Matt Rhule and Terry Smith have more in common than their Penn State playing days.
Rhule’s 7-3 Nebraska Cornhuskers face 4-6 Penn State on Saturday night at Beaver Stadium.
Rhule, a walk-on, played at Penn State in the mid-1990s.
Smith was a dangerous wideout who served as a captain on Penn State’s 1991 team that finished 11-2 and drubbed Tennessee, 42-17, in the Fiesta Bowl.
Rhule, Temple’s coach from 2013-16, also hired Smith to be the Owls’ wideout coach in 2013.
Smith spent one season in Philadelphia before joining James Franklin’s Penn State program in 2014 to coach the team’s cornerbacks.
Smith, now Penn State’s interim head coach, was asked about spending a year with Rhule at Temple.
“That was kind of an unplanned hiring, I guess,” Smith said Monday. “Back then I was the head coach at Gateway High School and an athletic director there. Matt Rhule came in to recruit one of my players, and, long story short, I had a past player of mine that went to Ohio State and he came back to visit me.
“(The player) was going through some life-changing decision-making, and so I’m sitting there talking, discussing. Matt Rhule is sitting there listening to the conversation, and, long story short, Matt appreciated my care for my player, at that point.
“And we just had a discussion, and a day later he offered me the job. It was a tremendous opportunity for me to grow from high school to college, and I’m thankful for that.”
Rhule continues to have an appreciation for Smith.
“Terry was on my first staff,” Rhule said earlier this week. “I hired him out of Gateway High School. He was on my first staff at Temple. (I) have a lot of respect for him.”
Respect aside, this is a big game for both programs.
The Lions are trying to finish their regular season at .500 and become bowl eligible.
Rhule and his players are hunting a nine-win regular season.
A key matchup will involve PSU’s Kaytron Allen-led running game, coming off a 240-yard performance against Michigan State, vs. Nebraska’s suspect run defense. The Cornhuskers allow an average of 161.1 yards per contest, a number that ranks Nebraska No. 90 in FBS.
“They’ve got one of the best offensive lines you’ll see,” Rhule said of the Lions. “(Kaytron Allen) took over that game (vs. Michigan State). (Nick Singleton) took over the game against Indiana, to get them back into the game. I think they’ve got great run schemes.
“We are one of the top pass defenses in the country (No. 3), but we’ve struggled against the run, and (the Lions) are going to come out and run the football.
“I looked at it as, what a wonderful opportunity for our guys to go out and conquer things that have bothered them. We can defend the run. They’re just very good at it.”
