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New York Times
7 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Nebraska's Matt Rhule defends Scott Frost over comment that coaching Huskers was ‘wrong job'
LAS VEGAS — Nebraska coach Matt Rhule on Tuesday stood up for his predecessor Scott Frost, who faced criticism in the wake of his assessment earlier this month that the Huskers job was wrong for him. Speaking at Big Ten media days, Rhule said Nebraska displayed a large photo of Frost, taken during his time as a quarterback at the school, this offseason in the coaches' area at the football facility. Advertisement 'I have a ton of respect for Scott,' Rhule said. 'And I've always been very empathetic for what he went through, because this was his home. If you guys fire me tomorrow, I'm just going to go back to Cape May and sit on the beach — go back to where I'm from. But this was his home.' Frost, in the first year of his second stint as head coach at UCF, was fired by Nebraska in September 2022, finishing 16-31 in four-plus seasons. On July 8 at Big 12 media days, Frost said that he learned from his experience with the Huskers not to 'take the wrong job.' In hindsight, Frost said, 'it wasn't a good move.' Rhule said he understood. And he agreed with Frost. 'I know what it felt like to get run out of Carolina,' said Rhule, who was fired after two-plus seasons with the Panthers in the NFL. 'And I would say to people, 'I don't think I took the right job for me. It wasn't the right fit.' That doesn't mean it's a bad job.' Rhule said that when he accepted Nebraska's offer in November 2022 from Trev Alberts, the athletic director who fired Frost, 'this was not a good job.' 'We were behind on NIL,' he said. 'The facilities, everything was behind.' Alberts convinced Rhule they could transform the conditions in Lincoln. Rhule said he recognized a strong foundation. Financial resources as a result of commitments from Lincoln's Peed family — which founded the school's collective, 1890 Nebraska — have improved dramatically, Rhule said. Nebraska has invested in nutrition and sports science over the past three years. It opened the $165 million Osborne Legacy Complex last year and replaced the grass and artificial turf surfaces that were outdated when Rhule took over. The Huskers won their first bowl game since 2016 at the end of last season. 'We've made it a good job,' Rhule said. 'And we're about to make it a great job. This will be one of the best jobs in the country.' Advertisement After his news conference at Big Ten media days and a 45-minute side session with reporters, Rhule told The Athletic that he made a deliberate choice to embrace Frost, rather than to remain mired negativity. 'I just think the only way Nebraska can become a championship-caliber team again, in this world, is to live in positive, not toxic things,' Rhule said. 'I need an investment from everyone. The only chance we have is to be united.' He said he wants Frost to know that he's appreciated in Lincoln. 'The things he did at this school, I want him to always feel like he could come back and has a home here,' Rhule said. Even if Lincoln wasn't the right spot for Frost as a coach. 'That being said,' Rhule said, 'it's the right job for me.'
Yahoo
18-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Scott Frost back at UCF: Expectations in his return to Knights
Scott Frost returns to UCF. Jenni Carlson and Travis Hines join Before The Snap to break down the expectations.
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Greg McElroy Names College Football Program He's 'Bullish' About
Greg McElroy Names College Football Program He's 'Bullish' About originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Several programs this season are introducing new head coaches to lead their teams to success. Advertisement Some of the coaches are new to their respective universities, while others are returning to places where they previously found success. A notable example is Scott Frost, the head coach of the UCF Knights. He had a record of 19-7 during his two seasons at UCF, but he left after achieving an impressive 13-0 season to become the head coach at his alma mater, the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Frost faced challenges during his time at Nebraska, finishing with a record of 16-31 before being dismissed early in his fifth season. Now, he is returning to UCF, hoping to replicate the success he experienced during his previous tenure. The Knights have struggled, suffering back-to-back losing seasons, including a disappointing 4-8 record last year. On his podcast "Always College Football," ESPN's Greg McElroy expressed his belief that UCF will have a strong comeback season in 2025. UCF Knights head coach Scott Frost.© Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images "I think they're heading to a bowl game this year," McElroy said. "I know this has been a major transformation. I've been bullish on UCF for a while. I still like their program's trajectory. I feel like last year was just not an indicator about where this team could go here at some point very soon." Advertisement McElroy discussed the significant roster changes this offseason, led by Frost's return. He believes that the strategy Frost implemented during his first tenure at UCF was effective, but acknowledges that the current landscape is different. When Frost was coaching, NIL (Name, Image and Likeness) deals weren't yet in place, and the transfer portal hadn't become fully active. Additionally, the Knights were not part of a Power Four conference. This season, however, things are different at UCF, which means he will need to adapt to these changes. McElroy believes that UCF can achieve success, but he warns that if Frost uses the same approach as he did previously, it will be more difficult. He emphasizes that a key concern for the Knights is their quarterback situation, although they should benefit from having a strong offensive line. Indiana Hoosiers transfer Tayven Jackson is the projected starter at quarterback. He's expected to be backed up by Jacurri Brown and Cam Fancher. Jackson has thrown for 1,300 yards, six touchdowns and six interceptions in limited playing time in his career. Advertisement Brown has thrown for 809 yards, with five touchdowns and eight interceptions, despite limited playing time. Fancher has played the most games, throwing for 5,294 yards, with 27 touchdowns and 23 interceptions during his time at Marshall and Florida Atlantic. The Frost era will resume as the Knights face Jacksonville State at 7:00 p.m. ET on Aug. 28. Related: Paul Finebaum Says He'd Be Shocked if Major College Football Coach Fails to Revive Program This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 16, 2025, where it first appeared.
