Dylan Raiola might add a heck of dollars to his pocket if he had chosen to move on from Nebraska amidst the crazy transfer portal swing. But the dual-threat quarterback makes a point of sticking to his loyalty to coach Rhule and the Huskers. He didn’t just lead the team from the frontline in a 6-6 season; he is actively sliding through the portals and playing a pivotal role in getting more names signed at Lincoln. Being faithful and emotional for one’s childhood bigwig school is normal, but giving up on a massive $12 million? No matter how you choose to view it, it is a crime to instill any more demurral in Raiola’s love and passion for Nebraska football.

It’s okay, but the question is, does it make any real sense if you turf out the longing? Well, analyst Wilson Ditman has some serious food for thought.

Dylan Raiola’s future seems to be in serious jeopardy amidst the offensive line crunch

The Huskers’ offense didn’t fare that well this season, but Dylan Raiola did his part. Despite the repeated blame of overriding Ryan Williams and a couple of bad plays, the Hawaii native had his share of freshman moments that are hard to ignore in a storied resume. Raiola capped off the year with a record of the most yards passing among all the true freshmen in program’s history. Now, he chooses to stretch the legacy for one more year. Dittman believes the Husker’s sloppy transfer portal move might get in his way of writing a blockbuster 2025.

No, just take it slow. We are not saying that Rhule isn’t a pro on the recruiting front; He is. Ever since the portal opened, the veteran coach marked a climax by swooping in a hoard of new faces for the approaching year roster. But, the weightage is not balanced. The Huskers didn’t sign a single man on the Offensive line, something that might backfire on Dylan Raiola’s best potential.

‘‘You have some problems here again. You lost a couple of seniors. You have Teddy Prochazka, you know, at that right Tackle spot, who’s never stayed healthy in his entire career. He’s had four season-ending injuries at this point. You have Turner Corcoran at that left guard spot who’s really been a disappointment going into his sixth season. You have a lot of younger players there, and then you look at the depth for Nebraska on this offensive line, unproven guy after unproven guy,” Dittman noted on his podcast.

In the portal, the program is visibly struggling with landing an O lineman, and the coaching crew isn’t unaware of it. New OC Dana Holgorsen confessed the dilemma in his recent interview. He mentioned they felt a deep need in the O-line after Keagen Trost left for the Tigers. Even with Trost being there, the O-line didn’t protect the quarterback well enough. Across the season, Raiola was sacked 27 times- that’s over two sacks per game. ”You know, we just got to add on to the equation that we have, you know, the quarterback who’s a five star, in Dylan Raiola going into his second year, you need to protect him, you need to have a good offensive line,” Dittman highlighted.

So rightly articulated! Rhule did a lot to reward

Raiola’s loyalty. He is eyeing Dane Key, whom the Huskers’ QB1 recently followed on social media. But he forgets to build a safety net for his man for the next season. However, despite the lackluster offensive strategy, coach Rhule set the bar higher for the standout freshman QB.

Matt Rhule put Raiola on a pedestal amidst the transfer portal buzz 

Dylan Raiola finished 2024 with 2,823 yards on 276-of-411 (67.2%) passing with 13 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Not a bad stat, but Rhule needs him to be happy and content with another year at NU. He recently enlightened Raiola about the nuanced reality of the NFL and the transfer portal. He asked him to look at the premium NFL players like Patrick Mahomes, his celebrated idol, who has to clinch a win for his team at every game. This is the responsibility he had for Texas Tech, no matter what.

If Dylan plans to spend a couple of years on a better team than Nebraska and manage to be drafted by the worst team in the NFL, he will have every game on his back. The less chance to grow as an individual athlete!

However, Rhule thinks when Dylan Raiola pulls the ball, the team has zero doubt about what he is going to do next because he has the ability to steer the team to a sure shot win no matter what. This is a quality Nebraska coach who wants wholeheartedly in his quarterbacks.

But again, the offensive lineman issues can make it difficult for the Huskers’ go-to guy to mount wins anymore. Rhule should sit, think, and take some immediate steps!