Matt Rhule explains keeping Donovan Raiola on Nebraska staff

New Nebraska head coach decided to keep Donovan Raiola on staff as the offensive line coach following his first year in 2022. Raiola coached under Scott Frost and interim head coach Mickey Joseph this fall.

“Donovan was trained by … the brother in law of Pat Flaherty, who I worked for the Giants as the assistant line coach,” Rhule said. “And so when you get into O-line play, there’s three base philosophies and they’re very different. It’s like the difference between driving on the right side and left side of the road and they’re all great …

“I don’t want an O-line coach that’s over here because I deeply care about what the offensive line looks like.” 

Raiola, since he was a holdover from the previous coaching regime, kept showing up to work. That definitely appealed to Rhule keeping him on staff.

“And we interviewed several candidates, and we talked to several guys and to Donovan’s credit, we interviewed him, I said, Hey, I’ll let you know,” Rhule said. “He showed up every day to work. He worked. He just kept being there. You know, half of life is just showing up. 

“And I kind of liked his vibe and I liked his energy but most importantly to me, he had been trained in the same system that I’m trained in. I want us to play that way. And so it was just a natural fit. He’s a great, great guy, got a chance to meet his wife, wonderful family and we’re excited.”

There could also be a family factor at play. Raiola’s nephew, Dylan Raiola, recently decommitted from Ohio State and has to decide on a new school. According to the latest On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine, Raiola’s chances of going to Nebraska are set at 22.6%, while still at 73.9% to Ohio State.

As a member of the Class of 2024, Raiola is a five-star prospect out of Chandler (Ari.) High, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He is the No. 1 overall prospect in the class per the Consensus and On3 recruiting rankings.

“Ohio State is the best program for me to be successful,” Raiola told On3 Director of Recruiting Chad Simmons after he committed. “They are very transparent. The coaches are going to take care of me. The brotherhood is tight. The academics there are great. Everyone is strong there and for one another.”