{"id":361917,"date":"2025-11-07T09:59:11","date_gmt":"2025-11-07T09:59:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/361917\/"},"modified":"2025-11-07T09:59:11","modified_gmt":"2025-11-07T09:59:11","slug":"matt-rhule-delivers-powerful-message-following-marshawn-kneelands-death","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/361917\/","title":{"rendered":"Matt Rhule delivers powerful message following Marshawn Kneeland\u2019s death"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nebraska coach Matt Rhule ended his weekly media conference with a three-minute message on the importance of mental health, following the death of Dallas Cowboys player Marshawn Kneeland<\/a> from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s especially poignant seeing the tragic news out of Dallas today and understanding that none of us know what people are going through,\u201d Rhule said. \u201cThat\u2019s why I think we all should be careful about what we say to people. I think we should be careful about what we tweet about people. I think we should be cognizant of what everyone\u2019s going through.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kneeland was in his second season with the Cowboys after being selected in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft. He played in seven games this season, starting three. He had 12 tackles and one sack.<\/p>\n

The coach\u2019s remarks came in response to an unrelated question, as he emphasized the importance of his players regularly checking in on one another. As Nebraska gets set to travel nearly 1,500 miles to play UCLA, Rhule told his players that road trips are a chance for them to build relationships with their teammates.<\/p>\n

\u201cI told our players they should take their headphones off in the cafeteria and sit down with someone and say, \u2018How you doing, man? What\u2019s going on with you?’\u201d Rhule said. \u201cBecause somebody that we\u2019re talking to that we\u2019re saying, \u2018What\u2019s wrong with that guy? Man, that guy\u2019s messed up.\u2019 Instead of saying, \u2018What\u2019s wrong with them?\u2019 we should all say, \u2018I wonder what happened to him\u2019 because everybody\u2019s suffering.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rhule also mentioned a pair of personal experiences. In 2015, former NFL linebacker Adrian Robinson \u2014 who played at Temple while Rhule was the team\u2019s offensive coordinator \u2014 died by suicide. Later that year, Robinson\u2019s family announced that he was diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).<\/p>\n

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Nebraska HC Matt Rhule took 3 minutes today to talk about mental health following the tragic death of #Cowboys<\/a> DE Marshawn Kneeland: <\/p>\n

\u201cOur generation of kids \u2014 my kids \u2014 they all just say, \u2018Yeah, I\u2019m fine. I\u2019m straight.\u2019 You really gotta unearth it. \u2026 That young man scored a\u2026 https:\/\/t.co\/eR5zGGRp4D<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/0uuvOuMSwR<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 6, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u201cI will forever for the rest of my life think about the time that I saw Adrian Robinson right before he took his own life,\u201d Rhule said. \u201cAnd I saw him on campus. And I was walking this way and he was way over there. And I was like, \u2018I need to catch up with Adrian because he had got done playing.\u2019 And a week later, he left this world, and a month later I was giving the eulogy. I just wish in my life I could go back and just stop and say, \u2018Hey, how you doing?\u2019 It\u2019s not really what you [ask] but it\u2019s on my heart and I just shared it with the team.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rhule said members of Gen Z, such as his own kids, will say, \u201cI\u2019m fine, I\u2019m straight,\u201d when asked about their mental health. He said it\u2019s important to try and \u201cunearth\u201d people\u2019s struggles.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would encourage everybody today with your own kids or the people you worked with, just check on them. Because that young man (Kneeland) scored a touchdown just a couple days ago. On the outside world you think he\u2019s at the pinnacle, but he\u2019s dealing with something and I don\u2019t know what it was. But I pray for him and his family,\u201d Rhule said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the weight of coaching young people today. They\u2019re going through a lot, way more than I went through growing up. Just a sad, sad story,\u201d he added. \u201cBut I also know this. There\u2019s probably someone on my team going through something very similar. In what ways can I be there for them, can we all be there for them? I think that\u2019s the blessing we have of having another week together.\u201d<\/p>\n