This is a list of Nebraska Cornhuskers head football coaches, the coaches who have led the University of Nebraska–Lincoln's football program in a permanent or interim capacity. Nebraska competes in the Big Ten as part of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision. Matt Rhule was named Nebraska's thirty-first full-time head coach in 2023.[1]
The program's first extended period of success came under the leadership of William C. Cole and Ewald O. Stiehm. Between 1900 and 1916, Nebraska had five undefeated seasons and completed a stretch of thirty-four consecutive games without a loss, still a program record.[2] The Cornhuskers did not experience major national success until Bob Devaney was hired in 1962. Devaney won two national championships and eight conference titles in eleven seasons as head coach, but perhaps his most lasting achievement was the hiring of Tom Osborne as offensive coordinator in 1969.[3] Osborne was named Devaney's successor in 1973 and over the next twenty-five years established himself as one of the best coaches in college football history with his trademark I-form offense and revolutionary strength, conditioning, and nutrition programs.[4] [5] [6] Following Osborne's retirement in 1997, Nebraska cycled through five head coaches before hiring Rhule in 2023.
Eight past Nebraska head coaches have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame: Eddie N. Robinson, Fielding H. Yost, Dana X. Bible, Biff Jones, Pete Elliott, Devaney, Osborne, and Frank Solich. Osborne is the program's all-time leader in most major categories; his .836 career winning percentage is fifth-highest in major college football history.[7] Thirteen Nebraska coaches have won a conference championship at the school, and Devaney and Osborne combined to win five national titles.
| Langdon Frothingham | 1890 | 2–0 | – | |||
| 1891 | 0–1 | – | ||||
| J. S. Williams | 1892 | 1–0 | 1–0 | |||
| 1 | 1893–1894 | 9–4–1 | 3–3 | WIUFA champion | ||
| 2 | 1895 | 6–3 | 2–1 | WIUFA champion | ||
| 3 | 1896–1897 | 11–4–1 | 4–1–1 | WIUFA champion | ||
| 4 | 1898 | 8–3–0 | – | |||
| 5 | 1899 | 1–7–1 | – | |||
| 6 | Walter C. Booth | 1900–1905 | 46–8–1 | – | ||
| 7 | 1906 | 6–4 | – | |||
| 8 | 1907–1910 | 25–8–3 | 5–2–1 | MVIAA champion | ||
| 9 | 1911–1915 | 35–2–3 | 14–0–1 | National champion MVIAA champion | ||
| 10 | 1916–1917 | 11–4 | 5–1 | MVIAA champion | ||
| 11 | 1918 | 2–3–1 | – | |||
| 12 | 1919–1920 | 8–6–3 | – | |||
| 13 | 1921–1924 | 23–7–2 | 14–1–2 | MVIAA champion | ||
| 14 | 1925–1928 | 23–7–3 | 16–4–1 | Big Six champion | ||
| 15 | 1929–1936 | 50–15–7 | 33–3–4 | Big Six champion | ||
| 16 | 1937–1941 | 28–14–4 | 17–6–2 | Big Six champion | ||
| 17 | 1942 | 3–7 | 3–2 | |||
| 18 | 1943–1944 | 4–12 | 4–6 | |||
| 19 | 1945, 1948 | 6–13 | 4–7 | |||
| 20 | 1946–1947 | 5–13 | 5–5 | |||
| 21 | 1949–1955 | 31–35–3 | 23–18–1 | |||
| 22 | Pete Elliott | 1956 | 4–6 | 3–3 | ||
| 23 | 1957–1961 | 15–34–1 | 6–19 | |||
| 24 | 1962–1972 | 101–20–2 | 62–14–1 | National champion Big Eight champion Walter Camp Coach of the Year [8] Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year [9] | ||
| 25 | Tom Osborne | 1973–1997 | 255–49–3 | 153–22–1 | National champion Big Eight champion Big 12 champion Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year [10] AFCA Coach of the Year [11] | |
| 26 | 1998–2003 | 58–19 | 33–15 | Big 12 champion | ||
| 27 | 2004–2007 | 27–22 | 15–17 | |||
| 28 | Bo Pelini | 2003, 2008–2014 | 67–27 | 38–17 | ||
| Barney Cotton | 2014 | 0–1 | – | |||
| 29 | Mike Riley | 2015–2017 | 19–19 | 12–14 | ||
| 30 | 2018–2022 | 16–31 | 10–26 | |||
| Mickey Joseph | 2022 | 3–6 | 3–5 | |||
| 31 | 2023–present | 12–13 | 6–12 |
Claimed national titles in bold