Dylan Raiola admits he grew up not liking football

When Dylan Raiola showed up to Nebraska‘s camp this week, he immediately drew comparisons to Patrick Mahomes for his look.

The hair cut, the small black goatee, the shades. He had the look down pat, leading many to draw the comparison with the three-time Super Bowl champ.

But in discussing the comparison on Friday at fall camp, Raiola actually made a surprising admission.

“I think a lot of people think I try to be just like him, but honestly I grew up, I played baseball,” Raiola said. “I never liked football. As a kid I always wore glasses. I’ve had this haircut since sixth, seventh grade maybe and I didn’t really know about Mahomes then. I have my own little kick to it, so it’s not completely like him. But I guess if that’s what people want to say, I mean that guy’s one of the best. So it’s cool.”

It’s not every day you find a former five-star prospect admitting he didn’t even really like football growing up. Whatever the case, Dylan Raiola certainly seems into it now, much to Nebraska’s benefit.

He’ll be in the mix to win the starting job at some point this season, though he’s got some veteran competition for the gig in Heinrich Haarberg.

Still, if there’s a Mahomes waiting in the wings, you have to figure the Cornhuskers will try to play him sooner than later. As for the comparisons, Dylan Raiola didn’t seem overly enamored with them.

“I just try to mimic my game after myself,” Raiola said. “But it also, if you’re trying to get to where you want to get to, you have to see and know what it takes to get there. And I think he’s done more than enough to see what it takes. So it’s just learning and learning football. But yeah, just try to do my thing and the hair I guess looks like him.”

Like he said, Raiola has his own little flair to the hair style. He’s got a lightning-bolt looking figure trimmed into the left side.

Now, as fall camp continues, the Cornhuskers will wait to see just how big a spark Raiola can provide this season. If his recruiting ranking is any indication, it could be a big one.

Prior to enrolling at Nebraska, Dylan Raoila was ranked as a five-star prospect and the No. 21 overall recruit in the 2024 recruiting class. he checked in as the No. 2 quarterback in the class and the No. 2 overall player from the state of Georgia, hailing from Buford (GA) Buford.