Does Nebraska Have a Problem With Its Running Back Room?

On this week's I-80 LIVE, Josh Peterson and Jack Mitchell discussed the latest surrounding Husker football, including Omaha native CharMar Brown and his decision to attend Miami over Nebraska. Did the Huskers make a mistake in not pushing harder?

Below is a lightly edited transcript surrounding Brown, Nebraska's running back room as a whole, Dylan Raiola, and more.

Did Nebraska make a mistake in not pushing harder for CharMar Brown?

Jack: Nebraska football does not get the freshman Heisman winner of FCS.  Season’s ruined. 

Josh: Very sad.

Jack: You know, it's, it's a weird scenario, Josh, because the whole offseason I was like, “probably should get another running back.” And then all of sudden there was like, “Oh, they're trying to get another running back. Oh, they're getting a weirdly good running back. Oh boy. Here we go.” And then they didn't get him after we did an entire podcast selling ourselves on Emmett Johnson.

Josh: Yeah. Which I guess is good, for us, that we're still in the Emmett Johnson Hive? That they didn't get another guy, is that okay?

Jack: It’s good that we convinced ourselves we're in that hive at least.

Josh: Yeah, for sure. Mike Schaefer was on with John and me today. He said, all year they have been telling us that they like the running back room and they're just kind of putting their money where their mouth is now. I don't know, Jack, is there a world where it's just better than we're expecting it to be beyond Emmett Johnson? 

Jack: If what you just said is true, why are they [going after CharMar Brown]?

Josh: Well, they were going after him, but I don't think they were like going after him.

Jack: Oh, well, maybe that's why they didn't get him then.

Josh: They were not willing to pay anywhere near as much as he wanted. So I think they wanted him.

Jack: Josh, I'm starting to hate the new era of college sports. I'm trying to not be the old man. If they just didn't have enough money in Miami, that’s sad. He is the freshman Heisman winner in the FCS for the Bison. He played for the Bison.

Josh: You are not getting any argument from me on the running back room and how I view it.  They obviously believe in this room. Is there a world where they're right and we're wrong on how good that running back room is?

Does Matt Rhule not care enough about running the football?

Josh: One of the theories that I've seen put out there about the running back room and Matt Rhule is like, “hey look, Matt Rhule, maybe he is somebody who views the running game like we all do in the modern state of football,” right? Where it's like, “you know, it doesn't matter so much.” Do you buy that though? Like if you're going to purport that theory that Matt Rhule doesn't want a good running game when that dude is built entirely on defense and line play; give me a break. There's no way that he is okay with the running game the last couple of years.

Jack: That dude's more of a run the ball guy than I am. He’s run the ball guy. He likes smash mouth, cold weather. You know, like that.

Josh: [subscriber skerz04 says] “It's an NFL mentality. They don't value that position.” See, I just don't buy that though!

Jack: That's best explanation. Honestly, Josh, that's the best explanation I've heard.

Josh: Okay. Then if, that's right, they're idiots because it has cost them games. I know that they have a myriad of other issues, right? Special teams have been a tire fire. The quarterback play has been average to below average in pretty much every one of the 25 games that Matt Rhule has coached at Nebraska.

There have been a lot of problems, but if they had a running game that was [like] the 2022 version of Anthony Grant versus the 2023 version of Anthony Grant, they go to a bowl game in 2023. A better run game would help so much. That’s the part I just don't buy. “They don't put value into it like they should.” I just think they've been bad at it.  I just don't think they've been very good at it, but maybe I'm wrong. That's just my opinion.

Jack: And while I am not run the ball guy traditionally, man, the idea of having a running back, that's a weapon. Oh my gosh, can you imagine how different that feels? You haven't had it since…

Josh: Well, you think the Ozigbo year [in 2018] where he had 1,000 yards.

Jack: Maurice Washington. That's probably, that's the last one, right?

Josh: Yeah. He felt like he could have been a big-time difference maker and he wasn't. We did the 2010 Kansas state game a month ago or whatever it was. And it was like, “Oh, look at that. They have a running back!” Every one of the games we do from like that Bo era, it's like, “Ameer Abdullah! He was awesome!”

Jack: It seems like it's worth trying to me. That's my opinion. It's not that you shouldn't get a five-star, blue chip quarterback, but what if we tried it with a running back just like to see?

Josh: I'll then throw out this: Is it not that they're not trying, it's that EJ Barthel can't do it? He can't get the guys.

The weight of the world is on Dylan Raiola in 2025

Jack: Dylan Raiola has all the freaking pressure in the world on him.

Josh: Yeah, he really does. He really doesn't act like it though, does he? Do you think he acts like it in a negative way? Cause I don't. Like Adrian Martinez, in those early years, post-2018, I felt like you could see and hear the weight of the world in his press conferences and how he talked.

And maybe this is revisionist history, right? I don't remember if I said that in 2019, but man, looking back, I'm like, “wow, it seemed like the moment was just massive for him and everybody else.” I don't get that sense with Dylan. I don't get the sense of, “He better be good and he knows it or else they're gonna suck.” So at least that's what I do not sense.

Josh: A couple of comments. [subscriber Royals Girl] asked, “do you think Dylan will feel it once the season starts?” Along those lines, [subscriber] Biff said, “Dylan has been groomed for this since birth. It's the only way someone could have the weight of one million plus grown adults emotional well-being on their shoulders and not wilt's under the pressure. Sims couldn't handle it whatsoever.”

Yeah, if there was ever going to be a player who could handle it, in theory, it would be him. Because of all of the obvious reasons of lineage, of [being a] five star, of his actions. So now the question is, “all right, can he do it? Can he actually do it on the field?” You know, last year got off to such a like a fun start and he was making some of these throws that it was like, “oh wow, he has all the skills.” And then it just went so sideways so fast. And the last two months were, I mean, frankly Jack, not enjoyable. It was a pretty awful experience trying to watch him run Nebraska's offense at times.

We brought it up a million times this off season. There's still this part of me that wonders if we're underrating Dana Holgorsen. And how, how big of an impact he had in the four games that he was calling plays and he barely knew the players’ names.

Jack: And that's a great question. And then not to go back to the previous conversation, but he obviously, I assume, has a huge hand in what they're doing with the running back position. And I know we were talking about that earlier, but I can't imagine he is going to take them into a position where they have a huge deficit there in his first full season as right as offensive coordinator.

The entire podcast can be found below!

Want more from the I-80 Club, including bonus pods, newsletters, and access to every episode of Volleyball State? Consider becoming a subscriber today at patreon.com/i80club! On Saturday, Jeff Sheldon and Lincoln Arneal will have a subscriber-exclusive postgame show - Volleyball Late - recapping Nebraska's matchup with South Dakota State in Ord!

More From Nebraska on SI

• Does Nebraska Have a 'Bottom of the Barrel' Athletics Department in the Big Ten Conference?
• 4-Star QB Trae Taylor Commits to Nebraska Over Illinois, LSU, Texas A&M
• How to Watch Nebraska Baseball vs. Minnesota: Preview, Breakdown, Streaming
• HuskerMax Today: Husker Baseball Surging, Evaluating Nebraska Athletics
• Despite Late Flip, Husker Spring 'Event' Is Still a Flop

Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, subscribing to HuskerMax on YouTube, and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.