Matt Rhule explains why he was immensely proud on day he was fired by Carolina Panthers

Most coaches feel nothing but frustration on the day they are fired. Matt Rhule felt pride when the Carolina Panthers let him go. During a recent speech to the Texas High School Coaches Association, the Nebraska head coach pulled back the curtain on the day the Panthers fired him in 2022.

“There’s nothing worse than coaches who don’t own it,” Rhule said. “Own it. One of the proudest days of my life was walking up into the team room and talking to the guys in Carolina after I had been let go and owning the fact that I was leaving.

“I was proud of them and I was grateful. [I was] not slipping off into the night, not being a sheep, but standing there like a lion and talking to them and going down with the ship.”

On January 7, 2020, Rhule signed a seven-year, $62-million contract to become the Panthers’ next head coach. In his first season at the helm, Rhule and Co. suffered a five-game losing streak in the middle of the season and finished with a 5-11 record.

His next season wasn’t much improved. Despite starting the season on a three-game win streak, the Panthers finished 5-12. Rhule didn’t have another full season to prove his chops. After starting the 2022 campaign 1-4, the Panthers fired Rhule.

Nonetheless, he didn’t run away from the harsh reality. He owned it. His attitude led him to become Nebraska’s head coach. In his first season in the driver’s seat at Nebraska, Rhule finished with a 5–7 record, tying his predecessor’s highest win total in just his first year.

Failures propelled Matt Rhule forward

Rhule believes he couldn’t have found success at Nebraska without his failures at Carolina.

“Leaders are the ones who sprint forward and have everyone follow and you sprint out into the unknown,” Rhule said. “You sprint out when it may be a little bit dangerous. You’re the guy that walks out there first.

“I have to set a standard… The standard is the minimum. Our guys are out there running gassers today and if you’re an O-lineman, you better run that thing over and back in 19 seconds. That’s the minimum. My job is to set the standards for the way that we do things, our standard of performance, our standard of professionalism, our standard of preparation, our standard of practice, and that’s a lonely job.”

Lonely is the road to success. Matt Rhule will look to bring even more success to Nebraska next season as he takes pride in his team.