Matt Rhule ignored all the Nebraska transfer warning signs with QB Dylan Raiola

Nebraska fans have officially gotten the news they have feared for the last few weeks from quarterback Dylan Raiola. ESPN's Pete Thamel announced via social media that Raiola intends to enter the transfer portal after two seasons with Nebraska.

While the news comes after an injury ended his season, the rumors of Raiola considering the transfer portal ran rampant when his brother Dayton Raiola de-committed from the Cornhuskers in November. After the regular season concluded, it was also announced that head coach Matt Rhule was firing offensive line coach and Raiola's uncle, Donovan Raiola.

All signs seemed to point towards Raiola transferring, but even before all of this, the signs that Raiola would transfer at some point were always there, and Rhule probably just chose to ignore them.

Dylan Raiola's recruitment should have been a red flag for Matt Rhule

Coming out of high school, Raiola was a 5-star recruit, ranked as the No. 3 quarterback in the Class of 2024. Raiola was being recruited by many different programs, and his choosing Nebraska ended up being a bit of a shock, especially with the interest he showed in other schools.

Raiola's recruitment was as messy as it could have been, as it involved many schools and quite a few de-commitments. First, in May of 2022, Raiola committed to Ohio State to play for Ryan Day, but that lasted for only about seven months before he chose to stick it to the Buckeyes and de-commit, thus reopening his recruitment.

Next, Raiola was in serious talks with USC, and he was even crystal balled to end up with the Trojans in March of 2023; however, not even a full month later, Raiola was then predicted to commit to the Georgia Bulldogs. In May of 2023, Raiola decided to officially commit to the Bulldogs and, for the next six months, took numerous visits to Athens.

Suddenly, in December of 2023, right before the Early Signing Period, Raiola took an official visit to Nebraska and was suddenly expected to flip to the Cornhuskers. On December 18, 2023, Raiola officially de-committed from Georgia and two days later officially committed to Matt Rhule and Nebraska.

Now, after only two seasons in Lincoln, Raiola will choose his next school, and they should know the baggage that is coming with him. Rhule should have seen the early signs, but recruit rankings are always a blind spot for head coaches, and clearly it was one for Rhule when it came to Raiola.