nebraska The school announced Thursday that coach Matt Rhule has signed a two-year contract extension that will take him through the 2032 season.
The extension includes increasing Rhule’s buyout this season from $5 million to $15 million, which will effectively prevent him from taking another job this cycle.
According to ESPN sources, Rhule and his family’s happiness at Nebraska, where he is in his third year as head coach, was the primary driver behind agreeing to a new deal. Nebraska is 6-2 this season, and Rhule led the program to its first bowl game since 2016 last year. He has spoken frequently about the potential of the Nebraska program.
“The University of Nebraska, the city of Lincoln and the state of Nebraska are special. It’s a place our family is proud to call home,” Rhule said in a statement. “We have excellent leadership [Nebraska president] Dr. [Jeffrey P.] gold and [athletic director] Troy Dannen and I appreciate the support and confidence shown in our staff. “We are focused on building Nebraska football into a perennial championship contender.”
Roulette was often linked to an open job at his alma mater, penn stateAnd this extension essentially eliminates another prominent name from contention for the eight power conference jobs open so far this year.
The new deal does not include any changes in base compensation. It offers an additional incentive to the base salary if Nebraska reaches the College Football Playoff. The deal contains an innovative new clause that states that Rhule’s base salary increases by $1 million for each year on the deal whenever Nebraska qualifies for the CFP.
Rhule’s salary during the deal has an AAV of more than $11.7 million (including retention bonus). That number puts him among the highest among college coaches at the time of the deal.
Rhule’s two additional years are worth $12.5 million, the same as the final year of his current deal in 2030. The deal is 90% guaranteed.
This season, Rhule is currently in the top 15 with a salary of $8.5 million. Prior to the extension, the deal included significant escalators in the contract, as in 2027, he will earn $11 million (with retention bonuses).
The new deal comes as Nebraska is headed toward the program’s best season in nearly a decade, as Nebraska has not reached back-to-back bowl games since 2016. The 9–4 season under Mike Riley is also the last year the Cornhuskers won more than eight games in a year.
“Coach Rhule has shown that he is the right leader at the right time for Nebraska football. We look forward to him and his family being in Lincoln for a long time,” Dannen said in a statement. “Our program has seen significant progress under Matt’s leadership, and continuity and stability are important at this stage in the program’s development. I welcome the opportunity to continue partnering with Matt and his staff to build a program that will make everyone associated with Nebraska football proud. Go Big Red!”
Nebraska hired Rhule in November 2022 after five consecutive losing seasons under Scott Frost. Rhule was fired by the Carolina Panthers at the beginning of the year, but he had built a strong track record as both a college coach and program builder. Temple And boiler,
While Trev Alberts hired Rhule to replace Scott Frost after the 2022 season, Rhule agreed to an extension under second-year athletic director Troy Dannon.
Rhule’s track record includes an American Athletic Conference title at Temple in 2016 and a wholesale rebuild at Baylor that included a Sugar Bowl appearance after the 2019 season.
