LINCOLN, Neb. – Nebraska is back in the recruiting race for Dylan Raiola.
The five-star quarterback from Buford, Ga., and former No. 1 nationally ranked recruit in the 2024 class is reaching out to the Huskers about a potential switch to Nebraska, according to sources close to recruits committed to the school.
His father, Dominic, was an All-American center at Nebraska and his career ended in 2000 before playing 14 seasons with the Detroit Lions. Donovan, Dominic’s brother and Dylan’s uncle, is scheduled to enter his third season in 2024 as Nebraska’s offensive line coach. He was the only full-time assistant new coach Matt Rhule retained last year.
Dramatic story
Raiola, a 6-foot-3, 230-pound senior, spent more than a year as the consensus No. 1 player in the class of 2024. He emerged as a top prospect after his freshman year in Burleson, Texas. Raiola played at Chandler (Arizona) High School as a junior. He transferred to Pinnacle High in Phoenix early this year and transferred to Buford after committing to the Bulldogs.
Raiola threw for 2,666 yards with 34 touchdowns and one interception as a senior, completing 63.2 percent of his throws. He is viewed as a potential player, having benefited from mentorship by several of his father’s former quarterbacks, including Matthew Stafford. Raiola has been linked this year with Jeff Christensen, Patrick Mahomes’ personal trainer.
The QB visited Nebraska six times between June 2021 and March 2023. He is familiar with Rhule, who sent nine assistant coaches in January to see Raiola in Arizona on the last day coaches were allowed on the road during a call-in period.
Raiola is scheduled to return to the Lincoln campus for an official visit this weekend On the count of 3.
Nebraska’s confidence is in Raiola’s heart
It appears the Huskers wouldn’t notify recruits of their renewed involvement with Raiola unless they felt good about their chances of signing him. On Monday as news spread about Raiola, Nebraska hosted quarterback Kyle McCord for a visit. McCord, who is in Ohio State’s online portal, has one year of eligibility remaining.
Raiola’s addition to the 2024 class likely won’t affect McCord. If both choose Nebraska, McCord and Raiola would arrive next month, with McCord in the starting lineup and Raiola serving as a backup for one season. — Mitch Sherman, Nebraska football writer
What the addition of Raiola will mean for the Huskers’ recruiting class
It would be a huge boost for Rhule to land a QB position like Raiola. And Raiola is not just a five-star midfielder. He considers Nebraska home even though he has never lived in the state. The Huskers’ current 2025 class commits include top-100 prospect Carter Nelson, a tight end from Ainsworth, Nebraska, and offensive lineman Grant Breaks from Logan, Iowa.
The recruit most affected by Raiola’s resurgence, quarterback Daniel Kaelin out of Bellevue (Neb.) Western, was scheduled to visit with Nebraska offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield on Monday night. Kaelin flipped from Missouri to Nebraska in the days after Raiola committed to Georgia.
Kaylen was instrumental in helping the Huskers put together a June surge that produced the majority of the class — including his high school teammates, wide receivers Isaiah McMorris and Dae’vonn Hall. -Sherman
What does this mean for Georgia?
This would be a stunning and late turn of events, given that Raiola’s commitment seemed firm enough that he moved halfway across the country to play his senior year about an hour away from Athens. And indications were that as of Monday night, Georgia was hoping to influence Raiola to still sign with the Bulldogs next week.
But the Bulldogs have another quarterback committed to this class: Ryan Puglisi, a four-star prospect from Connecticut who announced he would join Georgia in October 2022 and stuck around even as Georgia chased down Raiola and landed. And if Carson Beck returns for his senior year, the Bulldogs could use him as a bridge to Puglisi, current redshirt freshman Gunner Stockton or whoever else they add through the portal or high school recruiting.
Best way to sum it up: Georgia would rather stick with Raiola, but that would help Nebraska more than it would hurt Georgia. — Seth Emerson, Georgia football writer
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(Photo: Jeff Hanisch/USA Today)
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