As Nebraska football’s 2025 season draws to a close with a second bowl-eligible squad under Matt Rhule, it looks like the Cornhuskers will have to grapple with one major question: Will quarterback Dylan Raiola — whose season ended with a broken fibula Nov. 1 against USC — return for his junior year or will he enter the transfer portal?
The question was piqued by a CBS Sports report that Raiola may be considering hitting the portal to steer a team looking to make a College Football Playoff run, a position Nebraska simply isn’t in for the moment. Though the Cornhuskers can compete with most teams in the country with regards to NIL, they’re playing for bowl appearances at the moment.
Fueling the rumors is Raiola’s younger brother Dayton decommitted from Nebraska and reopened his recruitment. Dayton is a 3-star prospect who may well end up heading to a lower-FBS school where he’ll be able to compete for playing time.
With regards to the rumors about Dylan, Rhule told reporters he was outside the loop of any conversation about a possible Raiola transfer.
‘I haven’t seen that report. Yeah, I haven’t seen that,’ he said to the media Nov. 26 when the rumors surfaced. ‘I would never get up here and talk about a player. I love Dylan like I love all my guys. He’s in there in treatment right now. So I don’t know about that. I don’t know anything about that.’
Raiola threw for 2,000 yards with a 72.4% completion percentage in 2025, along with 18 touchdowns and six interceptions, three of which in a four-touchdown showing against Maryland. He was perceived to have taken real strides from 2024, where he threw for 2,819 yards on 67.1% passing with 13 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
Nebraska closes out its season on Black Friday, Nov. 28 against Iowa, as the Cornhuskers look for their first eight-win season since 2016 when Mike Riley won nine games and went 6-3 in the Big Ten.
The transfer portal opens Jan. 2 and will close Jan. 16, 2026.