Devy Digest: Freshman Friday – Dylan Raiola

The Devy Digest, Freshman Friday’s – featuring Nebraska QB Dylan Raiola.

• Dylan Raiola
• Position: Quarterback
• Nebraska Cornhuskers
  
• 6’3” 230 lbs
  
• Draft Eligible: 2027
• Devy Digest Freshman QB Rank: 2

Who is Dylan Raiola?

Dylan Raiola is a 5⭐️ in the composites. He attended four different High Schools in four years; as well as committing to three different college programs within that time. Recently, Raiola moved from Pinnacle High in Arizona to Buford High in Georgia as he supposedly wanted to be closer to Athens for better competition and help recruit talent to Georgia. That was before decommitting from Georgia to go to Nebraska where his dad played and where his Uncle currently coaches.

The track record of athletes changing that many programs in that little time is very underwhelming, but let’s take this case with a grain of salt. We are in a NIL world where decisions are made daily and dollar figures are being thrown around like monopoly money. Perhaps in the end, Raiola didn’t imagine Carson Beck would make the strides that he did and didn’t want to sit a year (although we’ve seen many heralded QBs wait their turn and it never hurt their NFL stock). Maybe Matt Rhule made a heavy commitment towards him, and his family ties to Nebraska did truly weigh heavily on him. Or perhaps Raiola wanted to be the change Nebraska needed to go back to their storied history.

Dylan Raiola possesses a very strong arm. The ball just jumps out of his hands. Arm talent isn’t a question, as Raiola can get the ball off at multiple angles and doesn’t need to set his feet to get the deep pass off with accuracy. Raiola makes off-platform throws with ease and is mobile enough to move around the pocket to evade the rush. The 18-year old will climb the pocket comfortably, manipulate the defense, and make throws to each level. He has enough finesse to change velocity of his throws and be able to layer it in with ease. While Raiola has become less of a runner, he does possess enough mobility to keep plays alive. Raiola possesses a high football IQ.

Nebraska signee Dylan Raiola makes it look easy@NebraskaRivals | @Zack_Carp | @adamgorney | @GregSmithRivals pic.twitter.com/R6wRdaNvH2

— Rivals (@Rivals) January 17, 2024

Dylan Raiola been in similar, but different offenses with each school that he has attended. While his production took a dip at the beginning of his Senior season at Buford against stiffer competition, he was able to put everything together and finish with a strong year. Raiola only threw one interception his entire Senior season and only 11 in his entire high school career.

Pathway to Success

Dylan Raiola will start day one at Nebraska. That roster is still in its infancy and evolving by the season. Returning will be Malachi Coleman, who had a good True Freshman season after missing time with an injury last summer. Coleman should pair as Raiola’s WR1. Nebraska, as a whole, brought in a top 25 recruiting class, including top 5 TE Carter Nelson. They also beefed up the offensive line with two top 25 interior lineman and additional depth at WR.

Areas for Improvements & Concerns

Dylan Raiola enjoys the deep pass and potential home run play over the simple dump off for an easy conversion at times. It’s hard to fault a QB for wanting to hit the home run, but there will be times where he will need to make the easy pass to move the chains – we’ll have to see if he does that.

Four different high schools and three different college commitments are a concern, no matter how you put it. He’s moved from Texas, to Arizona, to Georgia, just to play at different schools; now he will be in Nebraska. It would outwardly appear that he wants to be a legacy player for Nebraska, but with all those changes, it just leaves a bad taste.

He will be the start of a rebuild at Nebraska. There is a concern that Raiola has a less than stellar True Freshman season as there isn’t enough talent around him to make an impact in the newly revamped Big Ten. Raiola will have to put everything on his shoulders – and I’m sure he’s aware of this. Raiola had a chance to sit behind Carson Beck at Georgia, learn the system, and be given the keys to the program and play himself as a top 10 pick. Instead, he chooses Nebraska where in all likelihood the game will move a little fast for him in his first year. How he rebounds and develops from this will be telling.

Devy & C2C Value

Quarterbacks are a volatile asset in Devy and C2C. In Devy drafts, I would not take a QB until Round 3. The likelihood of him being there is a coin flip. Many Devy players take quarterbacks early and Raiola is a name all Devy players know by now.

For C2C supplementals, I can see him going as mid-to-late 1st Round pick in a lot of supplemental drafts just for name and opportunity. He is likely gone within the first five rounds in a startup. I wouldn’t recommend that due to the position, but managers want quarterbacks; one with a potential like Raiola will be taken fairly early. I would get a temperature reading of your league mates if you hold the 1.04-1.08 and see if anybody wants Raiola. You can trade down and pick up an additional pick or two by moving back a few slots. The incoming Freshman QB class isn’t as robust as last year and the price of a tier 1 Quarterback will be enhanced due to that. Because of that, you could swing a trade for someone that wants to target the position.

NFL Outlook

Dylan Raiola has a big arm and ready-made size with the ability to make big time throws and manipulate defenses at this stage of his career. He has a large range of outcomes. Raiola could be a top 5 pick, a player who needs to wait until their fifth year (in the NFL) to get another contract, or a 5th year Senior at his 3rd program like a DJ Uiagalelei.

Raiola will play year one and probably flash at times. We’ve seen top quarterback prospects fail in the past. He has the tools, but that doesn’t always translate to success.