Past Blunders Return to Haunt Dylan Raiola in Alarming Nebraska Verdict Amid Matt Rhule’s Urgent Damage Control

2025 will be a redemption year for quite a few names. And among them is Nebraska’s 2nd-year QB1, Dylan Raiola. Patrick Mahomes’ similarities and comparisons aside, the QB has put in work to do better than 2024. He had 2,819 yards and 13 TDs in 2024—for a freshman season, those numbers are beyond great. And because it was his freshman season, experts have allowed his 11 INTs to slide. This year, Raiola cannot afford a repeat of the last. More so because with a year-two Raiola in the mix, Matt Rhule is slated to publish 10 wins this season. Andy Staples explained his danger zones for this year, where he can tend to face his ghosts from the past.

“Chasing perfection,” Raiola once wrote on his social media. He is following the mentality of one of the greatest sporting legends as he returns as a team leader this season. Rhule said after spring practice, “He [Raiola] is ten steps ahead of where he was, and where he was pretty cool.” Last year, producing all those numbers wasn’t enough for the QB. He also set freshman records in passing yards and completion percentage (67.1%). This year, he’s also naturally accepting his value as a returning offensive player and is now the face of a rejuvenated Nebraska program.

But for Raiola and Co. to do better than last year, On3’s Andy Staples pointed out some key areas for the QB to stay wary of. He said in a May 16 episode of HuskerOnline, “The biggest jumps tend to come between year one as a starter and year two as a starter for quarterbacks,” he noted. But Raiola can have some hope in the offense around him. But they might not be much help to the QB.

“I’m thinking about Dane Key. Like, Dane Key is a guy that, at Kentucky, you thought, ‘Okay, this guy’s all, you know, all set to break out.’ And they could never get him the ball. If Raiola can get Dane Key the ball, how good is that relationship going to be?”

Staples also pointed out where Raiola altered. “Raiola last year, as the schedule got harder, he got worse,” he said. The QB suffered three straight losses against Indiana, OSU, UCLA, and USC. But he was not all to blame for the Huskers’ flailing to make a mark in the first half.

“They did change offenses in the middle of the year last year,” he also pointed out. Marcus Satterfield left in the middle of the season, and then Rhule hired Dana Holgorsen to lead the offense. “[Can Dana] Holgorsen make it a more QB-friendly offense that helps him be better?”

“The last game where he averaged over eight yards per attempt was the Purdue game. That was September 28th. Everything after that was pretty tough sledding,” Staples highlighted further. But he’s also got great potential to do better than before, and is more than capable of putting forward a better show in 2025. “He has the raw materials to do it. So, we need to see how he handle pressure? Is he better this year than he was last year under pressure? Can he get the ball out? Can he get the ball out on time? If he can do all those things, then Nebraska will be better,” Andy declared.

Like how Billy Napier’s fate is tied to that of DJ Lagway, so is Matt Rhule’s to Dylan Raiola. The success of 2025 will be the baseline for 2026. And to keep the wheels oiled, Rhule is taking things to the next level for the 2026 season.

Dylan Raiola fears aside, Matt Rhule is focusing to fix his future rosters

Most HCs in college football are one of three kinds. One, either the stick to in-campus visit and focus on local talent. The other, however, is hell-bent on not traveling elsewhere during recruiting. But this time, Rhule sees no borders between him and his latest targets of the class. In fact, the HC is going all the way to Europe to secure his latest target of the 2026 class.

His name is Valdin Sone, and he is all the way back in Sweden. On3’s Charles Power said, “Sone was the only defensive lineman we saw notch a win against Oklahoma offensive tackle signee Ryan Fodje in 1-on-1’s during the morning. Sone put Fodje on the ground with a vicious swim move. We later saw the Sweden native make some plays on the interior in the joint practice.” Power noted. Rhule is competing against Florida, USC, and Texas to land the spot. That’s why Rhule is putting his best man to work: Terry Bradden.

Sone is yet to announce any official visits to Nebraska, and On3 shows just a 1.4% chance of Rhule being able to land his commitment. This comes after Rhule might be losing players CJ Bronaugh and Dveyoun Bonwell-Witte to other programs. Can Rhule land this star candidate and also hope that Dylan Raiola pulls off an impressive?

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