The Carolina Panthers fired Matt Rhule after having an 11-27 record as head coach.
Panthers owner David Tepper thought that bringing in Rhule would turn around the franchise’s fortunes.
After all, he turned Baylor into one of the powerhouse college football teams in the nation.
In contrast, the Panthers finished with a 5-11 record before Rhule replaced interim head coach Perry Fewell.
However, the plan didn’t work, especially through Week 5 of the 2022 NFL season.
The team finished 25th in points, averaging 18.6 points per game.
They are also 27th in rushing yards (89.8) and 28th in passing yards (181.6) per game.
The Panthers are last in total yards, with 271.4 yards per game.
Defensive secondary coach Steve Wilks will take over as interim coach.
But will Rhule out of the NFL, his return to the college game is imminent.
Former #Panthers coach Matt Rhule had several opportunities last offseason for big-time college jobs, but he turned them down to stay in Carolina. Now, he'll have his choice of coveted college jobs. https://t.co/OenYiWgcC5
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 10, 2022
NFL Network national insider Ian Rapoport tweeted, “Former #Panthers coach Matt Rhule had several opportunities last offseason for big-time college jobs, but he turned them down to stay in Carolina. Now, he’ll have his choice of coveted college jobs.”
Money Will Keep On Flowing For Rhule
He will rake in more money because he is still owed the remainder of the seven-year, $62 million contract he signed in 2020.
While his NFL record does not look great, his record at Baylor will be a strong argument for him to land one of the top head coaching jobs in college football.
Rhule coached Baylor from 2017 to 2019 and went 1-11 in his first season.
However, that record improved to 7-6 in year two, and won the Texas Bowl against the Vanderbilt Commodores.
Baylor went 11-3 in his final year and finished 13th in The Associated Press Top 25 rankings.
Unfortunately, the Bears lost the Sugar Bowl to the Georgia Bulldogs.
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