If this past coaching cycle had a common theme pop up multiple times, it was that coaches can return home.
Of course, Rich Rod returned to West Virginia this off season cycle, and there's Scott Frost returning to lead UCF once again, and on the assistant coach or coordinator front Mike Ekeler is a prominent example of a former assistant returning to a place where he previously had a lot of success as the Huskers linebackers coach from 2008-10 before going on to coach at Indiana (co-DC), USC, Georgia, North Texas (DC), UNC, Kansas (STC) and Tennessee (STC).
During a pretty casual interview with Hail Varsity, Ekeler shed some light on how his decision to leave the staff at Tennessee to return to Nebraska came about.
The move, which is often sparked by a phone call from a head coach to gauge interest, began in this case with a call from a former Husker player turned very popular media personality Will Compton.
Compton, who had a six-year career in the NFL with a number of teams including the Redskins, Titans, Saints and Raiders before his final season in 2021, picked up the phone to call his old position coach shortly after Matt Rhule decided to make a coordinator change in Lincoln.
Ekeler says his phone rang about 30-seconds after Rhule had an opening on his staff, and on the other end of the line was Compton who simply suggested, "Ek, you need to go home man," and Ekeler admitted he'd be open to the possibility.
That, in turn, sparked a call from the Compton, the co-star of popular podcast Bussin with the Boys, to Rhule which got the ball rolling on the whole process that eventually landed the renowned linebacker coach and special teams coordinator back in the scarlet and cream.
Hear Ekeler share his version of the story in the clip.