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By Jordan Sigler
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No. 25 Nebraska is set to play on the road at Minnesota on Friday night. Cornhuskers head coach Matt Rhule has been trying to keep his team focused this week amid his name being linked to the Penn State head coaching job after the Nittany Lions fired James Franklin on Sunday.
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Rhule's name is of interest to PSU for a couple of reasons. One, he played linebacker for the Nittany Lions from 1994-1997. He also has a strong relationship with Penn State athletic director Patrick Kraft, who hired Rhule as the head coach of Temple in 2013.
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During an appearance on ESPN's The Pat McAfee Show on Thursday, Rhule commented on the job opening at PSU, saying he respects Penn State but won't be distracted while he coaches Nebraska this season.
"I refuse to be distracted at the same time," Rhule said. "It's when it's your alma mater, you have to show it love and respect. And I hope, and I love Pat Kraft, they'll find the right coach for them, whoever that is."
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Rhule argued that Nebraska is a "destination job" and that he's in the process of making the program a "national bully." He joked that being tied to Penn State was better than when fans were clamoring for him to be fired from the Carolina Panthers.
Rhule believes the Cornhuskers will be a force in college football next year.
"This is a destination job," Rhule said of Nebraska. "This is one of the greatest places in the world. (Lincoln) is a town of 300,000 people... Like, I can do whatever I want. Here I have a great young team, the youngest team in the Big Ten. Think about how good we'll be next year... Think about where we're going to go with (quarterback) Dylan (Raiola) and all these guys."
Nebraska is 5-1, with its only loss coming on Sept. 20 to then-No. 21 Michigan. The Cornhuskers have a chance to climb the rankings and compete for a spot in the College Football Playoff if they keep winning. Nebraska has one more game remaining on the schedule against a ranked team when it hosts No. 20 USC on Nov. 1.
Regardless of Rhule's statement on Thursday, things could get interesting when Nebraska and Penn State play on Nov. 22 at Beaver Stadium.
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