Cornhuskers’ downfall is going to be studied for generations to come. When Matt Rhule dropped his freshman QB Dylan Raiola on this turf when the season started off, this guy won everyone’s heart. Started the season with a 40-7 bomb against UTEP and Raiola went 238 yards with 2 touchdowns under his belt. The highlight reel of his 2024 career would be the Buffs game where this guy was making throws without a care in the world and succeeding as well. So, after 3 back-to-back wins against UTEP, Buffs, and Panthers, you’d think that this team would nail its way to the playoffs, right? So, tell us why the Huskers are 5-4 right now and why Dylan Raiola is not the same guy we saw when the season started.

Well, Reddit has a theory. Back on the r/Huskers subreddit, one person raised a theory that Raiola might be playing hurt. “The decline in his play is clear. We all see the lack of confidence in the pocket, lack of decision making with downfield throws, almost inexplicable loss of arm strength & accuracy (on deep throws especially). I think he’s hurt but the staff collectively thinks his 75% is still better than Haarberg,” the Reddit user mentioned. See, the decline started after the Illini showdown. Dude went 3 touchdowns and allowed 1 interception during that game. While the Husker did lose as Illinois powered through with 31-24 on the board, Raiola’s completion rate had taken a hit.

This guy started his first 3 games with an average completion rate of around 70+%. Against Illinois, it was 68% and then it went on a straight decline. Huskers won against Purdue next, but that Raiola wasn’t there. Dude went for 16 pass completions only out of 26 on the board. And his completion was down to 63%. “He was standing in and delivering downfield throws with defenders in his face vs Colorado. Smoothly side-stepping to extend plays and make great throws on the run. I just don’t think that vanished into thin air,” the Reddit user raised another fair point.

After Purdue, it was all downhill. The win against the Scarlet Knights was just a mercy victory. Watching that game felt like watching a hollow version of the team’s former self. Raiola managed to only land 13 passes out of 27 attempts, with 2024 career lowest completion of 48%.

And then comes the 3 losing streak. Curt Cignetti and Co. easily managed to dismantle what some would call one of the best defenses in the country. He-k Huskers’ defense barely allows anyone to cross past 25 points, but the Hoosiers went for 56 points on the board. Raiola was terrible during that showdown. 3 total interceptions, which allowed Indiana to easily turnover the game. So, is the theory true? Is Matt Rhule and Co. trying to hide something?

Dylan Raiola’s fall-off; secret injury or something else?

“The accuracy is so far gone the last few games. The quick slants, the zone breaks in the middle, some of the over the top screens, and literally almost every long pass along the outside. It’s as if he’s lost strength, which in turn says he has an inner shoulder injury (ligaments) causing that,” was something one Reddit user pointed out. It could be true. His completion rate alone says that this guy is lacking the same energy he had at the start of the season. Now this could easily be justified by the fact that he is still a freshman. There is a learning curve, but the problem is that Raiola has adapted to it quite well. Check the Buffs game. Dude was going toe to toe with one of the best WRs and QBs in CFB.

Another Reddit user presented a different perspective. “Coaching staff decided to not bring in an experienced guy and to play Raiola. From their perspective, to me it doesn’t matter even if he is hurt. All the marbles were placed on him this season, so how he performs is how the staff will be praised or criticized. After all the injuries last year in the QB room, I’m still baffled we didn’t bring in someone else,” they mentioned. Rhule should’ve kept a more experienced QB as the starting QB for the team. Raiola would’ve made an amazing backup quarterback. To put this much pressure on the freshman has its downsides. Not only that, even Rhule, as an HC, has failed to teach Raiola multiple things. This is something Mike Schaefer had mentioned.

“FWIW I was guessing he has an ankle injury or something bc it seems like he can’t set and push off his back foot lately, but I’m also a moron so,” was what another Reddit user mentioned. Currently, we have no idea what is going on. What we do know is that Raiola suffered a back injury during the Buckeyes game and that could be lethal for the rest of the season for him and Rhule.

Following the ankle injury part, another user added, “He has been. He hurt his ankle against Illinois and I don’t know why nobody has talked about it at all.” This was something that was skipped over by almost everyone. There are little to no comments on this incident and it was shrugged off as a minor hiccup in the grand scheme of things. However, the downfall also started after the Illini game, so the theory kind of checks out.

Finally, a user added, “I also think he is hurt. Shoulder or collar bone. But he is also in his head.” Raiola has been taking major drops in his passes and adding avoidable interceptions. This kind of makes zero sense because his early season tape shows him making confident throws and runs. For now, we can say that the Huskers playoff dream is out of the question. Raiola needs some time off, and maybe Rhule will decide to sit him out for the rest of the season.

While that drama continues, why don’t you guys tune into the latest episode from EssentiallySports Think Tank to learn how Emily and Erin Griffin are changing the NFL global game?