Mitch Sherman

When Royce Boehm, Monte Harrison’s high school football coach at Lee’s Summit (Mo.) West, heard that his ex-star wide receiver wanted to give it a go again on the gridiron, Boehm had a wild thought. Why not call the hometown Kansas City Chiefs and inquire about an opportunity? A former two-sport signee at Nebraska, Harrison spent the past decade in professional baseball. Advertisement His career fizzled after a season in Triple-A Nashville last year following his 76 plate appearances in the big…

LINCOLN, Neb. — Under coach Matt Rhule, Nebraska laid out its blueprint last year to build a recruiting class: set the table in April, feast in June and enjoy dessert in December. The Huskers hope to fare as well the second time around. The Class of 2025 is Rhule’s third with the Huskers. But his first group of recruits, collected in a sprint to signing day and among holdovers who pledged to the former coaching staff, rates as an anomaly. Construction of the 2024 class created a standard. That 2…

LINCOLN, Neb. — The door to enter the transfer portal is closed. Unless a late entry slid through that’s gone noticed, will have seen the departure of nine scholarship players in the two offseason periods for undergraduate declarations. In this age of college football, that’s a low number — and a testament to the program that second-year coach Matt Rhule has built with the intention to maximize retention and development. Advertisement But in four months, Nebraska coaches will select a practice…

LINCOLN, Neb. — Nebraska coach Matt Rhule enjoyed a meal recently with Eric Crouch, the quarterback who won a Heisman Trophy with the Huskers in 2001. Over dinner, Crouch shared memories of his redshirt freshman season. It was 1998, the second year in Lincoln for Crouch and Bobby Newcombe, former prized recruits, and the fifth season for Monte Christo, a steady hand out of Kearney, Neb. Advertisement The Huskers needed them to win nine games. But what struck Rhule was Crouch’s explanation about…

LINCOLN, Neb. — With a straight face after the Red-White game Saturday at Memorial Stadium, Nebraska tight end Thomas Fidone said that not much has changed since the end of last season with the Huskers on offense. They’ve got most of the same plays, players and coaches, according to Fidone. “What’s changed the most,” he said, “is the way we carry ourselves and our confidence.” Advertisement A renewed confidence was evident in this final practice of the spring. Oh, and some important stuff change…

LINCOLN, Neb. — During this final week of spring practice at Nebraska, the search continues for clarity at two traditionally high-profile roster positions. The Huskers did what they could in 2023 with the resources on hand at quarterback and running back. Injuries and a barrage of turnover-related problems led to start eight players at the two spots. None of the six combinations lasted more than four games. Advertisement Nebraska scored 18 points per game and gained 5.1 yards per play, figures…

LINCOLN, Neb. — In her three seasons at Nebraska, Ally Batenhorst played on two volleyball teams that came within one victory of the ultimate prize. In December, she started at outside hitter for the Huskers as for the national championship. Then in early January, Batenhorst took a deep breath and called her coach, John Cook. Advertisement “I was nervous,” she said. “The situation was unique. But you never know.” Batenhorst decided to leave the Huskers. The conversation with Cook came immediatel…

LINCOLN, Neb. — Matt Rhule leaves no room for interpretation on his stance about the importance of visiting coaches and former players to Nebraska football. “This is their program,” the second-year coach said. Nebraska players stand on the shoulders of the people who helped train them and competed before them, according to Rhule. The Huskers hear his message during times like last week when more than 900 supporters, observers and recruits gathered in Lincoln amid the second week of spring practi…

LINCOLN, Neb. — Make no mistake, recruited five-star quarterback to start. And to start early in his career, quite possibly as soon as Aug. 31, when visits Memorial Stadium. But five practices into this spring, the Huskers have put the hype on hold. There is no talk, outwardly from Memorial Stadium at least, of a plan to distinguish any of the three scholarship QBs in camp above another. No stated timetable to identify QB1 exists. There’s no singling out of Raiola, the 6-foot-3, 220-pound tru…

LINCOLN, Neb. — Hours before began its second week of spring football practice on Tuesday, Tony White confided in his defensive assistant coaches. “Are we any good?” the second-year coordinator said he asked the staff. “I don’t know right now.” White hadn’t seen enough. He didn’t know about the Huskers’ tackling and their pursuit of the ball. He needed to see the defenders communicate in a live setting. He was looking for a type of togetherness that Nebraska produced on defense last year in ran…

