What Happened To Dylan Raiola's Deep Ball?

Dylan Raiola was supposed to have a big arm that would change Nebraska's offense. Through two seasons, that hasn't come to fruition. Why?

In Dylan Raiola's first career game against UTEP, he hit on multiple deep passes. In almost two full seasons since, he struggled connecting with his receivers. Why? | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

On this week's bonus episode of I-80 LIVE, Jack Mitchell and Josh Peterson discussed Nebraska's disappointing offense and tried to figure out why the promise of the Dylan Raiola era hasn't come to fruition.

Below is a lightly edited transcript of a select conversation.

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Jack: I know [Dylan Raiola] has the arm to do it because I watched him stand at the freaking 50-yard line and throw it; hit the crossbar on the goal post. And then when he tried it, he threw it into a basket from 50 yards away. And then throw it up into the freaking stands, 20 rows up. He has a huge arm!

Josh: Is that akin, though, to being really good at the driving range, and then you get on the golf course, and you're just, you know, you're unable to execute that at that high of a level; is that what we're talking about? Like he has a big arm, but he just didn't seem to know how to use [it]?

Jack: They didn’t even let him try!

Josh: They did, though! Remember, he underthrew guys last year, and then he overthrew guys this year. He had deep balls; he just wasn't very good.

Jack: Dane Key against Minnesota was one deep one. I would love to see an analysis of this. Every pass this year that was over 25 yards in the air, 30 yards in the air. It would be freaking fascinating to have a full thing on that.

Chubba Purdy and the 2023 Nebraska offense had more success with deep passes than either the 2024 or 2025 Nebraska offense. Why? | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

I mean, hell, you think a freaking Chubba Purdy against Wisconsin [in 2023]. I bet he had three passes in that game longer than any pass Dylan had outside of the Hail Mary this year. To [Jaylen] Lloyd and to Malachi [Coleman] and who else was a wide receiver? I can't even remember who else it would have been. Guys who don't have college teams now. Wide receivers who don't have college teams now.

I can't believe this hasn't been more of a conversation because I've like thought about this so much.

Josh: I do think we talked about it all the time and the way that we always refer to it as was, “the offense always looks weird” and “every passing play looks weird” and “it never looks like a normal passing game.” You know, I feel like you and I hit on it a ton this season, but maybe we should have hit on it some more.

Jack: I know, my point is they just never ever have. They didn't exist. And there were a couple of attempts, but there weren't even that many attempts. Like you're right. There were a few moments. Jaylen Lloyd, 73-yard long. Marcus Washington, 56-yard long. Malachi Coleman, 44-yard long [in 2023].

Josh: That's not even that long, right? You need bigger plays than that. And Nebraska does not have a big offense. One of those was what, 44?

Jack: That was Malachi’s long [catch] and that was that touchdown against Northwestern. Washington had a 56-yarder and then [Billy] Kemp and [Alex] Bullock each had 34. Bullock’s probably was the Jeff Sims Minnesota play, right?

Josh: It probably was. Yeah, because that was the spot on the field that they were at.

Jack: And then if you go to last year, [Isaiah] Neyor had a 59-yarder. Lloyd at a 59-yarder last year. [Jacory] Barney had a 40-yarder last year. [Thomas] Fidone had a 33-yarder. But again, I don't know how much those were run [after the catch]. [Jahmal] Banks long was a 31 last year.

Josh: That’s terrible.

Jack: Heinrich Haarberg had a more prolific deep passing career than Dylan Raiola did at Nebraska.

Josh: That is so depressing. How is that possible, man? Jack, two years ago, when he committed…

Nebraska's passing offense under Dylan Raiola hasn't regularly hit the high highs so many expected. Is that his fault, fault of his wide receivers, or his offensive coordinators? | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

Jack: When I watched his film, what was the sexy part of it? Those freaking deep passes in high school. Those deep, low effort [passes]. And it was just smooth. And [he] would just nail these guys in stride. I don't know if we ever even saw it once!

Josh: No, there was never one. There has not been one deep pass, air yard, up top.

You know what, Jack, actually, I'll give you one; the Isaiah Neyor touchdown against UTEP in his first game. Remember that play?

Dylan Raiola with a DEEP pass to Isaiah Neyor for the TD 🎯🎯🎯@HuskerFootball extends the lead! pic.twitter.com/hpXKReRxNA

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) August 31, 2024

Jack: He had a good pass to Banks in that game too. 

Josh: And it was like, “whoa, this is amazing!” And then you never saw it again. Then you never saw it again. If you add a list of Dylan's like ten most impressive passes, how many of them happened in like the first month of his career? Like half of them? A couple of them in that game. I remember in the Illinois game; he had a couple of great passes.

Jack: The Neyor pass right before halftime.

WOWWW!! RAIOLA AND NEYOR AGAIN! 💪🎯@HuskerFootball TD TO END THE HALF!! pic.twitter.com/FCdrUOWBRW

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 21, 2024

Josh: Against Illinois. Incredible touchdown. Ridiculous.

Jack: Like, his first five games, he lived up to the billing completely. He was throwing it deep. He was taking huge chances.

Whose fault is it? Is it him? Is it the play calling; two different offensive coordinators? Is it the receivers? What is it? Because it's not complicated to figure out why this offense is completely stunted. They have no normal passing game.

Josh: [A subscriber] literally just posted that touchdown we were talking about against UTEP to Isaiah Neyor in the channel. Go watch it. It is unbelievable because of how great it looks and how we never saw it again. I mean, he's got pressure first of all on his face. He throws it, he gets hit. It is on the money. I mean, just absolutely perfect.

Jack: I thought we were getting that every GD week. We never saw it again. We basically never saw that Dylan Raiola again. Whose fault is that?

Nebraska's offense looked different against UTEP in the 2023 season opener. How much of it was about the opponent and how much was because of Nebraska? | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

Josh: And it's not even, “oh, the competition was better” [after UTEP]. There's something different about that throw – and whether or not the level of competition is good or bad – he hits the receiver in stride. That's the important part. And he was never able to do that again on deep passes. Again, most of last year he was under throwing them. And at least it drew pass interference penalties at times. This year he was chucking it long.

Jack: He had pressure on that! As expected, Turner Corcoran or somebody let the dude through on that play. Something is systemically wrong with this passing game. And I don't know whose fault it is but it is so stunted to the point we got so used to it after that [play against UTEP] Josh, that we were watching that highlight and don't even realize that that's possible anymore.

Josh: Yeah, I know. It looks like a different player.

Jack: Watch the first half of the Illinois game. I'm telling myself, if you watch the first half of that Illinois game. I tweeted a halftime this Illinois of that Illinois game. I was like, “I don't know what's going to happen with this, but the way Dylan Raiola passes, Nebraska will never be out of any game.”

Josh: Yeah. And then it's and that was like the beginning of the end. That game was the beginning of the end. And I mean, [a subscriber] hits on it; “I think a lot of it is lack of confidence.” I mean, Jack, did he develop some weird version of the yips?

Has Dylan Raiola played his last snap at Nebraska? If so, his career will be a giant "What if?" | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

Jack: Well then, we're not the problem. If he if he's going to transfer, that's going to go with him, you know.

Josh: Oh, yeah. 100%.

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Watch the whole clip below!

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