Nebraska football and head coach Matt Rhule have found its next special teams coordinator.

Inside Nebraska can confirm Mike Ekeler will lead Nebraska's special teams in 2025. Ekeler spent the past four years on Josh Heupel's staff at Tennessee as special teams coordinator and outside linebackers coach.

Ekeler has plenty of ties to the state of Nebraska and the Husker football program. He's from David City and coached Nebraska's linebackers for three seasons for Bo Pelini from 2008-10.

Ekeler replaces former Nebraska special teams coordinator Ed Foley, who Rhule hired to his first staff in December 2022 but was let go by Rhule in early January upon his contract expiring on Dec. 31, 2024. That decision came after the Huskers' major two-year struggles on special teams, the worst of which came during the 2024 season and ultimately culminated in the biggest breaking point – game-changing mistakes by the special teams units that paved the way for the Huskers' 13-10 loss at Iowa in November.

Rhule is now turning to Ekeler in the mission to turn things around on those special teams units.

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