Nebraska’s running back room has spent the offseason with a cloud hanging over it. The concern has been simple enough: too much inexperience, not enough proven production. But as fall camp has unfolded, one name has started to change the conversation.
Jamal Rule, a true freshman, is making himself hard to ignore.
Dana Holgorsen said after a practice last week, "He doesn't look like a freshman to me," Holgorsen said after a practice last week. "He's 6-2, 210, runs fast, has breakaway speed. ...
He's going to play. We'll see it in a few weeks."
That kind of praise carries weight, especially in a room that returns Mekhi Nelson and Isaiah Mozee as potential top options, with veteran Kwinten Ives also in the mix for carries. Rule entered Nebraska as a former three-star recruit from North Carolina, but he has already forced his way into the discussion with what he showed in the spring and what he has carried into August.
His spring game was the first real jolt. Rule ran nine times for 119 yards in late March and ripped off a 75-yard touchdown, a performance that put him on the radar well beyond the usual freshman buzz. Five months later, he is still drawing attention.
Steven Sipple, who has watched parts of practices this month and during the spring, said recently on 93.7 The Ticket: "Rule's real. ... I think he's going to be hard to hold off for some of those veteran guys."
Sipple also pointed out that Rule’s age makes the projection tricky, while noting that Nelson and Mozee look bigger and stronger than they did a season ago. Even so, he sees a path for the freshman to make a push. Sipple said: "I think Mekhi will start the season and will have to hold off Rule."
Rule, for his part, doesn’t sound like a player caught up in the hype. When Jessica Coody of the Huskers Radio Network spoke with him this week, he kept the focus on the work in front of him.
"Obviously, I have some room for growth and stuff like that... I just want to keep growing every day; there's always something you can fix... Whatever is in front of me, I just attack it to the best of my ability."
That mindset has been noticed inside the building. E.J.
Barthel said on "Sports Nightly" that Rule is handling the position like a veteran, not a freshman. "He's first to meetings, knows his assignments, knows his alignments," Barthel said.
That, Barthel added, has helped Rule reach the point where, as he put it, "the jitters are out."
Rule’s confidence extends to the room around him, too. Conor Booth and Vincent Genatone are also trying to carve out roles, but Rule says the competition has not created friction.
"Our running back room is great; I love them all," he said. "I feel like we have a really good connection, and yeah, we're going against each other but we're still trying to get each other better every day... As a whole, we're trying to be the best running back room in the nation."
That matters because Nebraska is trying to replace the production of All-American Emmett Johnson, who piled up 1,800-plus offensive yards last season and averaged 25 touches per game. With so many snaps going to Johnson, there were only limited opportunities for Nelson, Mozee and the rest of the group to build much of a résumé in 2025.
This season could look different. Nebraska may be more likely to lean on a 1-2 punch at running back than on one true workhorse, and that opens the door for Rule to play a bigger role than any of the returning backs had a year ago.
Instant stardom is still a stretch. But if Rule can handle a meaningful role right away, the Huskers would take a major step toward settling one of their biggest question marks.
That would also help new quarterback Anthony Colandrea and a strong receiving group, especially with a retooled offensive line expected to do its part. If Rule keeps rising, Dana Holgorsen’s offense could be getting exactly the kind of boost it needs in 2026.
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