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When five-star quarterback recruit Dylan Raiola flipped his commitment pledge from SEC powerhouse Georgia to Nebraska back in December of 2023, Husker Nation rejoiced. After two seasons of less-than-stellar quarterback play, Nebraska Head Coach Matt Rhule finally had a trigger man to run his offense without turning the ball over on what seemed like every other possession. A return to the glory days was on the horizon!
In two seasons with the Big Red, Raiola elevated Nebraska to consecutive bowl game appearances for the first time in over a decade. His play wasn’t all-Big Ten worthy, but it was a significant upgrade from the days of Jeff Sims, Chubba Purdy and Heinrich Haarberg. With his best days still ahead, it was clear that Raiola, a pro-style drop back passer QB, was…and is…destined for the NFL. But was he the best fit for what Rhule wanted to do?
Now that Raiola has left the program and will play his junior season at Big Ten rival Oregon, the question is being asked out loud: Is Nebraska better off without Raiola?
When Rhule first arrived at Nebraska in December of 2022, one of his first moves was to secure the services of the former Georgia Tech QB, Sims. Sims was a classic dual threat guy, and not a pocket passer. The fact that Sims didn’t work out in Lincoln isn’t really the point. The point is, Rhule wanted a quarterback that could participate in the run game.
He got Raiola a season later, and the QB run game plan flew out the window. Mobility isn’t Raiola’s best thing.
Midway through the 2024 season, Rhule brought in veteran coach Dana Holgorsen as an offensive assistant and eventually offensive coordinator. Holgorsen’s offenses at his previous coaching stops almost always featured a dual threat QB, too. Instead, he had to adapt to true freshman Raiola’s style when designing a game plan.
Now, with returnee T J Lateef being joined in the QB room by former Husker and Virginia Caviler Daniel Kaelin and former UNLV star Anthony Colandrea, it’s crystal clear that Rhule and Holgorsen are returning to what had always been Plan A: Having a signal caller who could hurt offenses with his feet as well as his arm.
Whether or not things will work better for the Big Red offense moving forward remains to be seen. But if history is a guide, better days could be ahead.
Flash back to the Tom Osborne Era at Nebraska. When the future Hall of Famer took over for Bob Devaney – on the heels of consecutive national titles in 1970 and ’71 – Osborne inherited future NFL drop back passer David Humm has his QB. The Huskers were very good…but couldn’t get past Oklahoma and their triple option attack. When Humm graduated, another future NFL QB, Vince Ferragamo took over and Nebraska remained really good…Top Ten finishes every year…but they couldn’t beat OU and their sensational QB run game.
Things changed for the better for the Huskers when Osborne changed offensive philosophies and went to an option attack himself. Along came Tom Sorely, Turner Gill, Steve Taylor…and eventually, Heisman finalist Tommie Frazier and future head coach Scott Frost. All dual-threat QB’s who helped get Nebraska over the hump and on course for three National Championships in four seasons in the mid 1990’s.
Having a capable runner under center has always been a successful model. There’s never been a defense in the history of football that could claim to be stout against the QB run game. It’s impossible to game plan for and even harder to defend.
If Raiola hadn’t fallen into his lap, it’s likely Rhule would have stuck to his plan to us dual threat QB’s. Now that Raiola is gone, and he’s got three QB’s who are legit threats with their feet, we’ll find out if Plan A would have been the better plan all along.
Mark Knudson Mark is a former MLB pitcher for the Houston Astros, Milwaukee Brewers and Colorado Rockies. He’s the only person ever to play high school, college and professional baseball in Colorado. Mark earned a BA in Technical Journalism from Colorado State University and has worked in radio, television and print sports media since 1994. He’s the co-author of “Pitching to the Corners” with former teammate Don August and the author of “Just Imagine,” a historical fiction novel about The Beatles.
Mark is currently a feature writer and columnist for Mile High Sports in Denver and recently joined the team at Heavy.com. Mark is also a high school baseball coach in the Denver area. More about Mark Knudson
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