Is Nebraska Quarterback Dylan Raiola Heading for a Sophomore Surge or Slump?

Those are both questions that will be asked repeatedly as we march toward fall camp and the season opener in Kansas City against Cincinnati, but there are certainly areas you can look to gain better insight into what will actually happen, and no aspect may be better at determining Raiola's future success than his supporting cast.

It's one thing to be a highly coveted quarterback that could even be drafted first-overall in the NFL draft the following spring (what's up Cam Ward?), but if you ultimately don't have the other guys around you, your team will still be forgotten. (After a 9-0 start, Miami went 1-3 in its final four games including a bowl game loss to Iowa State where Ward played sparingly).

So, has Matt Rhule and company put the pieces around Raiola to produce the surge every Husker fan is begging for, or will Nebraska be pulling teeth to make a second-straight bowl game after unrealized expectations? To answer that, you have to start with the line.

For Raiola to surge this fall, he needs to be able to stand up. Bold take, I know, but the line that will be helping him do that will be a mix of familiar and fresh. Justin Evans is expected to move from left guard to center this year, but the other guard spot should be solidified by Henry Lutovsky who made 11 starts there last season.

At tackle, we saw Gunnar Gottula take shape, including in Nebraska's Pinstripe Bowl win over Boston College, and he figures to be in the mix for Raiola's blindside along with Teddy Prochazka if he can stay healthy. Prochazka tore his ACL in fall camp last year, ending his season before it even started. Lastly, expect to see Turner Corcoran and Tyler Knaak battling it out at right tackle. The two departures to be aware of is Ben Scott at center and Bryce Benhart at right tackle. Benhart was considered by many to be the heart of that front, so a new voice will need to rise.

Ultimately...the mix of consistency and new blood is enough to say "check" when considering the line, but keep any eye on how they develop throughout the season.

Given the fact (or hope) that Raiola will be able to stand in the pocket for more than a second, the focus shifts to the skill players. Nebraska is on the plus-side when it comes to retention for the 2025 season, returning 10 total skill guys including Raiola. However, of those 10, only four made significant contributions on the field in 2024, and that number was almost three considering the transfer portal world we're in now. Let us not forget Emmett Johnson entered the portal on December 6, 2024 only to announce his return to the Huskers on December 8. That's just a snapshot of how unstable offseasons can be for major Division I programs in today's college football.

Along with Raiola and Johnson are tight end Carter Nelson and receiver Jacory Barney Jr. Gone are the team's top two receivers Jahmal Banks and Isaiah Neyor, who combined for 1,042 yards receiving and eight touchdowns. Also gone is the team's top tight end Thomas Fidone II, who underwhelmed in 2024 with 373 yards and no touchdowns. That was still good enough to lead tight ends. Lastly, Nebraska's Dante Dowdell led all running backs with 614 yards and 12 touchdowns. The rest of the team tacked on 10 rushing touchdowns, with Johnson accounting for just 1 of them.

The quick math is Nebraska will be shaving 8 receiving touchdowns and 15 rushing touchdowns (Gabe Ervin - 2 TDs, Rahmir Johnson - 1 TD) off the top of last year's production before even taking a snap in 2025. That means for players returning from last year, running back Vincent Genatone, wide receivers Jaidyn Doss and Hayes Miller and Cayden Echternach at tight end may be carving out more playing time this fall.

For those keeping track, that's a check for the line and a very squiggly question mark for the skill players. The last area to measure if Raiola can make a huge leap for Nebraska in 2025 is the other side of the ball - the Blackshirts.

Last season's defensive coordinator Tony White is now in Tallahassee, Fla. in the same role for Florida State. Enter stage left new DC John Butler. Butler served as the secondary coach last season for a defense that ended up in the Top-20 nationally for rushing defense, total defense and scoring defense. After promoting Butler to DC, Nebraska Head Coach Matt Rhule said, "(Butler) has proven he is the right coach to lead our defense."

It also gives the Blackshirts a chance at continuity when it comes to the checks and calls they make at the line of scrimmage. Verbiage likely will remain the same and the overall understanding shouldn't shift a ton, but each coach will always want to come in and make their impact. That will mean changes, and some might not be so subtle. Can Butler fill the shoes left by White? Only time will tell, but Butler will be tasked with proving himself despite his decades of experience. That's mainly due to the fact his secondary last season ranked outside the top 50 in 2024, while the rest of the defense was seemingly in the top 25 nationally.

Lastly, something you won't see on paper but still needs to be considered is Raiola's relationship with Rhule. Much like you see in the NFL, the head coach-quarterback relationship is a huge determinant of a team's success. In Kansas City, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid and quarterback Patrick Mahomes have won three Super Bowls and appeared in five. In Los Angeles, Rams head coach Sean McVay was able to unlock longtime veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford for their first Super Bowl run. Of course, the golden standard is former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady, who combined for six Super Bowl wins.

While that relationship isn't the end-all, a coach trusting his quarterback goes a very long way in a signal caller's growth, especially after the end of their first full season together. It's this part that should give Husker fans the most hope for the huge leap forward. Rhule's trust combined with the wizardry of offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen could lead to some "magic" in 2025, even if it's unknown players taking the hand-offs or catching the passes.

Because people need more than check marks and very squiggly question marks to judge the potential of Raiola's sophomore season, we'll dish out some grades for each area when considering how much the team retained from last year. The table above shows you where your confidence should lie with the information that's out there. However, will a player come out and outperform their projection ? Absolutely. Will a player also not live up to the hype? More than likely.

Ultimately, understanding if Nebraska truly has had a good offseason and if it was good enough for Raiola to take the team to the next level won't be known until we're likely halfway through the season if not even longer. So, when you're pouring that Kool-Aid in July and early August, just make sure to not chug it. It's okay to sip it until you know more.

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