Nebraska Hires Geep Wade as Offensive Line Coach Following Donovan Raiola’s Departure

Nebraska officially parted ways with offensive line coach Donovan Raiola on Saturday, ending his four-year run with the program. And according to early reports, Matt Rhule didn’t waste any time charting the next step.

Multiple reports indicate that Georgia Tech’s offensive line coach Geep Wade is being hired to fill Nebraska’s vacancy.

Wade finished his third year with the Yellow Jackets, who ended the regular season at 9–3 and sit inside the Top 25 entering bowl season. Georgia Tech recently rewarded head coach Brent Key with a five-year extension, a sign of the program’s rising trajectory, one that Wade played a major role in building. With that in mind, here's everything you need to know about the Huskers' next offensive line coach.

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— Geep Wade (@GeepWade) November 24, 2024

Under Wade’s guidance, Georgia Tech produced one of the nation’s most efficient and explosive offenses in 2025. The Yellow Jackets ranked 12th nationally in total offense (466.3 yards per game), 19th in rushing (203 yards per game), and 28th in scoring (33.1 points per game), reflecting a major jump in both physicality and consistency up front.

But the real story lies in the details — Georgia Tech didn’t just move the ball, they protected it. Wade’s offensive line allowed only nine sacks across 354 drop-backs, one of the best pass-protection marks in the country. That level of efficiency, paired with a high-volume attack, speaks to technique, communication, and a unit that avoids negative plays, something Nebraska lacked throughout the entirety of Raiola's time in Lincoln.

The run game was just as dominant. Behind Wade’s front, the Yellow Jackets rushed for 30 touchdowns and averaged 5.6 yards per carry on more than 36 attempts per game. That combination of volume and efficiency is rare, and it reflects a line capable of creating movement, sustaining drives, and finishing possessions. For Nebraska, where establishing a reliable run identity has been a multi-year struggle, Wade’s track record represents exactly the kind of production Rhule is seeking as he reshapes the offense.

Matt Rhule has now made two staff moves since the season ended, with the latest decision removing the last full-time assistant from the Scott Frost era. https://t.co/X9AvTFomat
— 𝙷𝚞𝚜𝚔𝚎𝚛𝙼𝚊𝚡 (@Huskermax) December 6, 2025

Wade’s coaching career spans more than two decades and includes stops at Appalachian State, Georgia Southern, East Carolina, Middle Tennessee, Marshall, Chattanooga, UT Martin, Midwestern State, Mars Hill, and Tennessee. Across those stints, he's coached 21 all-conference players, sent five offensive linemen to the NFL, and appeared in three bowl games. A former lineman himself at Chattanooga from 1999–2001, and a team captain, Wade is widely viewed as a technician who builds cohesive, detail-oriented offensive line rooms.

That reputation has only strengthened during his tenure at Georgia Tech. Now in his third season with the Yellow Jackets, Wade has helped engineer one of the ACC’s most consistently productive offensive fronts. In his first two years in Atlanta, Georgia Tech led the ACC in rushing in 2023 and ranked second in 2024, all while allowing the fewest sacks in the conference both seasons. That combination is exactly why Wade’s name rises quickly when programs search for a proven, development-driven offensive line coach.

Wade’s success has also translated to individual accolades. Five Georgia Tech linemen earned all-conference recognition under his watch, including standout Keylan Rutledge, who in 2024 became Tech’s first non-specialist to earn first-team All-America honors since 2016. His track record across multiple programs shows a pattern of maximizing talent, building reliable depth, and elevating units year over year.

Taken as a whole, Wade’s résumé reflects exactly what Nebraska is targeting after moving on from Donovan Raiola: a veteran developer of offensive linemen, a teacher with a clear identity, and a coach whose units consistently produce at a high level, no matter the roster or conference. And with the Huskers aiming to rebuild the offensive line from the inside out, Wade’s profile fits almost seamlessly with what Matt Rhule has emphasized since his first year in Lincoln.

Matt Rhule with 2027 offensive line prospect Matt Erickson. | @matt__erickson44/Instagram

Nebraska’s offensive line issues over the past four seasons weren’t just noticeable; they were defining. Under Raiola, the Huskers surrendered 121 sacks through four seasons (30.25 per season), a number that consistently kept the offense behind schedule and quarterbacks in survival mode. Protection breakdowns became routine, and Nebraska never established the baseline reliability up front that Big Ten football demands.

The run game wasn’t much better. In four seasons, Nebraska’s best single-year rushing average was just 4.4 yards per carry, a figure that never consistently produced wins. The line rarely generated the kind of downhill movement needed to control games, and explosive runs were the exception, not the expectation. When the trenches are inconsistent, the entire offensive identity gets stuck in neutral, and for the majority of his time in Lincoln, Nebraska lived that reality week after week.

Touchdowns told the same story. The Huskers averaged only 18.25 rushing scores per season during Raiola’s tenure, a number that speaks to a lack of physical edge in critical situations. For a program that built its legacy on owning the line of scrimmage, these outputs were a stark reminder of how far Nebraska drifted from its standard. Whoever takes over the offensive line room inherits both an opportunity and a mandate: rebuild the foundation of an offense that has been stuck behind the chains for too long.

The Nebraska offensive line readies for a snap against Northwestern on Oct. 25, 2025. — The Nebraska offensive line readies for a snap against Northwestern. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

With news breaking earlier today, Nebraska has taken a fiery approach to the offseason, just over one week from playing its final regular-season game. The dismissal of Raiola and near-immediate hiring of Wade signal that Rhule isn’t waiting for bowl season to overhaul the program’s identity up front. After four years of inconsistent performance, protection issues, and limited development, the offensive line had become the most glaring barrier to meaningful offensive progress. Making a swift move leaves no doubt about Rhule’s intentions: the rebuild in the trenches starts now.

By securing Wade, the Huskers aren’t just adding experience; they’re bringing in one of the nation’s most productive and development-driven offensive line coaches. Wade’s track record stands in stark contrast to Nebraska’s struggles in recent seasons. His Georgia Tech lines protected the quarterback, dominated on the ground, and produced all-conference players at a rate Nebraska hasn’t matched in years. This hire represents more than a philosophical shift; it’s an infusion of proven leadership, physicality, and accountability into a position group that desperately needed a new direction.

Wade’s arrival won’t simply fill a staff vacancy. It marks the beginning of Nebraska’s most urgent rebuild, one that will define the trajectory of Rhule’s next chapter in Lincoln. With the Big Ten becoming more physical than ever and the Huskers striving to modernize their offense, improving the offensive line is no longer optional; it's a must. Wade’s hiring signals a commitment to reestablishing Nebraska’s identity at the line of scrimmage, the place where the program once built its legacy and where its climb back must begin.

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