Almost certainly more uncertainty

For a team not playing on championship weekend, Nebraska football had a busy one. Plus, Huskers-Bluejays, NCAA Volleyball and the absurdity of the CFP.

Courtesy Nebraska Athletics

Nebraska football’s offseason of change kicked into second gear over the weekend. While the Huskers weren’t relevant for college football’s championship weekend, they certainly provided plenty of power for the local news cycle.

Saturday began with reports that Toledo defensive coordinator Vince Kehres was in Lincoln to interview for the same position at Nebraska. It was a potential pick that drew natural excitement after cursory research. To cite just one number, Kehres’ Rocket defense allowed 13.3 points per game against FBS opponents in 2025, not just good but 39% better than expected (based on opponents) according to College Football Nerds.

But by Saturday afternoon there were national reports that Kehres was headed to Syracuse. Curious, and things were about to get more dramatic.

While Husker circles were still processing that Kehres was likely out, Matt Rhule announced that offensive line coach Donovan Raiola actually was after four seasons.

“I informed Donovan Raiola today that he will not be retained as our offensive line coach,” the statement read. “We thank Donovan for his contributions to Nebraska Football over the past four years and wish him the best moving forward.”

There were plenty of Husker fans who were openly calling for this very move during the season, and most of them knew it didn’t seem possible given the o-line coach’s nephew, Dylan, was the 5-star sophomore quarterback who started every game over the past two seasons prior to being injured against USC Nov. 1. Might make things kind of awkward, right, firing the guy’s uncle?

Well, Rhule did it and inevitable conjecture followed. There are plenty of rumors out there, but let’s just consider what has been officially entered into evidence at this point:

1. Dayton Raiola, Dylan’s younger brother, decommits from Nebraska after being committed for most of his high school career. Prior to accepting the Huskers’ offer, he had offers from Charlotte and Appalachian State. Dayton has yet to sign with a team.

2. Rhule fires Donovan with a succinct Saturday statement, but the real kicker is…

3. Within hours of that announcement, reputable reports emerge that NU already has its replacement—current Georgia Tech OL coach Geep Wade.¹ While not official as of Sunday night, for enough outlets to report this move when they did, well, the timing doesn’t seem like a coincidence. Let’s put it that way.

So, just based on those three things that definitively have happened, what odds would you put on Dylan Raiola starting for Nebraska in 2026? I’d be somewhere in the neighborhood of 50/1.

That offers plenty to dissect at a later date, too, but the news cycle wasn’t done. On Sunday reports arrived that Nebraska has its new defensive coordinator with all signs pointing to San Diego State’s Rob Aurich. A fast-riser who was a first-time FBS DC in 2025 after stints at Bemidji State, South Dakota and Idaho, the 2025 Aztec defense allowed 11.3 points per game against FBS opponents, 50% better than expected.

Assuming those additions become official in the days ahead, they both look like strong hires without being splashy. One of those moves comes, however, with almost certainly more uncertainty at quarterback in 2026. You add all of this to a mostly flat 2025 on the field and you have a program that will be viewed as a blank page for the season ahead, definitely from a national perspective, but probably to a greater degree than we’re used to locally as well. No more talk of trending up or trending down, no more pointing to Year 3,² more of just a “yeah, I don’t know, I could see it…maybe.”

I don’t think this is the worst thing for Nebraska. In fact, I think it could be the best thing.

Briefly

There was almost too much to get to from this weekend, so I’ll try (and probably fail) to go up-tempo:

In news that did become official, Nebraska is headed to the Las Vegas Bowl to face No. 15 Utah. The Utes have the best rushing offense in the country by relative performance (+75%) and that includes a dual-threat QB (Devon Dampier). But this is good. This is what you want in a bowl game that is more holiday programming than contest following a lackluster season—the hardest challenge possible. Utah was a 14-point favorite Sunday night. The Las Vegas Bowl is Dec. 31 at 2:30 p.m. CT.

Nebraska men’s basketball has now beaten Creighton by double-digits in back-to-back seasons following a 71-50 win in Lincoln Sunday. These aren’t the Bluejays of the past couple of seasons, but ESPN’s Basketball Power Index still had Creighton ranked a spot ahead of undefeated Nebraska last week. The now 9-0 Huskers have bigger challenges ahead this week with the start of conference play. Wisconsin, 21 spots ahead in BPI, visits Wednesday and Illinois, 32 spots up, hosts Saturday.

Courtesy Nebraska Athletics

Husker volleyball just looked like hornets, rather than murder hornets, while sweeping Kansas State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. I didn’t take a “meh” offensive outing as a sign of trouble for Nebraska going forward, more of a reminder that no team is infallible and that’s how I expect the Huskers will respond. All of the top seeds advanced in Nebraska’s bracket, so the Huskers now host 4-seed Kansas Friday night and, should they advance, will face the winner of 2-seed Louisville and 3-seed Texas A&M Sunday.

My favorite thing to read weekly for the past few years—aside from what you find here, of course—is the post-rankings transcript from whoever is chairing the CFP Selection Committee. We all know these weekly rankings are absurd and the debate that ensues is worthless because at the end of the day the only explanation the chair could give that gets to the heart of it would be, “I don’t know, man, that’s just what this group of people picked today.” That’s the system. It’s like asking a third-grader why he or she chose what they did for lunch every Tuesday—no less logical, far less charming.³ You could really write the Great American Novel using these transcripts. They get right to the heart of absurdity and its relationship to life. Why did Miami get better than Notre Dame without either team playing game and despite Miami having beaten Notre Dame months ago but the Irish being officially viewed as better for five straight weeks anyway? “I don’t know, man, that’s just what this group of people picked today.” At the end of the day, there’s nothing more to say, but a lot of people work hard and are paid handsomely to pretend it isn’t as simple as that. This is maddening and amazing.

1. We’ll of course dive into all the new hires as they become official, but the quick heads up on Wade: Georgia Tech averaged 5.4 yards per rush in 2025, 27% above expected, and allowed a 2.99 sack percentage, seventh nationally. Wade played on the line at Chattanooga and has spent more than 20 years coaching that group with stints at his alma mater, East Carolina, App State and Georgia Southern, to name a few.

2. That would be Raiola’s Year 3 in this case. Rhule’s, of course, was this season.

3. …because they’re kids.