LINCOLN, Neb. — Among the events and decisions that shifted the course of Nebraska football in the offseason after Matt Rhule was hired as coach 16 months ago, the Huskers targeted a type of player overlooked by the previous regime. Overlooked, in fact, by almost every major college program nationally. Advertisement The staff prioritized athleticism and disregarded the prevailing football evaluations or a lack of experience. Two of the players to whom Rhule and his staff threw a lifeline, Jeremi…

LINCOLN, Neb. — As the principles of the Matt Rhule era take shape at Nebraska deep into a second offseason for the coach, the need for competition rises above all else. After a month and a half of grueling mat drills, followed by team commitment week upon the Huskers’ return from spring break, the next step involves a quest for “competitive greatness,” Rhule said. The offseason ebb and flow may sound like a series of transitions from one platitude to the next. But a meaning exists to Rhule’s me…

The forces that brought Troy Dannen to Nebraska enabled a smooth jump from Seattle to Lincoln for the amid a severe time crunch, according to the interim school president who hired him and the mutual friend of Dannen and Matt Rhule who helped connect them. In a search that lasted less than one week, interim University of Nebraska system president Chris Kabourek first spoke to Dannen about 96 hours after as AD for Texas A&M. Advertisement Dannen, the athletic director at Washington since Octobe…

LINCOLN, Neb. — For all of its trouble in football over the past decade and turnover among leadership, always had the brand. Seemingly, it would prosper for years because of the fan support and financial stability provided by proximity to other Big Ten heavyweights. And then last week happened. Trev Alberts, a Nebraskan if not by birth then undoubtedly by choice and revered for his accomplishments, turned his back on the big, red N. Advertisement Husker Nation responded with anger. Really, thou…

LINCOLN, Neb. — announced a two-year contract extension through 2028-2029 for men’s basketball coach Fred Hoiberg on Tuesday and a $1 million annual raise to $4.25 million. Per the contract, Hoiberg will receive raises to $4.35 million in 2025-26, $4.45 million in 2026-27, $4.55 million in 2027-28 and $4.65 million in 2028-29. Locked N. has been extended through the 2028-29 season. | — Nebraska Men’s Basketball (@HuskerMBB) Hoiberg, 52, guided Nebraska to its first NCAA Tournament appearance th…

LINCOLN, Neb. — Nebraska’s next leader in athletics must act with “unbelievable urgency” and boldness in moving the school forward during a pivotal era in college sports, football coach Matt Rhule said Monday. In his first public comments since as athletic director for the same position at Texas A&M, Rhule said he’s strongly committed to the university but urged leaders at the state and school levels to select an AD who works with the passion and foresight displayed by Alberts. Advertisement “W…

LINCOLN, Neb. — Overwhelmingly, the question posed most often Wednesday around the spinning inferno that engulfed Nebraska athletics started with one word. Why? Why would Trev Alberts leave Nebraska? Why now? Why would he consider a seemingly lateral move to Texas A&M? Why does this keep happening in Lincoln? Word leaked before 9 a.m. via the Houston Chronicle that Alberts, the popular Nebraska athletic director and former Butkus Award-winning linebacker for the Huskers, was set to take over as…

LINCOLN, Neb. — A moment of inflection for Tony White and the defensive staff at Nebraska arrived in late November of last year as the coaching carousel began to spin and White’s profile gained attention. Moves happen fast in the college football offseason. Offers fly. Choices must be made. As White considered his future — yes, he said he had a decision to make — coach Matt Rhule came to the 44-year-old defensive coordinator with a simple question: Do you think we are going to be better next yea…

Creighton has signed men’s basketball coach Greg McDermott to a long-term extension, the school announced Friday, ensuring continuity at the Big East school. McDermott, 59, has directed the to eight NCAA Tournament appearances in 14 seasons, including a run last year to the Elite Eight. He is 322-158 in Omaha and No. 10 Creighton will visit Villanova Saturday in the regular-season finale. His win total rates as the second-highest of any coach at the school. The native Iowan was a candidate seve…

GRETNA, Neb. — This is not a story about high school basketball. It’s not about a treasured coach who died midway through a season. It’s not a story of redemption, sorrow or achievement. It’s about togetherness. This is a story about community and a team that has revealed, through its resilience and fight to honor a lost leader, what the best of sports looks like. Wednesday night at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Neb., Gretna High School will play a first-round game in the Class A boys state to…