I don’t think money was the “biggest factor,” more like it sets the baseline for top recruits in the current NIL era. Like, I 100% agree that it was mostly about legacy and the chance to become a Nebraska legend by resurrecting the program. But if somebody else was offering him $2 million more, that would be tough to turn down. That’s why I think he let the market kind of set the price for a top QB recruit, and Nebraska boosters stepped up to make sure he had an offer in the same ballpark. Maybe he gave them a small family discount, but there’s no way turned down millions more.
The legacy ties go both ways though. Don’t you think it’s possible (I say likely) that Nebraska boosters were willing to pony up for Raiola because he’s a legacy and a top-ranked QB who can be the face of a revitalized program, in a way that shelling out for a top-rated OL just isn’t?
I’m confident that Raiola got seven figures. Wasn’t suggesting otherwise. But it’s not like a recruit that has to raise his family out of poverty situation.
No doubt, he’s in a great position where he can pick and choose and make decisions for his long-term future, and not have to worry about the immediate present. I just think NIL has changed the nature of recruiting so much, so quickly, that it’s now become a situation where offering a top recruit a well-below-market NIL offer comes off as insulting, and even sends a message that your program isn’t serious about competing with the big boys.
You’d know better than me! But I’d be shocked if there haven’t been a lot of inspirational emails from Rhule to Nebraska donors saying that if they want to return to glory, it’s time to get out the checkbook.
There has been movement for sure . I forget the name of the NIL collective but he absolutely laid the reality out there to donors last offseason and they have seen an uptick in their “roster budget.” But they still are bringing a knife to a gun fight in some recruitments.
He has been announced as the starter. And all signs point to him in fact being the real deal. We’ll find out soon enough. Some of the clips from the All Star circuit are kind of Stafford arm like. Flick of the wrist and the ball just rockets.
Yeah I’ve seen the highlights and heard he was a top 10 recruit.
My point is in Nebraska he’s the starter day one. Thats not happening at Georgia with Beck returning.
He can always transfer to Georgia or somewhere else if he doesn’t have a shot at a championship in Nebraska and wants to get the spotlight and a shot at one.
We’re talking about a kid who transferred 3 times in HS to do just that. So I’m expecting him to use Nebraska to get playing time and transfer later.
I think that it’s very likely that if he doesn’t see a chance to compete for the playoffs in the very least then he will likely move on to an elite program. But things can happen. He can for instance meet the right girl
I sure did not see that in the game i went to. But he’s a big boy and athletic. He was inacurate but it was wet the whole second half (and Milton’s defense is really good). And he still has alot of high school to develop and get better…
Interesting. I had heard he was accurate. He seems to move better than Dylan. At least be more slippery from a tackle avoidance standpoint. And I’ve seen him scoot away from pressure for some nice scrambles. Probably beyond what I’ve seen out of Dylan. And he’s left handed of course. But if he’s inaccurate than Tua isn’t the right comp. And I’ve only seen YouTube and Twitter highlights so you have a leg up.
Congrats to your grandson by the way. Cool moment.
And I wouldn’t judge Dayton off of this one game. He glides when he moves, covers alot of ground, is tough to bring down. He has some Dom dog in him for sure. It was just a tough night to have to air the ball out due to the weather. 2.5 hour storm delay. The game finished after midnight. The Milton QB also had a rough go of it.
