If anyone other than the Buffs QB Shedeur Sanders had given rise to craze before the 2024 kickoff, it was Nebraska Cornhusker’s QB Dylan Raiola. Matt Rhule’s weapon had been no less than a sensation, particularly after his Patrick Mahomes clone hype. But not anymore, since the QB now becomes an easy target for CFB attacks.

Just when the Huskers were planning a crowning ceremony for Raiola, they got hit by a massive blow. On September 20, they got crushed by the Illinois Fighting Illini in a 24-31 disastrous feat. The Nebraska fans might have forgotten the loss if Raiola had performed well. But poor them! The QB’s lagging performance further added to their woes. Amidst the glooms, Raiola finally got a happy moment.

All eyes were on Raiola when the No. 24 Illinois Fighting Illini hit the gridiron against the No. 22 Nebraska Cornhuskers. The Huskers star freshman was probably soaring high with confidence after taking revenge on Shedeur and the Buffs. While he thought of giving Illinois a hard time, fate had other plans. As the final score left them traumatized, fans could not believe that it was the same Raiola who came up with back-to-back mistakes. Analyst Josh Pate on his podcast hinted at the QB falling prey to situations he had never faced before, “Dylan Raiola just got put in a lot of first situations and that’s what you do with a young quarterback.”

And how did the QB faltered? Well, the list is pretty long. For a 19-year-old, it’s already a lot of pressure, but Raiola made every attempt to give his best. Things took an ugly turn when his namesake and Illinois linebacker Dylan Rosiek treated him like an easy target and sacked him.  

During the fourth quarter, he had the chance to flip the narrative but missed a wide-open tight end in the end zone on third down leaving the Huskers to lose in overtime. But it wasn’t Raiola’s fault entirely. His luck also played a major role. When the Huskers tight end Luke Lindenmeyer broke free behind the defense, the QB tried his hands to lift the pass only to be let down by backup kicker John Hohl who missed the chance. Not just his players, even HC Rhule had a big role to play behind the loss. 

Dylan Raiola will now have family ties in Nebraska

Maybe the Nebraska HC got too carried away with the Patrick Mahomes-Dylan Raiola hype. So much so that the burden became overwhelming for a 19-year-old to carry. Instead of giving his QB a breather, he kept on throwing back-to-back timeouts without any motivation. But Raiola has already moved past his failure it seems. In a post-game interview, the QB shared, “Let this one hurt for a day or two and move on from it.” After all, he has enough reasons to focus on the future.

It’s time for Nebraska to add another Raiola to their roster. The 6-foot-1, 205-pound junior, Dayton Raiola, Dylan Raiola’s brother has announced his commitment to Matt Rhule’s army on Sunday, September 22 night for the 2026 class. Not many know it was Dayton who replaced his brother as the starting quarterback at Georgia’s Buford High School and led the Wolves to a 4-1 start this fall. 

Even before Dylan Raiola and Dayton Raiola, it was their father Dominic who played for Nebraska between 1997 and 2000 before making his way to the NFL where he played for the Detroit Lions for 14 long seasons. Well, Huskers fans better buckle up for the Raiola fever!

Like the nitty-gritty of college football, if NIL and NFL excite you, why don’t you go and watch the latest episode of the Think Tank podcast with Dawg Sanders?