5-star QB Dylan Raiola signs with Nebraska: 'I don't think anyone could have predicted this'

Nebraska swiped the headlines ahead of Early National Signing Day, as rumors began swirling around the Cornhuskers flipping Buford (Ga.) five-star quarterback Dylan Raiola from Georgia.

On Dec. 18, Raiola indeed announced that he was headed to Lincoln. The son of former Husker Dominic Raiola has since signed his National Letter of Intent, capping off a monumental recruiting win for Matt Rhule.

“Well, I think anytime that you feel good about the guy you bring in at quarterback, it’s special,” Rhule said on Big Ten Network. “Obviously, for us, even this year, you know, we know we’re gonna play great defense. So to have a guy behind center that we believe in, we know we can win championship games. I think it means a lot. And probably on a more macro level like to have one of the best players in the country choose Nebraska, maybe signals to people that hey, there’s something special happening here.”

It’s not as if Raiola was linked to the Huskers out of thin air. Not only is he a legacy recruit, but his uncle is currently on Rhule’s staff. Nebraska has always been in Raiola’s life.

Even still, there was never a consistent rumor of him flipping from UGA. However, it took just a couple of hours on Dec. 11 for smoke to emerge — then engulf. From then on, it was announced that Raiola was taking an official visit to Lincoln, which really got the rumor mill going.

“I don’t think anyone could have predicted this, even a week or two weeks ago,” Nebraska insider Sean Callahan said on The Inside Scoop. “Dylan Raiola has been a household name in this state since his freshman year of high school, ever since he earned his offer, but it just never happened for whatever reason.

“Obviously a lot of it had to do with where Nebraska was at as a program, but there was something about this place for Dylan Raiola that is special to him and his family, his uncle’s the offensive line coach, I think all of those factors led to what happened.”

Family wasn’t only factor in Raiola’s decision

Yes, the chance to follow family footsteps helped make Nebraska look like an appealing option, but the Huskers hope to more than a family heirloom. Raiola could be the QB to help bring the program back to the national relevance that it’s so badly desiring. The opportunity to see the field in Lincoln is likely coming a lot quicker than it would in Athens, as well.

“And let’s be honest; I think the opportunity to win the job here — which is probably not on the table right now at Georgia with Carson Beck returning — I think that too was a pretty big piece,” Callahan said.

Raiola now headlines Nebraska’s 2204 recruiting class — which ranks No. 22 in the nation and No. 6 in the Big Ten, according to the On3 Industry Team Recruiting Rankings. He’s one of three top-100 prospects signed to the Huskers, alongside Ainsworth (Neb.) four-star TE Carter Nelson and Logan (Iowa) Magnolia four-star IOL Grant Brix.

Raiola has an On3 NIL Valuation of $727K. The On3 NIL Valuation is the industry’s leading index that sets high school and college athletes’ projected annual value (PAV). The NIL valuation does not act as a tracker of the value of NIL deals an athlete has completed to date. It rather signifies an athlete’s value at a certain moment in time.