Nebraska's Rhule urges calm after fan cursed at his daughter - ESPN

Faced with a fan base growing impatient following a third straight game his team led deep into the fourth quarter and lost, Nebraska coach Matt Rhule voiced support for his assistants and players Monday and urged everyone in and around the program to stay calm.

«We're going to keep fighting until the day they tell me to leave,» Rhule said. «I'm not leaving, I'm not quitting.»

For the second straight week, Rhule gave a long and meandering statement at the start of his weekly news conference.

The Cornhuskers (5-3, 2-3 Big Ten) are coming off a 17-10 home loss to Washington and play at Illinois (5-3, 3-2) on Friday night.

The Huskers lost to Indiana and Oregon after blowing late leads, and they were up 7-3 against Washington with under two minutes to play Saturday. The Huskies converted a fourth-and-18 two plays before they scored the go-ahead touchdown, and then clinched it when Anthony Colandrea's third interception of the game was returned for a touchdown.

Fans threw trash onto the field after the interception, and Rhule said his 13-year-old daughter told him she was accosted at the stadium by a man who told her, «F-U and F your dad.»

«I'm not going to keep coaching if it means my kids grow up screwed up,» Rhule said.

Rhule said his wife, Julie, asked their children if the high-profile coaching life was too much to bear. He said his 10-year-old daughter texted him to say she loved the team, the players and living in Nebraska and that she's tough enough to handle it.

«So I'm going to fight for the fans,» Rhule said. «Yeah, they get passionate, they boo, they throw a bottle. I get all that. The guy who attacked my 13-year-old daughter, I'm not coaching for him. I'm coaching for the people who are in the boat.»

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