Buford Junior quarterback Dayton Raiola has made his college decision, continuing the family tradition by committing to play for Matt Rhule and the Nebraska Cornhuskers.
THE LEGACY CONTINUES#OHANA #COMMITTED pic.twitter.com/Ti7yd4tOTU
— Dayton Raiola (@DaytonRaiola) September 22, 2024
Dayton will join his brother and uncle in Lincoln, as they look to help revive the once-dominant program. His older brother, Dylan Raiola, was a 5-star quarterback in last year’s class, and his uncle, Donovan Raiola, is the offensive line coach at Nebraska. Additionally, his father, Dominic Raiola, played for Nebraska from 1997 to 2000 and spent 14 years in the NFL with the Detroit Lions as a center.
Raiola has helped lead the Wolves to a 4-1 record, with their sole loss coming to 5A number one and nationally ranked, Milton, in week one. Since then, Raiola has orchestrated an offense that averages 39.5 points per game while allowing only 14.75. The Wolves’ first half of the season was highlighted by a 31-14 win over then third-ranked Douglas County. Buford’s region schedule is tougher than in years past, with ranked matchups against 6th-ranked Collins Hill on October 4 and 8th-ranked Mill Creek on November 1.
The Cornhuskers are off to a 3-1 start in the 2024 season, a record tied for the school’s best since 2016, which was also Nebraska’s last winning season. That year, the team went 9-4 and played in the Music City Bowl. Rhule is aiming to return the program to the success it saw in the 1990s, when the Huskers won national championships in 1994, 1995, and 1997. This turnaround is being driven by success on the recruiting trail. The 2024 class was ranked 18th in the nation, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, while the 2023 class was ranked 25th. The 2025 class is currently ranked 26th. Raiola is the first commit in the Huskers’ 2026 recruiting class, which aims to continue the upward trend of the past three classes.
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