New co-offensive coordinator coach Glenn Thomas excited to work with Nebraska's young quarterbacks
Nebraska’s new co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Glenn Thomas has not wasted time getting to work in Lincoln.
Thomas came to NU from the Pittsburgh Steelers but is very familiar with Matt Rhule and his coaching staff from working together at Temple and Baylor. Thomas worked under Rhule from 2015 to 2019.
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“It checked all the boxes for me,” Thomas said in an interview on the Husker Sports Network on why he took the job at NU. “Obviously, it’s a unique situation with familiar faces. As soon as I walked into the building, it was cool to see all the familiar faces from Garret McGuire, who I coached in college, to E.J. (Barthel), who was in the recruiting department back in the day, and then (Evan) Cooper, (Sean Padden) – all the way down.
“It just made total sense in that way, and then I knew the expectation from Coach Rhule as far as culture, standard – what he really preaches here. I understand what that was, and I felt that I could add to that by coming here to this staff.”
Thomas said his time in the NFL working at places like Pittsburgh and the Atlanta Falcons has also broadened his coaching abilities.
“From a professional perspective, I think you have to approach it a little bit differently,” Thomas said. “Obviously, you are dealing with a grown man that has a mortgage and kids and the whole deal that’s been in the league eight to 10 years. Where if you are coming here, you are dealing with an 18-year-old freshman that’s kind of creating that foundation of football. I think you have to approach it a little bit differently, which I think has made me a better coach to be quite honest.
“I’ve dealt with a seven-year Pro Bowler at quarterback; I’ve dealt with an 18-year-old true freshman and thrown him in as a starter in college football. I think that’s helped me really just be conscious and deliberate in my coaching style with how I deliver information. That in itself has been a blessing in my career.”
Thomas inherits young, but talented QB room at Nebraska
As Thomas gets going at Nebraska, he fully understands the situation.
Junior Heinrich Haarberg is back after starting eight games in 2023, while true freshmen Dylan Raiola and Daniel Kaelin are already on campus.
He sees a ton of promise in the entire group he’ll work with this spring.
“We are kind of starting from Day 1,” Thomas said. “I’m kind of learning the offense myself. I don’t think it’s any more pressure on them than me. We are both kind of starting on page 1 of the playbook. As I kind of go through the playbook, what did they do last year and how did you coach this and how can we adjust it a little bit. We start from the very basics and build upon that. Some days, we’ll go a little faster, and then some days, we’ll have to take a step back and revisit. I think we are all starting from square one and looking forward to building forward.”
The biggest thing now for Thomas is learning as much as possible about his quarterbacks and figuring out how he can develop them around their strengths.
“Obviously early in that process you have to figure out where they are and what is their floor, and build up that,” Thomas said. “I think there’s a lot of feedback that needs to happen early. Let them talk and let them communicate what they know from their experiences and what they like, and then how you can build upon that. That’s probably the first challenge. Obviously, all three have had success, and I’m excited about that. We’ve kind of started that process a little bit. I’ve just been here a few days. I’m excited about that.
“I knew Dylan (Raiola) a little bit when I was in Arizona. We had a history when he was there. I didn’t know Danny (Kaelin) or Heinrich (Haarberg), but I’m really impressed with those guys in my initial conversations. They are extremely hard workers and leaders. You can already tell that. They have a great aura and persona about them. I think we are in a great place with those guys.”
Thomas can already see what Rhule is building
When Thomas examines the big picture at Nebraska, he sees a lot of promise, starting with the brand new Go Big football facility.
Having things like that in place will make his job that much easier.
“You kind of have your expectations walking in here, then all of a sudden you see it, and you feel it,” Thomas said. “Obviously, the new facility is what it is and is like no other facility in the world. With how we are going to be able to recruit to that is impressive, but when you walk in and feel the energy and excitement of the players, it’s just as impressive.”
Then, you add in the Rhule factor. Thomas has seen what Rhule has been able to do firsthand at places like Baylor and Temple.
“The culture is in place and heading in the right direction,” Thomas said.