New York Times
11-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Is Nebraska on the verge of a breakthrough? Cincinnati opener should provide quick answer
Nebraska football won 29 consecutive season-opening games from 1986 to 2014. The Huskers are 4-5 since then, losing each time they opened away from Memorial Stadium or against a power conference opponent. Many of the stinky starts — Illinois in 2021, Northwestern in 2022 and coaching debuts for Scott Frost against Colorado in 2018 and Matt Rhule at Minnesota in 2023 — snuffed months of offseason momentum. Advertisement Now, though, confidence is swelling internally at Nebraska. The program believes it has progressed and is not so vulnerable to another faceplant. But as Rhule's third team pushes toward the newly named Kansas City Classic against Cincinnati at Arrowhead Stadium on Aug. 28, evidence of an impending breakthrough remains scarce. Has Nebraska made a jump? Its first season-opening win against a Power 4 team since 2003 would help signal that it has. Prognosticators are largely predicting that the Thursday night ESPN opener will be a Nebraska victory. Joel Klatt of Fox Sports listed the Huskers among 10 teams most likely to make the College Football Playoff in 2025 for the first time. Nebraska is often in the conversation as a nine- or 10-win contender, not a team in danger of an early stumble. Don't sleep on the Bearcats, though. While Cincinnati is 8-16 in Satterfield's two seasons, the Bearcats return a quarterback in Brendan Sorsby who threw for 2,813 yards while completing 64 percent of his passes last season. In Cincy's first five games, Sorsby, an Indiana transfer, tossed 10 touchdowns to one interception. But he struggled late in the season when his receivers failed to get free on the perimeter, Satterfield said. Big 12 defenses loaded up in the box. The Bearcats addressed their issues in the portal by adding 6-foot-5 receiver Jeff Caldwell, who's pushed his weight to 214 pounds while maintaining speed and an 11-foot-9 broad jump. Cyrus Allen from Texas A&M and Caleb Goodie from Colorado State provide a burst that Cincinnati lacked in 2024. Tight end Joe Royer is a preseason All-Big 12 pick. Running back Tawee Walker, a transfer from Wisconsin, rushed for 864 yards last season. While the Bearcats have had their ups and downs — Cincinnati beat Big 12 champ Arizona State last year but closed the season with five consecutive losses — the program is only four years removed from a CFP appearance. Advertisement And as other coaches captured the attention of Nebraska fans this week at Big 12 media days, Cincinnati's Scott Satterfield billed his squad as a contender in the wide-open conference, and his revamped offense could be a handful for first-year Nebraska defensive coordinator John Butler. 'We're a much more explosive football team this year,' Satterfield said. Satterfield said he's noticed an uptick in urgency among the Bearcats this summer because of the name-brand opponent in Nebraska. 'It's a great gauge for our football team,' he said. 'We feel like you've got to be hitting on all cylinders when you start the season against a team like Nebraska.' He referred to the game in Kansas City as a 'neutral site.' It is, of course, but only by definition. Per an early summer update from Nebraska athletic director Troy Dannen, 62,000 tickets were sold for the opener. A sellout or close to it at the 76,000-seat home of the Kansas City Chiefs appears likely. Expect the overwhelming majority of those fans to back Nebraska, a seven-point favorite, according to BetMGM. The willingness of Nebraska fans to travel and the state's close proximity to Arrowhead ensure an environment that will feel like home to the Huskers. Initially, the matchup was scheduled for Indianapolis, 110 miles from Cincinnati. The programs agreed late last year to move to Kansas City in a deal that sweetened the financial pot for the Bearcats. 'Strictly football and as a coach, I'd rather play at home,' Satterfield said. 'Bring Nebraska to our place, and let's go. So now, it'll be like a road game for both teams.' Or perhaps not. Regardless, Rhule and Nebraska players, including quarterback Dylan Raiola, will have their opportunity at Big Ten media days on July 22 to present a picture of a team on the rise. Many of their talking points figure to sound similar to what we heard this week from Cincinnati. They are two programs mired in something closer to the same place than the Huskers might comfortably want to admit. But of the two, only Nebraska has a chance to exorcise a decade of demons.
