Jul 24, 2024; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers head coach Matt Rhule speaks to the media during the Big 10 football media day at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-USA TODAY Sports
Former Nebraska offensive lineman Ethan Piper is displeased with Paul Finebaum’s recent comments about Cornhuskers coach Matt Rhule. Rhule had stated at the Big Ten Media Days that four Big Ten teams should make it to the College Football Playoff annually because it is “the best league, the NFL of college football.”
Piper, who started 25 games on the offensive line during his career, responded to Finebaum’s harsh critique of Rhule by sharing the footage from this week’s Get Up appearance on social media and criticizing ESPN’s SEC-centric analyst.
“This fires me up! Trying to be respectful as possible but that man would soil himself trying to do the job Coach Rhule is doing right now,” Piper wrote Friday on “X.”
At the Big Ten Media Days in Indianapolis, Rhule praised the Huskers and expressed his respect for the Big Ten, positioning it against any league in America ahead of the season’s first expanded, 12-team playoff.
Despite the Huskers not having posted a winning season since 2016 and securing only five wins in Rhule’s debut campaign, it marked an improvement from the Scott Frost era.
“Matt, stay in your lane,” Finebaum said on Friday’s Get Up. “Job one — win enough games to get to some stupid bowl game. Don’t worry about the big boys, because you’re not one of them. We saw what you did in the NFL. You were a complete disaster in Carolina. You somehow got this job in Nebraska, and you’re talking like you belong at the table with Ohio State and Georgia. You don’t. Just try to win, maybe, six games. Quit choking big games on the final play, and leave the punditry to the professionals. Thank you.”
Rhule defended his statement by highlighting why he believes the Big Ten can stand out from the SEC, which has dominated college football, winning 13 of the past 18 national championships since 2006.
“The Big Ten stretches from coast to coast, different time zones, different weather. That’s not to diminish any other league,” Rhule said. “The SEC is amazing, these other leagues are great. But the challenge in the Big Ten is going to be really difficult. Travel, weather and great teams.”
While aiming for the playoffs is a goal for Rhule’s program, the primary focus remains on breaking a seven-year streak of losing seasons and making a bowl game. The Big Ten expansion adds to this challenge, but Rhule stated that the Huskers embrace the competition.
“For us, we think every game is a big game because we’re playing in it,” Rhule said. “You didn’t come to Nebraska because you wanted to play an FCS slate. You came here because you want the challenge. We get to go to the Coliseum and play football. How lucky are we?”
