With Dylan Raiola, the Oregon Ducks dive back into the Bo Nix playbook
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On Monday, Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks served a nice bit of breaking news to fans with their morning cups of coffee. Dylan Raiola, a former 5-star QB and the two-year starting quarterback for the Nebraska Cornhuskers, was transferring to Oregon.
Reactions on social media were mixed, to say the least. Some fans saw the merit in the move, realizing that taking in a player with a lot of physical gifts, though in need of some development, was a high-upside play. So long as he wasn’t rushed onto the field. Others balked at the move, noting that Raiola had struggled at Nebraska, throwing for just 31 TDs and 17 INTs while going 14-12 in his two years as the starter.
Former Oregon TV reporter Hayden Herrera chimed in on social media: “I can’t remember the last time a fanbase was this pissed about a portal addition.”
I can. It was December 19, 2021. In Lanning’s first month as the Ducks‘ head coach, he signed former Auburn QB Bo Nix in the transfer portal, a flame-out former 5-star who had struggled to live up to his family name. Fans were pissed.
Ultimately, that addition went pretty well.
The Ducks have seen this story before. They’ve proven to be proficient when diving into this section of the playbook. It may have started with Nix in 2021, but the addition of Raiola isn’t the second time that Oregon has tried to add a reclemation project under center and plan for the future. Two years ago, the Ducks added former UCLA quarterback Dante Moore in the portal, alongside Dillon Gabriel, offering a safe haven for a fledgling 5-star QB who needed a fresh start with a helping of development.
In that instance, things turned out pretty well again.
With Raiola, the picture looks much more like Nix than Moore, though. There’s a psychology at play here, where a change of scenery truly is the biggest benefit of the move. Nix grew up as a high school star in Alabama, being dubbed the golden boy before even setting foot on Auburn’s campus and trying to fill the big shoes left by his father, Patrick Nix, who had a glorified career as a Tigers quarterback.
Bo tried to live up to the hype as a 5-star, the No. 1-ranked dual-threat QB in the 2019 class. He flamed out. After three years, he had thrown for 39 TDs and 16 interceptions, going 21-16 in those three seasons.
Compare that to Raiola. While his dad, Dominic Raiola, may have played a different position, he was still a legendary center at Nebraska, becoming the first freshman offensive lineman to start for the Cornhuskers. He went on to get drafted in the second round of the 2001 NFL draft and had a long and illustrious career with the Detroit Lions.
Dylan, a 5-star player rated as the No. 2 QB in the 2024 class, did his best to fill the shoes at Nebraska. He struggled with a middling roster and a poor offensive line in front of him. After a broken fibula ended his sophomore season, he decided it was time for a change.
When Nix wanted a new career setting, he chose Eugene. In the Pacific Northwest, he found refuge and a place to flourish. Over the next two years, he set records at Oregon, going 22-5 while throwing for 74 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, becoming a Heisman Trophy finalist and, ultimately, a first-round draft pick.
Now Raiola, a player who has often been known for imitating Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes, is following in the footsteps of another AFC West quarterback: Nix.
Will he find the same success in Eugene?
That’s impossible to know at this point. It seems unlikely that he is the starting QB in 2026, with Oregon either bringing Dante Moore back for another season or potentially going into the portal for another QB this offseason. But for the Ducks, there’s reason to be excited. We’ve seen this story play out before.
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This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Oregon Ducks, Dylan Raiola opting for the Bo Nix route in Eugene
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