Iowa players share wild interactions with Nebraska coach Matt Rhule

The annual Iowa-Nebraska game doesn’t get the same hype as Alabama-Auburn and some other  other college football rivalries, but emotions run high in the battle for the Heroes Cup. And things got wild Friday night.

The hijinks started even before the game. Iowa linebackers Jay Higgins and Nick Jackson shared some surprising anecdotes with reporters after the Hawkeyes’ thrilling 13-10 win on a walk-off field goal.

Higgins revealed that before the game, the Nebraska team captains made no effort to shake hands, “so that was a little weird,” he said. Then, Cornhuskers head coach Matt Rhule walked through Iowa’s pregame warmups.

“So we immediately knew what type of game this was,” Higgins said.

After sharing all that, Higgins deadpanned, “Any questions?” That drew laughter from reporters.

Jackson joined him at that point, and Higgins had more to share.

“So the first series, we were on their sideline, and I got a little close to their head coach,” Higgins said. (The way he referred to Rhule as “their head coach” in every instance is funny.)

“And I said, ‘Probably not a good idea to not shake our hands,” Higgins continued. “He goes, ‘Who are you?'”

Then Higgins and Jackson wondered aloud if Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz would ever act like Rhule.

“Would KF, would … Kirk Ferentz ever do that?” Higgins asked.

“Nah,” Jackson said.

“That’s just amazing,” Higgins said.

“Come to Iowa,” Jackson said.

“Come to Iowa, come be a Hawk,” Higgins echoed.

“Be a Hawk, you see the difference,” Jackson said.

While Rhule might have thought his tough-guy image set the tone for the game, the Hawkeyes had the proverbial last laugh, as Drew Stevens booted a 53-yard field goal as time expired for the win.

Higgins had the perfect end to the night after that winning kick.

“So after the game,” Higgins said, “because they didn’t want to shake our hands before the game, I went up to their head coach and shook his hand and told him, ‘Good game.'”

[Eliot Clough]