Nebraska freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola is one of the most hyped prospects to head to Lincoln in a long time — and perhaps ever.
Raiola, checking in at 6-foot-3, 230 pounds, is the son of former Nebraska Rimington Trophy winner and NFL player Dominic Raiola. He was ranked as the No. 2 quarterback in the 2024 class and the No. 7 overall player in the nation, by 247Sports.
Dylan Raiola projects to be a stud, and for a time he was committed to play for Georgia. Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule and his staff were able to secure a last-minute flip, though, and now Raiola heads into the 2024 season with all eyes on him.
He will have competition in the quarterback room, but most — if not all — Nebraska fans certainly want to see Raiola play early and often.
For what it’s worth, per his head coach, the former five-star recruit does seem to be living up to the hype as the Huskers prepare for the 2024 season.
“He was born to play quarterback,” Rhule said at Big Ten media days, according to On3’s Griffin McVeigh. “He has the arm talent but the game makes sense to him. A lot of players, they can operate systems. Dylan is playing football. He understands the game. His Dad, obviously, 14 years in the NFL, he understands the O-line side.”
It’s not just the natural talent and understanding of the game, though.
Raiola is without a doubt already a star in Lincoln, and he’ll be one of the most talked-about people in the city, if not in the whole state of Nebraska, but he hasn’t let the hype get to his head.
“I love the fact that he’s this big recruit, he came in — he just worked,” Rhule said. “He did the mat drills. He didn’t have a lot of opinions. He just worked and earned the player’s respect. He has a lot of work to do, college football is hard. But I know this. He’s going to be there at 6:00 in the morning and he’s going to be there at 5:00 at night. Players respect that.”
Raiola has the talent and respect. Now we’ll have to see if he can earn the starting job.