Well, Matt Rhule and the Nebraska Cornhuskers had cooked up one of the greatest stories to threaten their rivals. Do you remember the Huskers at the Omaha camp? Rhule’s quarterback, Dylan Raiola, walked into the 2025 season that made everyone present there go, ‘What’s Patrick Mahomes doing here?’ The same Oakley glasses, broccoli hair, Raiola pulled off the perfect Patrick Mahomes doppelganger look. However, the look did not translate into Mahomes-like action on the gridiron.

Even though Raiola flew off to Kansas City to train under Bobby Stroupe, Mahomes’ trainer, he failed to leave his mark. Instead, it made Rhule question his choices. The quarterback prevented the offense from moving the pigskin for much of the game. A trend has been noted in Raiola’s game play, his biggest problem.

Most pass plays went like this: Raiola dropped back, read the defense, refused to let the pigskin go, the pass rush closed in, then he bailed and either tried a late, inaccurate throw on the run or got sacked. So, what must be the root cause that we identify from this? On the July 14th episode of the Nebraska Huskers podcast, Kyle Crooks was joined by Nebraska Football great Aaron Taylor, who came with crucial advice. Now, who better to comment on the situation than Taylor? He led the Huskers to a 13-0 record. Crooks had a question for the 2021 Hall of Famer. “What is your advice to that player that is in a uniform now or might be in the years to come?” Even though he did not take Rhule’s quarterback’s name, Raiola must be clever enough to jot down the crucial advice. 

Taylor replied, “Yeah, that’s a good question. I would say, as an offensive line, my advice would be you have to make sure that all five of you guys, from tackle to tackle, are family. And so you eat at the training, at the table together, you go lift weights together, you do things outside of school together, and you’re basically really tight. It’s a brotherhood. And that’s the way we were.” Rhule’s quarterback got sacked 27 times, you read that right, TWENTY SEVEN TIMES in 2024. During their disastrous home game loss to UCLA, even on the two big pass plays, one to Jacory Barney Jr. in the first quarter and the other to Isaiah Neyor on the final play of the third quarter, Raiola passed up easy options underneath that would have gained yards. 

Maybe Rhule’s quarterback refused to rely on his mates. Now, this is something that Taylor strongly opposes. He recalled his own experience. “A lot of times it was I didn’t know what I was doing and I would have to turn to Chris Dishman, or Fred Pollock or Aaron Graham and say, ‘Hey, what do I have on this play?’ And they were there to bail me out. And then as I got older, I did the same thing. And so, not only was it that, but then you also didn’t want to let down your fellow player and your fellow teammate and so, for me it was to make sure you’re a brotherhood.”  Rhule is yet to determine whether Raiola can become a better team player; for his team, he sees some hope. 

Matt Rhule on a mission to quench Nebraska’s 26-year-old thirst

While Rhule got to keep his head above water, helping fans get the taste of the conference title might be his life jacket. The last time they won the national title was 26 years ago, in 1999. While the world might turn its head away from Rhule and co., analyst Ahmed Fareed came up with a fresh serving of motivation for the Cornhuskers. On the Rushing the Field podcast, the analyst shared, “Like you could talk me into the idea that they’re an 11-win team. If everything goes right, they could be an 11-win team and be in the conference championship. So, I like that one because especially you have the quarterback who got broken in last year, who had their ups and downs, and like taking the big step.”

That’s when Rhule’s fate with the schedule comes up. Turns out that Nebraska might have an easy-breezy ride when it comes to its non-conference schedule. As per the reports, Rhule is blessed with the easiest 2025 schedule in the Big Ten, according to Phil Steele’s analysis. The Huskers open up the 2025 season on August 28 against the Cincinnati Bearcats. Things might get murkier for Rhule’s boys as they face off against Maryland and Minnesota in October.

On that note, Phil Steele came up with a wake-up call for the Nebraska head coach. “If they don’t take a leap forward this coming year, it’ll be disappointing. Their nonconference schedule is winnable, with Cincinnati on the docket for Week 1, and Akron and Houston Christian to come after. Additionally, Nebraska’s Big Ten slate is certainly manageable, as they’ll face Michigan, USC, Penn State in Happy Valley and Iowa.” So, the schedule is all sorted. The next step for Matt Rhule? Shaping his quarterback into the glue that holds the team together.