Nebraska Quarterback Announces His Intention to Enter the Transfer Portal

Nebraska football's quarterback situation became much clearer on Monday.

Dylan Raiola, Nebraska's starting quarterback for 22 straight games before suffering a season-ending injury, is officially set to enter the transfer portal. Raiola confirmed the reports on his Instagram account by sharing one of the stories with the caption "God's Story".

Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola leads the team out of the tunnel to face USC. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

The son of former Husker Dominic Raiola and the nephew of now former Nebraska offensive line coach Donovan Raiola, Dylan committed to Matt Rhule and Nebraska after previous commitments and decommitments to Ohio State and Georgia. Add in his four high schools in four years, and the real surprise in this announcement might be that he spent two seasons in Lincoln.

Raiola set a number of school records during his two years as a Husker. He set the freshman records for passing yards (2,819) and completion percentage (67.1). In 2025, he set the record for season completion percentage (72.4) and consecutive completions (20, spanning the Cincinnati and Akron games).

He completed 181-of-250 passes for 2,000 yards and 18 touchdowns in his nine games this fall. Against USC in game nine, he took a sack and was slow to get up. Ultimately, he suffered a season-ending injury in the form of a broken right fibula.

Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola attempts to evade the USC rush. He was injured on the play and did not return to the game. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

Over his two years in Lincoln, Raiola was sacked 54 times. Those sacks came by a combination of offensive line play, led by his uncle, who has since been fired, and Raiola holding onto the ball too long. The latter was the case with his season-ending injury, with the former being an ongoing issue and contributing factor in the firing.

What's Left in Lincoln

Nebraska's quarterback room is not even close to bare.

TJ Lateef made three starts after Raiola's injury, leading Nebraska to a win at UCLA before struggling like the rest of the team against Penn State and Iowa. He finished the regular season 59-for-95 for 722 yards and four touchdowns through the air with no interceptions, adding 98 yards and three more scores on the ground.

Nebraska quarterback TJ Lateef leads the Huskers out of the tunnel ahead of the game against the Iowa Hawkeyes. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

Marcos Davila transferred to Nebraska last offseason from Purdue. He redshirted in 2024, not playing in a game. In his one season in Lincoln, he saw action against Akron and Houston Christian.

Davila was a four-star prospect out of high school. At Midland Legacy in Texas, he threw for 9,101 yards in his high school career with 93 touchdowns.

Lateef is easily the starter going into next season, but another year in the system for Davila could close the gap to push the California native. With Jalyn Gramstad out of eligibility, these are the top two quarterbacks on the roster for 2026.

Should Nebraska Go After a Transfer Quarterback?

If the coaching staff is comfortable with Lateef and Davila, then the answer is no. If they want someone with more seasoning to push for the starting role next year, then the answer is yes.

It comes down to how the coaches view Lateef heading into year two. Did he show enough to convince them he can be the guy for 12 games?

Nebraska Cornhuskers quarterback TJ Lateef drops back to pass against the UCLA Bruins. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

The other question, when pursuing a transfer portal quarterback, is what are their expectations? If someone wants to be guaranteed the starting role, that can put Lateef and Davila in a tougher spot going into 2026. But if someone is willing to make their way to Lincoln with the knowledge that they have to compete for the job, that could bring out the best in all three through the spring and into fall camp.

Ultimately, transfer quarterbacks are expensive. Starters are more expensive. Even with Rhule saying he has the money to be a bigger player in the portal this year, Nebraska may be better off using that money elsewhere and putting pieces around the returning quarterbacks.

Future Husker Quarterbacks

Nebraska did not sign a quarterback to the 2026 class, meaning there is no new signal caller setting foot on campus in a couple of weeks. Dayton Raiola, Dylan's younger brother, had been committed to NU for more than a year before decommitting last month.

Looking further down the road, Nebraska has a four-star quarterback committed in the 2027 class. Trae Taylor has been an integral part of the class, both in terms of how it is viewed and with peer recruiting.

Taylor is clearly the future of that room, but he's at least a season away from being on the field. For now, Nebraska's quarterback room is two-deep heading toward the transfer portal window from Jan. 2-15.

Have a question or comment for Kaleb? Send an email to kalebhenry.huskermax@gmail.com.

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