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Dylan Raiola (QB Nebraska)

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www.espn.com

Family ties, Patrick Mahomes comps (kind of) and the true freshman QB Nebraska has been waiting for

Following in his father's footsteps with the Cornhuskers, the highly touted phenom is looking for a signature win in only his second career start this weekend.
www.espn.com www.espn.com

Freshman QB phenom Dylan Raiola followed family to Nebraska​

n his first college game at Nebraska, Dylan Raiola led the way.

He walked through the bright lights, strobes and smoke and stared straight ahead as his teammates followed. His path was lined with fans clutching their phones to capture something special. He nodded his head and raised his right hand, gesturing to say bring it on.

Nebraska's freshman phenom quarterback was out in front for the first Tunnel Walk of the season onto the Memorial Stadium turf, offering promise of a more thrilling future for the program.

Dominic Raiola, Dylan's father and a former Cornhusker himself, was overwhelmed. From the team's unity walk through campus to pregame warmups to the sheer number of fans in his son's No. 15 jersey, it brought Dominic back to 1998, reliving all his firsts inside this historic stadium.

"I know it's more than 25 years later, but man, it's so cool that he gets to experience this and make it his own," Dominic told ESPN. "It's a freaking special place, man. It's not like everywhere else."

His son took the field against UTEP and showed the world what Nebraska coaches and players have seen from the five-star signee since January: elite arm talent, excellent poise, extreme potential. Raiola threw for 238 yards and two memorable touchdowns while calmly guiding his team to a 40-7 rout. Wide receiver Jahmal Banks said Raiola's "killer mentality" was on full display in his debut.

"He's been having that in his eyes since he got on campus," Banks said. "Like, 'I'm humble, but I'm him.'"

In an era in which 80 college football teams found their quarterbacks in the transfer portal, Raiola was the lone true freshman starting QB for a Power 4 team in Week 1. The 19-year-old doesn't look, act or play like one. He's a 6-foot-3, 230-pound passer with rare gifts, an uncommon work ethic and all of the pedigree as the son of a Husker Hall of Famer and NFL great. He's been drawing comparisons to Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes on social media for months. This Saturday, against Hall of Famer Deion Sanders and Colorado (7:30 p.m. ET), he plans to show he wasn't just raised for this. Dylan Raiola believes it's in his blood.

"It was always tugging at my heart," he said on signing day.

He could've been the next great at Ohio State. He fell in love with Georgia's powerhouse program. But in the end, Raiola surprised even his own family by choosing to help coach Matt Rhule lead a revival at Nebraska. Kids his age weren't alive for the days of Husker dominance. The five-time national champs haven't won a conference title in his lifetime, haven't gone to a bowl game since 2016.

Raiola chose to buy into a bold vision. He believed in himself enough to go where he could make the greatest impact. You could already see it on Saturday.

"I think it finally hit him: 'I'm here,'" Dominic Raiola said. "He told me something cool about walking out of the Tunnel Walk. He said he told himself, 'It's time for a new era of Nebraska football.'"

BEFORE THE CHAOS kicked in, the Raiolas huddled together on the Memorial Stadium sideline for their pregame ritual. Dylan held his helmet in his left hand and ducked his head in as his mother led the family in prayer. Yvonne, Dominic, Taylor, Dylan and Dayton were finally together again.

Mom started this tradition for Dylan's high school games and Taylor's volleyball matches. But here they were, arm in arm, in front of more than 86,000 inside a venue steeped in familial legacy.

Dominic's name and number are on the walls of this 100-year-old stadium, just below the scoreboard alongside all-time greats Will Shields, Grant Wistrom and Eric Crouch. He took immense pride in playing for Nebraska, arriving from Hawaii during the program's heyday and devoting himself to maintaining the standard of excellence.

Dominic battled and scuffled with Wistrom and Jason Peter as a young lineman and put in the work to become the Huskers' center as a redshirt freshman, a rarity in its venerated "Pipeline" era. Raiola made a name for himself as a two-year starter and consensus All-American with his fiery intensity and a school record 140 pancake blocks in 1999. Legendary Nebraska offensive line coach Milt Tenopir called him the finest center he coached in his 29-year tenure.

He agonized over his decision to enter the draft after the 2000 season. Dominic didn't know if he was ready to leave a program that had done so much for him, but he was ready to be a pro. The second-round pick found a new home in Detroit, spending his entire 14-year career with the Lions and starting a franchise record 203 games.

Dylan was born in 2005 and grew up around that NFL locker room, running around playing with Matthew Stafford, Calvin Johnson and so many welcoming teammates. Dominic got calls and texts from plenty of them over the weekend. He knows that environment showed his son what was possible.

In their household, faith and family came before football. "Family is everything for us," said Nebraska offensive line coach Donovan Raiola, Dylan's uncle. The extended Raiola clan is a tight-knit unit, their support for one another unyielding. Dominic likens the loyalty and brotherhood ingrained in their family heritage to the line from "Lilo & Stitch": Ohana means family, and family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten. When he talks about the Nebraska legacy his son is continuing, it's never been just about himself.

"When you wear your name on the back of your jersey and walk around town, your last name represents a lot of people, not just yourself," Dominic said. "My name's in the stadium, but that ain't just my name. It represents a lot. You are carrying the torch of a lot of people, wearing a coat with a lot of names on your back."

But Dylan grew up watching sports as a kid, not Disney movies. Taylor, the oldest, played volleyball at TCU and is now working in Nebraska's recruiting department. Dylan always preferred baseball growing up and played travel ball before embracing football in high school. Dayton is up next, starting at quarterback for Buford High School in Georgia as a junior. The kids spent much of their childhood together on courts and fields.

When he got into high school, Dylan started working with health and performance trainer Bobby Stroupe and quarterback trainer Jeff Christensen. One trait that was easy to see from the start? Raiola was blessed with a "cannon," as Stroupe put it, and an uncommon range of motion in his shoulder blade.

"That kind of stuff is handed out by God most of the time," Stroupe said.

In that way, the Mahomes comparisons are undeniable, even if Dylan pushes back on them at times. They've met through their time spent training with Stroupe and Christensen and are friendly. Mahomes calls him "cuzzo" and has been supportive from the start. Dylan says he wears 15 as a tribute to Tim Tebow, but the Mahomes inspirations in his game and style easily stand out to any observer. Like the Chiefs superstar, Raiola can extend plays, throw against the grain and complete off-platform passes others cannot.

He flashed it in the first quarter against UTEP, converting on a third-and-11 by side-arming a dart in a tight window to receiver Isaiah Neyor for a 16-yard gain. It was the kind of conversion Mahomes has delivered time and time again and evoked instant comps to the three-time Super Bowl champ.

"He was like a freakin' surgeon," Nebraska offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield said of Dylan. "It was amazing to see him and his maturity way beyond his years."

"Everyone looks at him like a freshman," Donovan Raiola added. "But I don't."
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I mean, it's where he should have ended up in the first place. It's all the bullshit he did in between that makes him a fuck. He was over rated but is still a good ball player. If he just kept his head down and avoided all the BS, most of the country would probably love the kid now. Too late for most of us though.

I do think he wipes his ass with The Buffalo Defense tonight and the game is higher scoring than most think. 40-30 Nebraska wouldn't surprise me at all.
 
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