Steven Sipple: As honeymoon rolls along, we learn more about Matt Rhule, including this: His ability to wow a big room is real
Matt Rhule, Nebraska’s new football coach, told a crowd of about 750 in downtown Lincoln last week that although he might not be the smartest guy in the world, he does possess a photographic memory.
Comes in handy.
“I’ve been walking around the room,” he said during a Lincoln Chamber of Commerce event for which he was keynote speaker. “I know everybody that’s here, and the next time I get invited here after I’ve coached a couple games, I want to see who’s back then.”
Rhule, 48, knows the score. He’s undefeated. The honeymoon is going well, as is often the case in this world. My read is most Nebraska fans have taken an immediate liking to the new guy in charge. He’s affable, can think quickly on his feet, and clearly has a passion for his work. He’s a family man through and through. That’s the kind of stuff people like.
What’s more, he’s taken a liking to the state of Nebraska and its people, and he seemingly understands what NU’s football program means to them.
If he hasn’t taken a liking to Nebraska and its massive fan base, then he’s a fabulous actor.
This much is certain: He’s an exceptional orator.
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Matt Rhule natural in front of a big crowd
Yes, Rhule is eloquent. He’s natural when it comes to commanding a big room, as was the case Wednesday in an Embassy Suites ballroom. I broach this subject in part because we’re still getting to know Rhule. His ability as a public speaker is striking to me. It was striking on the late-November day he was introduced as NU’s head coach. But I thought maybe, just maybe, he was a one-hit wonder.
Nope. He’s just good at it. Exceptional, really.
Does it mean he’s going to win big for Nebraska? Nobody’s suggesting that. But effective communication matters. The ability to win over people matters. The ability to motivate matters. The ability to convey a big-picture message matters in his position.
What’s more, Rhule has a public position and feels comfortable in public. Not all of Nebraska’s head coaches have shared that trait. If I were an NU athletic director, it would be something I would consider in the hiring process. It’s just one element on a long list, but I would want the Huskers’ head coach to feel comfortable among the masses, and in front of them.
Rhule clearly does.
Granted, none of it seemed to matter much in Carolina, where he was fired by Panther brass.
Perhaps it did matter, however, for Temple and Baylor, where Rhule thrived.
The coach’s low-key humor is effective
Again, I broach the subject because we’re still learning about Nebraska’s 31st head football coach. There’s obviously much more to learn, but I like this part of him — the dynamic public speaker part who embraces his Husker audience.
He was dynamic last week. He fired up the room. Plus, his low-key humor is effective. He can be self-deprecating.
He really has the whole package.
“You know, my dad’s a minister,” Rhule told reporters after his speech. “Honestly, I don’t say anything I don’t really believe in.”
He said if you hear him speak often, you’ll note that he talks about many of the same topics. His speech will likely center on why he and his staff do what they do and how they plan to build the program.
He said he wants elements of his message to sound like the ones Tom Osborne used to push Nebraska to three national championships in the 1990s.
“It’s very much about being day by day, getting better and better,” Rhule said. “It’s (about) stacking days and practice reps. When you win, everybody looks back at the wins and they’re like, ‘How do we get back to that?’”
To win at the level Osborne achieved, the formula is in some ways incredibly complicated because people are inherently complicated. But we know it starts by building a solid foundation. In that regard, Rhule told the crowd in the big ballroom that he wants to build a program on rock, not sand.
He said he wants to build a program that can stand the test of time. So, he said, you need to do things right from the very start.
“I am on a mission to build the classiest and best college football program that there is,” he said.
Matt Rhule is convincing in delivering messages
He seems to mean it. Let’s be real, you hear a lot of this stuff from every new head coach everywhere. Some are just more convincing than others.
Rhule is very convincing.
He speaks with no notes. He speaks from the heart. If I enjoy listening to him, ,then chances are his players are of that mind as well.
He tells them he wants to build a program that expects to win, even in the direst moments. That typically doesn’t happen with a snap of the fingers, or because of nice speech at a downtown hotel. It requires dynamic, dedicated leadership.
Rhule was on a roll late in his speech last week. He dripped with sweat as he told the crowd, “Everybody thinks the greatest battle is good versus evil, but it is not. The greatest battle is great versus good.”
He repeated it three times for effect.
“I’ll say this: The reason why I can never lose 20 pounds is because I always lose 10,” he said. “I get complacent. The reason why it’s hard to go 12-0 is because 8-4 after you go 4-8 feels pretty good. Winning feels good.”
An 8-4 record sounds like paradise to some Nebraska fans, but not to Rhule. That’s a good thing.
He’s not building the program’s foundation in rock to be a pretty good program. He wants more. Much more. Again, he says it in a manner that’s very convincing.
Rhule for now lives in the Haymarket area near downtown. He’ll move into a house once his family arrives. He gets coffee in the morning at 7 a.m. as the coffee shop opens. Talks to people. He wants to be part of the community for a long time. I believe him when he says it.
His family includes daughters ages 10 and 7.
“They’ve moved three times in the last six years,” he said. “There ain’t going to be no more moves. There can’t be any more moves.”
He says he’s found a home here.
But it’s a full-on honeymoon right now. We’ll find out in time what’s real and what isn’t.
Maybe we’ll find out that Rhule really does have a photographic memory.
The post Steven Sipple: As honeymoon rolls along, we learn more about Matt Rhule, including this: His ability to wow a big room is real appeared first on On3.
