Kirk Herbstreit sends clear aggressive massage on Dylan Raiola flip

Kirk Herbstreit clears the air on Dylan Raiola flip: ‘That’s the most ridiculous thing anybody would do’

Kirk Herbstreit has cleared the air on his comments made by the father of former Georgia commit Dylan Raiola.

On Wednesday, Raiola’s father, Dominic, relayed to Rivals that the ESPN commentator helped encourage the elder Raiola that Dylan should consider flipping his commitment to Nebraska.

“When he saw the smoke about Dylan entertaining Nebraska, he called me,” Dominic Raiola said on Wednesday. “’Dude, Is this true? He [Dylan] got to do it. He got to do it.’ His [Herbstreit] affinity for Nebraska, for a guy like that to tell me and get behind me. I knew he needed to do it. But I wasn’t going to sit here and say ‘You need to go change that place or be a part of the change of that place.’”

In an interview with The Paul Finebaum Show, Herbstreit walked back those comments, stressing that he never tried to encourage Dylan Raiola to commit to Nebraska, especially at the expense of Georgia.

“That’s the most ridiculous thing anybody would do, but I did compliment Matt Rhule,” Herbstreit said. “If I’m guilty of anything, I said Matt Rhule is a good coach and he’s a good man. I believe he will bring Nebraska back.”

Herbstreit did note he has known Dominic Raiola for a while and Herbstreit was spotted on the sidelines prior to the Ole Miss game speaking with Dylan Raiola.

“I just said, ‘Wow, the fact that your son could go to any school, any powerhouse that’s competing for national titles an because of his respect for his own dad, he’s thinking about maybe going to Nebraska, a place that hasn’t competed for national titles in over 20 years. That says a lot about who the kid is,” Herbstreit said.

Dylan Raiola originally committed to Georgia back in May. He was poised to be an early enrollee at Georgia but in mid-December, he elected to take a last-minute official visit to Nebraska. Shortly after that visit, Raiola did end up flipping his commitment to Nebraska, just days before the start of the early signing period.

Dominic Raiola played for Nebraska, where he was an All-American. His brother is also currently the offensive line coach for the Cornhuskers as well.

Raiola finished the cycle as the No. 21 overall prospect in the 2024 recruiting cycle and is the highest-rated signee for Rhule and the Cornhuskers. Nebraska went 5-7 in Rhule’s first season.

“Are you suppose to say Matt Rhule is a bad guy, Matt Rhule is an idiot, Matt Rhule is a bad coach,” Herbstreit said of his conversation with Dominic Raiola. “Or do you say, ‘I like Matt Rhule. I think Matt Rhule is a good coach.’”

With Raiola ending up at Nebraska, Georgia ended up signing only one quarterback in the 2024 recruiting cycle. Ryan Puglisi is already enrolled at Georgia and will go through spring practice. He was ranked as the No. 10 quarterback recruit for the cycle and the No. 108 overall prospect.

“He checked the box every time for the right kind of kid, the right kind of competitor. He’s embraced the part about learning,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said of Puglisi. “He sees himself as a guy that needs to come in and develop under a system. He’s seen Carson’s success, so I think he understands that. He wants to grow and get better.

“Quarterback is the leader of the team and leader of your class. He’s a really intelligent, fun kid to be around. He’s been out here at practices, competing. He’s got a really live arm. He’s another one of these baseball guys that can catch it and get it out really fast, which I think is really important in today’s day and age.”

Georgia would like to have four scholarship quarterbacks, and did briefly land UNLV transfer Jayden Maiava from the transfer portal. He ultimately though ended up signing with USC. The Bulldogs did see Carson Beck elect to return to Georgia for his senior season, with Beck making his announcement just before Raiola flipped his commitment. Georgia also brings back Gunner Stockton as well.

Even after losing Raiola, Georgia ended up signing the No. 1 overall ranked recruiting class for the 2024 recruiting cycle. The Bulldogs signed five 5-star prospects and 28 total recruits overall.