New York Times
09-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Scott Frost's Nebraska regrets show striking lack of accountability for failed tenure
Scott Frost didn't have to say anything resentful about Nebraska. That appeared to be his plan when the Huskers' former coach returned to UCF in December. Frost avoided mention of his ex-employer and alma mater when UCF reintroduced him in Orlando. If a nod of courtesy to his home state and the school that entrusted him was too much, so be it. Both parties had long ago moved on. Advertisement But when presented the chance, how about showing a touch of accountability? In Frost's appearance Tuesday at Big 12 media days in Frisco, Texas, he said that Nebraska in 2017 was the 'wrong job' for him. Fans of the Huskers, in retrospect, agree. His exit from Nebraska in September 2022 after a 16-31 stint over four-plus seasons classified him among the most disappointing coaching hires in the history of college football. Frost had to know questions about Nebraska would come in his first opportunity back with the Knights to face a group of national media members. What went wrong? What did he learn? They're relevant topics as he aims for a second time to elevate UCF, this time in a tougher conference and amid a volatile climate in the sport. The conversation in an interview with reporters from The Athletic on Tuesday turned to Frost's final, emotional game at UCF during its unbeaten 2017 season. Before that double-OT win against Memphis in the American Athletic Conference championship, he had all but decided to take the job at Nebraska. 'I didn't want to leave UCF,' Frost said. 'I always said I would never leave unless it was some place you could go and potentially win a national championship. And you know, I got tugged in a direction to go try to help my alma mater. And I didn't really want to do it. It wasn't a good move. 'And I'm lucky that I have an opportunity to get back to a place where I was a lot happier.' He mentioned again that he didn't want to talk about Nebraska. But Frost kept talking. 'Don't take the wrong job,' he said. 'That's what I learned. Make sure you're working for and around good people.' Frost at times clashed with the athletic directors for whom he worked in Lincoln. Bill Moos provided the coach with autonomy; Trev Alberts kept his thumb on Frost. That both methods flopped perhaps said more about Frost than about the administration at Nebraska. Frost's lack of humility in public related to his Nebraska failures is striking. Frost could have won the day in Texas on Tuesday with a sentence or two to recognize Nebraska, which paid him more than $20 million in salary in addition to a buyout of approximately $15 million. He chose scorn. Maybe Frost has made amends in private with the stakeholders at Nebraska who mattered to him. Certainly, he bears some responsibility for the worst five-year stretch of football at the school in more than six decades. Advertisement He knows that, right? You couldn't tell on Tuesday. He pointed at the forces and figures that pulled him back to Nebraska. As Frost laid out seven years ago, his former coach and mentor, Tom Osborne, was instrumental in convincing Frost that he could fix a program that had slipped, unthinkably at the time, to a 19-19 mark under coach Mike Riley from 2015 to 2017. Frost's longtime friend, Matt Davison, urged him to return home and restore the pride they shared as teammates in winning a national championship in 1997. Frost, 50, suggested that the people around him were part of the problem. Yet no fewer than 10 members of his Huskers staff have rejoined him in Orlando. Tuesday in Frisco, he offered an extended opening statement in his time on the main stage and showed gratitude for the Big 12 and the players alongside him. It displayed growth and a renewed attitude from Frost, who took the air out of Lucas Oil Stadium in July 2022 to start his final appearance at the Big Ten's version of this event. He's happier now, that's clear. 'Just a little older and wiser,' he said. 'You learn through success and failure. It's been good being away and getting a little perspective.' Accountability sounded only a step or two away. He doubled back on negativity, though, a staple of his time at Nebraska that contributed to the Huskers' 5-22 record on his watch in games decided by one score. For UCF, it presents no obvious concern. Frost has illustrated that his style fits in Orlando. He talked optimistically of tackling the challenge ahead for the Knights. They finished 10-15 as members of the Big 12 in the past two years under Gus Malzahn. 'We worked our butts off to try to rebuild the roster,' Frost said of the past seven months at UCF. 'And that was hard. But also, in some ways, it's good. We could go get the guys that we wanted to fit us. I'm pretty happy with what we came out of that with.' Advertisement Frost also said this about the turbulent environment within the sport: 'College football's in a weird place. And it's not pretty.' Pay it no mind if Kansas State coach Chris Klieman or Texas Tech's Joey McGuire had offered those words. But for Frost, if the wins don't come as swiftly at UCF as in his first stint, a precedent exists to assign external responsibility. Is he laying a foundation to avoid accountability? It wouldn't be the first time.
