Do you think Nebraska lost to Illinois because of Dylan Raiola? His three touchdowns, a disappointing interception, and a missed touchdown pass could be why they got defeated. However, head coach Matt Rhule does not think of it that way. “I thought Dylan was superb in many, many ways tonight,” he remarked. Despite the game-ending interception, Rhule encouraged Raiola and highlighted his ability to make impressive throws. In a recent media appearance, Raiola opened up about preparing for Nebraska’s next game against Purdue.

Recently, the former five-star prospect talked about Nebraska’s Friday game against Illinois, including his blunders. When a media person asked him about the takeaways from how overtime plays out, he replied during the media appearance, “Yeah, there’s this second play. Just dismiss and something to learn from, obviously, first overtime, and that’s not an excuse. We got to make plays.” Although it is his debut college football season and his first time playing in overtime, he can’t give that excuse. They are here to win games.

Moving forward, Raiola addressing their loss said, “We’ll have another game, hopefully not anytime soon, but you know, we’ll be ready for the next one.” Raiola is referring to their next college football game against Purdue, which is scheduled for Saturday, September 28. If we delete Raiola’s last game disasters, he has played quite impressively through the last three games before Illinois.

Besides, let’s learn how Nebraska played last week against Illinois.

Dylan Raiola’s performance in Nebraska’s loss to Illinois

Dylan Raiola had quite the up-and-down game in their 31-24 overtime defeat in Illinois Friday night. Raiola put up 297 yards and completed 24 of 3 passes. These points could have been enough to seal the deal, but things didn’t work out for Nebraska because of Raiola and his fellow mates, who missed a few opportunities.

The Huskers started slow, falling behind 7-3 towards the end of the first quarter. But when Illinois grabbed the pigskin, it was a shocker for Nebraska. Mainly Raiola, hitting Isaiah Neynor for a six-yard threw a pick in the end zone that was the end for Nebraska. However, before halftime, Raiola connected with Neynor, putting Nebraska ahead 17-10 at halftime.

Coming to the second half, things got messed up. Raiola got loose in the pocket and fumbled twice, although Nebraska recovered both. We can make our minds think he’s a freshman, but it should get improved. Nebraska struggled to find the end zone and secured just another touchdown in the second half. Whatever the reason, that game highlighted Raiola’s raw talent while also highlighting his flaws; he has a long way to go.