{"id":850941,"date":"2025-05-25T04:12:10","date_gmt":"2025-05-25T09:12:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/25\/nebraska-insider-confirms-matt-rhules-transfer-portal-move-amid-injury-scare-after-300k-athletes-loyalty-stance\/"},"modified":"2025-05-25T04:12:10","modified_gmt":"2025-05-25T09:12:10","slug":"nebraska-insider-confirms-matt-rhules-transfer-portal-move-amid-injury-scare-after-300k-athletes-loyalty-stance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/25\/nebraska-insider-confirms-matt-rhules-transfer-portal-move-amid-injury-scare-after-300k-athletes-loyalty-stance\/","title":{"rendered":"Nebraska Insider Confirms Matt Rhule\u2019s Transfer Portal Move Amid Injury Scare After $300K Athlete\u2019s Loyalty Stance"},"content":{"rendered":"

Football <\/p>\n

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Matt Rhule recently joked about making the College Football Playoff a 40-team spectacle. The quip, which went viral on social media, was Rhule\u2019s means of highlighting the actual scheduling and fairness concerns between conferences such as the SEC and Big Ten. Nebraska\u2019s got more talent on paper than they\u2019ve had in years, with staff improvements and a breakout star at quarterback. The new offensive coordinator, Dana Holgorsen<\/strong>, should spread things out for Dylan Raiola<\/strong>, and there is a genuine feeling that Nebraska can make a giant leap forward this year. The pressure is on, but the optimism is genuine.<\/p>\n

Now, to talk of pressure, let\u2019s discuss Nebraska\u2019s running back situation, because it\u2019s where things get interesting. The Huskers are somewhat thin in the backfield this season. Emmett Johnson is the obvious choice, but depth is an issue after some injuries and defections. Rhule has been treading carefully with the transfer portal, trying to find the right one instead of just taking anybody who will fit. Much depends on Johnson remaining in good health, and everyone is waiting to see if Rhule can sign another running back before the season begins.<\/p>\n

Wilson Dittman explains the whole RB picture of the Huskers in his program, Wilson Dittman Sports<\/em>, on 24th May.<\/a> \u201cNebraska\u2019s going to be very selective at the running back position.\u201d <\/em>Dittman recalls how last summer the Huskers pulled a similar move. \u201cThe defensive back room just wasn\u2019t very good, and they waited and they waited and they found Ceyair Wright and they added him in late June\u201d.<\/em> Pate comments, \u201cthe Emmett Johnson contract screwed them, they would have took a transfer running back.\u201d <\/em>He goes on, \u201cThey gave him obviously $300,000. That\u2019s the number they told him that he would split carries with Dante Dowdell at minimum.\u201d<\/em> When the portal opened and there was a legitimate threat of losing Johnson, the coaches went all-in to keep him in Lincoln.<\/p>\n

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The personnel also assured him of a legitimate role in the offense, assuring him he\u2019d be sharing carries with Dante Dowdell at least. That was a huge selling point, \u201cAfter Dante left but that Emmett contract really screwed him over like they made some deals with him to stay because they that\u2019s how much they valued him.\u201d<\/em> The entire ordeal indicates how Nebraska is not afraid to spend on its star players both financially and on the field. But this move wasn\u2019t of much help.<\/p>\n

With a shallow RB room and lingering injury concerns, Nebraska may have no choice but to dip back into the portal. Pate added, \u201cI do believe Nebraska going to take a running back because I think they\u2019d be irresponsible not to. It\u2019s not a good running back room.\u201d <\/em>He then reflected on the current updates of the key backups. he said, \u201cKwinten Ives,<\/em> while he might have had a good spring practice he got banged up in the final two weeks.\u201d <\/em>Hope and patience are growing thin, looking at the Nebraska RB room. \u201cJamarion Parker got banged up all of spring practice, he didn\u2019t play, Mekhi Nelson was off and on, so there\u2019s injury concerns there too.\u201d<\/em> Said Pate.<\/p>\n

Nebraska\u2019s running back situation at this point just isn\u2019t where it has to be if they\u2019re going to contend in the Big Ten. Emmett Johnson is the clear front-runner, but beyond him, things get very dicey. If three of your best targets are dealing with injuries before the season even begins, that\u2019s a huge red flag. And it\u2019s not just injuries\u2013there isn\u2019t much established production in the room beyond Johnson. This isn\u2019t a unit that has demonstrated it can hold up during a long, physical Big Ten schedule. Even the most optimistic of fan bases are worried about what would happen when Johnson gets hurt. You just can\u2019t roll into the fall with this little established depth and this many question marks.<\/p>\n

Football Emmett Johnson\u2019s relentless drive to be the best<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Emmett Johnson is the soul of Nebraska\u2019s offense as they look toward 2025. He ranked second on the team with 117 carries and 598 rushing yards\u00a0and led\u00a0Nebraska<\/span><\/span><\/span> with 908 all-purpose yards. Last year, he played in all thirteen games and has established himself as a legit dual-threat. But most importantly, he\u2019s proven his commitment and devotion to the program amid the high-stakes transfer portal chaos.<\/p>\n

Emmett posted a hype reel on Instagram recently, highlighting his top moments from the previous season.<\/a> But the actual headline came in the form of his message: \u201cNow I know you say, now I\u2019m in the lead role or anything, but I\u2019m still hungry, still trying to prove myself to be the best running back, I\u2019m not going to be satisfied at all. I will never be satisfied.\u201d <\/em>That\u2019s the mindset you want out of your best player \u2014hungry, humble, and grinding all the time.<\/p>\n

\"Football<\/p>\n

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And let\u2019s not forget the elephant in the room: the $300K NIL contract. Nebraska invested big to retain Emmett in Lincoln, particularly with the loss of Dante Dowdell and the running back corps appearing shallow. But Emmett\u2019s not remaining for the paycheck. He has expressed he isn\u2019t willing to ride last year\u2019s momentum, he wants to prove himself further.<\/p>\n

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Read More<\/a> Maribel Menjivar<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Matt Rhule recently joked about making the College Football Playoff a 40-team spectacle. The quip, which went viral on social media, was Rhule\u2019s means of highlighting the actual scheduling and fairness concerns between conferences such as the SEC and Big Ten. Nebraska\u2019s got more talent on paper than they\u2019ve had in years, with staff improvements<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":850942,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3790,4064,23691],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-850941","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-football","8":"category-insider","9":"category-nebraska"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/850941","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=850941"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/850941\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/850942"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=850941"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=850941"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=850941"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}