, I played there, it'll always be special to me, but Nebraska's home,'” Nebraska athletic director Troy Dannen said, per CBS Sports.
Penn State football moved to 5-6 on the campaign, after defeating Nebraska recently 37-10. The Nittany Lions are led by interim head coach Terry Smith. Smith is seen as a possible candidate for the permanent job.
Following his loss to Penn State, Rhule was asked by reporters if it felt different to lose to Penn State after all the rumors flew that he may leave Nebraska.
“No,” Rhule said. “I love these guys, I wanted to be their coach, I've always wanted to be their coach. To come here and be out there with them, even though the result wasn't what we wanted, I'm always proud of them and happy to be with them.”
Nebraska football is 7-4 on the season.
Nebraska football is headed to its second consecutive bowl game
The Cornhuskers have seen a turnaround under Rhule. Rhule, who previously coached at Baylor and Temple, is leading Nebraska back to a bowl game this season.
“Two things are very important to retaining a coach when they're the envy of someone else's eye,” Dannen added. “One is that you can put them in a position to be successful, because the salary is available almost anywhere, but can they win? Matt is in that position where he says, ‘I can win in Nebraska. Not that I couldn't win at Penn State, but I can win at Nebraska.'
The Cornhuskers finish the regular season with a game against Iowa on Friday.
