Matt Rhule opens up on what he learned by not having a 'happy ending' in NFL

Being the head coach of any NFL franchise will give you a different perspective on the game of football, just ask Matt Rhule, who was the Carolina Panthers’ head coach from 2020-2022.

Now holding the same position at Nebraska, Rhule isn’t regretting his near three-year excursion to the professional ranks despite ending poorly with an 11-27 record and saw him get the boot after five games in 2022.

“I think for me on a personal note, every job I had taken before then had a happy ending, so you always assume it’s going to work out,” Rhule said. “For me, now, I’m probably a lot better now because I’m coming off some adversity. And then seeing that I learned a lot about leadership by leading in tough times.

“It’s easy to lead when things are going well. It’s easy to lead when you’re winning every game. When you’re about to get fired and the whole stadium is booing for you to get fired … But I did that. And you know what I learned? I’m tough. I’m tough and my family’s tough. You know what? After that happened I went home and I saw my daughters, I played with them, I hung out, I didn’t take it home.”

His firing from the NFL taught him that when you’re the leader of the pack — Rhule said that sometimes you need to take the bullet so that the people behind you can move forward. Keeping that Panthers team together in a time when they desperately needed a change is something that Rhule isn’t proud of, either.

Still, he was around the league long enough to get the feel for the NFL and create some invaluable experiences. It also created a different type of dynamic than Rhule is used to having coached at the collegiate ranks for so long. Now, he’s getting back to what has always been most comfortable to him.

“So, as I come to Nebraska now, I know if I do something there will be be a lot of different opinions about [my tenure in the NFL]. And you know what? I respect everyone but I’m going to do what I think is right because I’ve seen what happens when everyone has an opinion,” Rhule said. “I’ve got to do what I think is right and be tough enough to just stand with it.

“Like if I think, you know what, guys, we’re going to wear this color cleats. We’re going to wear this color cleats. Someone’s going to be upset maybe, but I owe it to the University of Nebraska to go all-in. I can’t go half-in and gauge the temperature of everybody. I’ve got to go all in. I maybe wouldn’t have been able to do that if I had not gone through what I just went through.”