Matt Rhule valuing the talent Nebraska has in quarterback room

LINCOLN, Neb. — Despite his team approaching the end of fall camp, Nebraska’s second-year coach has yet to name a starting quarterback, as Big Red Nation anxiously awaits the pivotal decision.

After all, Matt Rhule has two freshman phenoms in the quarterback room, plus a junior with eight starts under his belt, battling it out to be the Huskers’ top gunslinger this season. There’s no denying that the competition is fierce between Dylan Raiola, Daniel Kaelin and Heinrich Haarberg.

With the opener against UTEP less than two weeks away, the offense needs someone to rally behind, and Rhule understands how important it is for him to nab the right guy. The last thing he wants is for the Huskers’ quarterback controversy to linger on and become a team distraction.

“I think we feel really confident in all of the guys, and the thing that we have is three guys that can lead us to win,” Rhule said. “So from that point it’s hard, but can someone be more advanced at this point than someone else; yes.”

Raiola is the headliner, who’s a former five-star prospect, and many expect him to eventually win the job. His arm talent is impressive, and he put together a memorable debut in the Red and White Game. Although Haarberg threw seven interceptions last season, he continues to improve his accuracy and Rhule can’t ignore his live action experience.

However, Rhule seems to be high on Kaelin as far as potential goes. From his arm strength, to his charismatic personality, Kaelin continues to impress Rhule with his maturation process. Regardless of whoever wins the job, protecting the ball will be crucial if they want to keep it, especially after all of the turnovers in 2023. It’s still a tight race in Rhule’s eyes though, and he wants to see one of his signal-callers separate himself from the others.

“The difficult part in it is that you have one guy who’s played and you’ve seen him play, and you know how hard it is to play,” he said. “And you’ve seen two guys who haven’t played yet in College, so maybe the unknown factor here, but all three guys have worked really hard, done a good job, and I’m sure they’ll all continue to improve.”

Rhule played three different quarterbacks last season, including Haarberg, Jeff Sims and Chubba Purdy. It wasn’t a recipe for success, which is why he refuses to play musical chairs within the position this time around. The backfield is deep, the wide receivers are athletic and the offensive line has experience, so the only missing piece is a quarterback that can command the entire offense.

Offensive Coordinator Marcus Satterfield is also dealing with some pressure developing the quarterbacks, especially after Nebraska led the Big Ten in interceptions last season. Nebraska hasn’t had a winner under center since Tommy Armstrong, but Rhule believes someone in that room is going to change the narrative this fall.

Most importantly, he wants Raiola, Haarberg and Kaelin to support each other because they all have the same goals, which is to get the Huskers back to the promised land. Great quarterbacks make others around them better, and Rhule knows that starts with a great support system.

Everyone has to do their part for it to work though. Defense has to make stops, and force turnovers. Special teams has to score points and provide favorable field position. People on the outside looking in want to focus on who wins the quarterback job, but Rhule is confident it’s going to take a complete team effort to improve the offense, and end the Huskers’ bowl drought.

“The thing that we know internally is that it’s the job of everyone else to make the quarterback successful, so everyone has been focused on that, and they love and respect all three guys.”