LINCOLN, Nebraska has hired former Houston and West Virginia head coach Dana Holgorsen as an offensive consultant for the remainder of the season in an effort to jump-start its sagging offense around freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola.

A team source confirmed the news The Athletics. ESPN first reported the move.

Holgorsen, 53, spent time this year as an advisor and scout at TCU. He was fired by Houston last November and visited Nebraska in early January when coach Matt Rhule wanted to shift coaching responsibilities on offense after his first season with the Huskers.

Rhule eventually hired Glenn Thomas from the Pittsburgh Steelers to serve as co-offensive coordinator and coach quarterbacks. Offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield moved from coaching quarterbacks to tight ends, but retained responsibility for calling plays.

The Huskers have lost three straight games after a 5-1 start, and their offense ranks 99th nationally with 354.1 yards per game.

Raiola, who transferred from Georgia to Nebraska last December and won the QB job ahead of his freshman season, didn’t throw a touchdown pass in three October games after throwing nine in the first five games. The Huskers are averaging 18.3 points in six Big Ten games.

“Eighteen points a game,” Rhule said Monday, “it’s not good enough.”

Rhule said he planned to bring in “people from outside” this week with the Huskers at 5-4 before they visit USC on Nov. 16 and finish with Wisconsin and Iowa.

Holgorsen comes in viewed as one of the best offensive minds in college football in his nine seasons at West Virginia and five with the Cougars. He prepped as the OC and wide receivers coach under Mike Leach at Texas Tech, where he learned the spread offense.

Holgorsen has roots in Big Ten territory. He grew up in Davenport, Iowa, and played three seasons at Iowa Wesleyan in Mount Pleasant. He could be seen as a candidate to take control of Nebraska’s offense after the season.

Satterfield has been criticized as the Huskers have regressed offensively all season after adding Raiola and a group of wide receivers, including 6-foot-4 transfers Isaiah Neyor from Texas and Jahmal Banks from Wake Forest, plus standout freshmen Jacory Barney and Carter Nelson .

The offense failed to score the last two weeks, against Ohio State and UCLA, with a chance to win or tie the game in the final minutes. Under Rhule, who is 10-11 at Nebraska, the Huskers have not won a game in which their defense allowed more than 14 points.

“I thought we would play better offensively than we are now,” Rhule said Monday. “I thought we would run the ball better. I thought we were going to have a really good play-action game.”

Nebraska has missed a bowl game in seven straight seasons, the longest drought among Power 4 programs.

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(Photo: Mike Watters / Imagn images)