🏈 Nebraska fires Dana Holgorsen as OC after fourth straight loss

Nebraska coach Matt Rhule fired offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen on Saturday, Nov. 7, a day after the Cornhuskers lost 24-13 at Illinois, according to the Associated Press. It was the fourth loss in a row.

Who says what

AP reports that Glenn Thomas, the co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, takes over play-calling for Nebraska (5-4, 2-4 Big Ten). CBS Sports says Thomas gets the final three games of the season to make his case for the full-time job.

The scoreboard is ugly. AP says the Huskers have scored 54 points combined in the four losses. CBS Sports puts that at 13.5 points per game, after Nebraska scored 31 or more in each of its five wins to start the year. AP adds that Nebraska ranks 12th in the Big Ten and 96th nationally in scoring in conference games, at 22.2 points per game.

The run game went quiet too. AP says the Huskers averaged 246 yards rushing against a light nonconference schedule and 141 per game against Big Ten opponents. Over the last four games they have scored on nine of 46 possessions, per AP.

The response

Rhule addressed it in a statement, quoted by AP and CBS Sports. He took the blame, then made the call anyway.

"Like so many of you, I am angry, I am disappointed and I am frustrated with our results this season"

Matt Rhule, Nebraska coach, in a statement quoted by AP

The same statement calls Holgorsen a coach with 'a fantastic offensive mind' who is 'a strong leader' and has done 'great work here at Nebraska,' before concluding: 'But simply, we need a change.' Rhule also said he will keep evaluating the program through the season and at its conclusion, and will make further changes where he believes they will help.

No public response from Holgorsen appears in the reports read.

What happens next

Thomas calls plays for the last three games, per CBS Sports. CBS also says Holgorsen, 55, will now look for a new job for 2027. Rhule's statement says further changes may come after the season, per AP.

The money question

The angle everyone wants is the paper: his Nebraska contract, any buyout, and what earlier Holgorsen exits cost. None of the reports read states those figures. No contract term, buyout amount or payout is on record in these sources, so none is given here.

Backstory

Holgorsen joined Nebraska as an offensive consultant in 2024 after a stint at TCU, AP reports, and was named offensive coordinator about a week later when Rhule moved Marcus Satterfield to another role. WV Sports Now says he was a five-year head coach at Houston, going 31-28 with a 2-1 bowl record, and spent eight years at West Virginia, going 61-41.

The timing has a sting. AP says Rhule called Holgorsen 'one of the best offensive minds of our generation' five days before the firing, after calls for the coach's job followed a 17-10 loss to Washington in which Anthony Colandrea threw 44 passes.

As of Nov 8, 4:35 AM ET, the firing and Thomas's interim play-calling role are confirmed by Rhule's statement as reported by AP and CBS Sports. Holgorsen's contract terms, any buyout and any comment from him are not in the reports read.