July 22, 2002
Cullowhee, N.C. -
Western Carolina head coach Kent Briggs announced Matt Rhule has joined his staff as assistant coach. Rhule will direct the linebackers and be the Cats' special teams coordinator. He replaces former coach Andy Hendel, who recently accepted a position at Charlotte's Providence Day High School.
"Matt brings a lot of enthusiasm and coaching experience to our defensive staff," Briggs said. "His background as a player under (Penn State's) Coach (Joe) Paterno will be a tremendous asset for our players. In addition, his association with Penn State's overall winning tradition and its reputation for producing great linebackers will be very beneficial to our program as we try to reach our goal of getting to another level."
Rhule spent the past season as assistant defensive line coach at UCLA. The 2001 Bruins led the Pac-10 in total defense, allowing 320.6 yards of total offense per game, and passing efficiency defense (102.1 rating). Also, that defensive line featured five All-Pac-10 performers, including the Pac-10's 2001 Morrison Trophy winner, which goes to the league's outstanding defensive lineman, Kenyon Coleman.
Prior to his stint at UCLA, Rhule was a defensive line coach at Buffalo for the 1999 and 2000 seasons. In 2000, the Bull's sack total went up from 12 to 27 over the previous year and the school won it's first NCAA IA game in 31 years. Rhule began his coaching career as an assistant at Albright College, working with current WCU defensive coordinator Geoff Collins for the 1998 season. Three first-year starting linebackers earned all-conference honors under his direction that season.
Rhule is a 1997 Penn State graduate, receiving a B.A. in political science. He played four seasons (1993-97) with the Nittany Lions. During his sophomore campaign (1994), Penn State finished the season with a 12-0 record and was both Big Ten and Rose Bowl champions. Rhule was a three-time Penn State Scholar Athlete and earned Academic All-Big 10 honors in 1997. Upon his graduation, he spent the spring of 1998 as a volunteer assistant coach at Penn State. Among his duties included demonstrating drills and techniques on an linebacker instructional video for defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky, whose coaching led Penn State to earn the reputation as "Linebacker U" for its tradition of excellence at the position.
Rhule is married to the former Julie Nibert.
