Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola knows the comparisons are inevitable. Fans, media and young kids alike see Patrick Mahomes when they see him — the same hairstyle, the same athleticism, the same pregame flair. But Raiola insists it’s not about imitation, it’s about circumstance.
“Everybody be like, ‘Oh, he wants to be like him,’ and all this stuff,” Raiola said on CBS Sports Confidential Conversations. “It just so happens he played baseball, I played baseball. He plays quarterback, I play quarterback … I can’t get mad at God for making me look like him.”
Raiola has developed a personal relationship with the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback and three-time Super Bowl champion, even visiting the locker room during last season’s AFC Championship celebration. Both share the same personal quarterback trainer Jeff Christensen.
That bond only adds to the intrigue as Raiola opens the 2025 season on Mahomes’ home turf. Nebraska kicks off against Cincinnati on Thursday night at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City.
For Raiola, the Mahomes connection is less about mimicry and more about mentorship. He has compared it to the relationship Kobe Bryant once shared with Michael Jordan — an opportunity to absorb lessons from one of the best while still carving out his own identity.
“It ain’t cap. It’s real love,” Raiola said. “… [Mahomes] is cool, bro. He knows what it is.”
The sophomore quarterback’s network of mentors doesn’t stop there. Raiola, the godson of Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, said he has also begun recently connecting with seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady.
Nebraska coach Matt Rhule, who has defended Raiola amid the constant comparisons, said fans should recognize the difference between influence and identity.
“The one thing that bothers me when people look at [Raiola] is the Mahomes comparisons — that’s just cheapening who he is,” Rhule said on his podcast “House Rhules”. “So, yeah, he follows the greatest quarterback playing the game right now. He’s 19 years old, why wouldn’t he? He knows the guy.”
Raiola admitted the comparisons can wear on him, especially when they come from kids who overlook his own name.
“Every time a little kid around here is like, ‘Yo, mini-Mahomes!’ I’m like, ‘What’d you say? What’s my name?'” Raiola said. “I’m trying to be my own guy.”
The 2024 season gave Raiola a crash course in college football reality. A former five-star recruit, he finished with 13 touchdowns against 11 interceptions, struggling late with just four scores to nine picks over his final eight games.
Determined to flip the script, Raiola said this offseason he overhauled his conditioning and strength, dropping body fat, adding lean muscle and building a cardio routine that includes running several miles every few days.
This news was originally published on this post .
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