Matt Rhule picking Anthony Colandrea as Huskers’ top quarterback

LINCOLN, Neb. — After three weeks of observing the quarterbacks in fall practice, Nebraska’s head coach is confident he has the right one to lead the offense for this upcoming season.

Matt Rhule named Anthony Colandrea his starter after the Huskers ended fall camp last Saturday, and it didn’t come as a surprise to Big Red Nation. The job was Colandrea’s to lose, but he still separated himself from TJ Lateef, and Daniel Kaelin.

Colandrea’s knowledge of Dana Holgorsen’s playbook, his experience, past production and overall leadership is what the Huskers are going to need when they navigate through the Big Ten gauntlet. Which is why Rhule is investing in the gunslinger, and believes the best is yet to come.

“Anthony would play for us right now, all of the quarterbacks have done a nice job,” Rhule said. “The biggest thing is he’s very competitive, very fiery and he expects to win every play.”

After all, Colandrea led UNLV to a 10-2 regular season in 2025, and was named the Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year. He even had a solid debut with the offense, and threw for two touchdowns in the Huskers’ spring game. Now that Rhule’s decision is public, the team can rally behind Colandrea, as he take snaps full time with the No. 1 offense.

The Florida native appears to have what Dylan Raiola lacks, which is dangerous mobility, toughness, and the will to move the chains. With the opener against Ohio less than two weeks away, Rhule expects Colandrea to continue building chemistry with the receivers, and tight ends. What makes the opener more enticing is the fact that Colandrea will get a rematch against the Bobcats, which handed him a loss in his final game with the Rebels.

Great quarterbacks make others around them better, and everything is looking promising up to this point. Now Rhule feels Colandrea can focus on the details, as far as reading the defense before the snap, timing, and distributing the ball.

“He’s done a nice job of discipling himself to also take what’s there, and makes nice checks in the run and pass game,” he said. “He can throw the ball deep, and I think the biggest thing is that he extends a ton of plays with his legs, which takes a lot of pressure off of the offensive line, the backs, protection and puts a lot of pressure on the defense.”

The big boys up front still have to provide solid protection at the point of attack, and most importantly, stay healthy. With all of the new additions to the roster and the Huskers ranking fourth in the Big Ten in returning production, Rhule could potentially be fielding his best team yet in Lincoln.

Now that the smoke is clear in the quarterback room, Husker fans are wondering who’s going to be Colandrea’s backup. Although Lateef, and Kaelin didn’t win the job, they should understand that it’ll likely take two quarterbacks to get through a full season.

So the chapter on Nebraska’s offense isn’t complete, considering that No. 2 spot is still up for grabs, and Rhule will evaluate both players thoroughly before making a final decision.

“Danny (Kaelin), and TJ (Lateef) would both be in the mix for number two, so we’ll watch their tape, and kind of see where they’re at.”