By now every Husker fan and the outside world is aware Dylan Raiola is out for the season due to a broken fibula. Raiola was sacked and rolled up on awkwardly against USC. Many Husker fans are upset over the tackle, calling it dirty. For me, it’s just football, injuries happen. When you’re going all out trying to get to the QB, you don’t worry about style points. The only thing intentional about the tackle was attempting to get the QB down and possibly strip the ball. Which happened.
As a fan, you’re sick for Raiola. He’s worked hard and dedicated the last two seasons to getting the Huskers back on the winning side of things. His season being over must be a huge disappointment. But as a player you must find the silver lining in everything that occurs. I hate to say it, but this injury may be good for Raiola. If he has one bad trait, it’s hanging on to the ball too long. That’s just one of the reasons he’s been sacked 27 times this season and it contributed to his injury. It’s not all on him, but realizing what he needs to fix will make him a better quarterback.
Call me old school, but I blame it on wearing a green jersey and non-contact in practice. Since his arrival he’s been given time to stand in the pocket and complete passes because no one is going to touch him. It’s muscle memory, the clock has never been established in his head. This sack was costly for him and the Huskers. I’m sure it will give Dylan a lot to think about.
But I’m not the only one who thinks Dylan Raiola can benefit from the injury. In this week’s press conferences both Matt Rhule and OC Dana Holgorsen shared their thoughts on Dylan’s injury and being out for the season.
Matt Rhule had this to say, “As miserable as this time is going to be for him, this is a really good time for him as well. He’s gonna have a chance for once, to sit there and watch. You know I think that is really valuable, when you don’t have the pressure of playing you get to sit there and watch and learn. I know he’ll be involved in game planning and ideas. And he’ll rally around TJ.”
Holgorsen on Raiola sitting, “From Dylan perspective, I just think it will help the game slow down even more. When you see it from that perspective, I just think it’s going to slow down even more for him. You know next year he’ll probably be better because of it. I know it’s disappointing to him, but he’ll be better because of it.”
When Raiola went down backup QB TJ Lateef came in to finish the game and will be the starter this weekend at UCLA. Raiola will have time to watch practice, review films and watch a young QB learn the position on the go. Honestly, I’m excited about Lateef being the starter. He isn’t Dyan Raiola, but Dylan Raiola isn’t TJ Lateef either.
Dana Holgorsen on Dylan’s injury and TJ, “It sucks, but it’s what’s next. That’s how you gotta approach this profession, how you gotta approach this game. And we’re excited about TJ’s opportunity you know.”
The media is saying there is a reason TJ Lateef is the 2nd string QB. Let me just say, that’s not because of talent alone. There are other factors at play. Don’t underestimate what Lateef is capable of just because he is listed behind Raiola. He brings a different skill set to the offense. Lateef is a dual threat QB who can throw the football. Don’t forget, like Raiola, Lateef participated in the Elite 11.
TJ may be more willing to throw the football down the middle of the field, something Raiola has seemed reluctant to do, which is puzzling since he is 21/31 on the season when throwing down the middle with a 67% completion rate. We’ve seen Lindenmayer open in the middle of field several times this season, and in the last four games he’s had 9 receptions for 120 yards or 13.3 yards per catch. He’s been underutilized and could be a great safety valve for a young QB.
Another part of TJ’s game that I am excited for is his ability to carry out play fakes. If you watch him, he hands the ball off and continues through the play as if he still has the ball, which freezes linebackers and defensive backs. Raiola was sometimes sloppy in carrying out play fakes, turning to watch the play and clearly exhibiting that he didn’t have the ball, sitting defenders in motion. It’s a small thing, but an important one.
It’s being said that with the loss of Raiola and going to Lateef Nebraska has lost any margin of error it may have had. I for one haven’t seen a Nebraska team this season that had any margin of error to start with. They’ve been on the edge all season. After jumping out to early leads, they consistently fall behind and then must come back to win. If there was ever a margin of error, it was micro thin.
Lateef’s and the Husker’s success lie with OC Dana Holgorsen. I thought Holgorsen was far too conservative against USC once Lateef was in the game. He is going to have to trust TJ to make plays and stay aggressive. There will be mistakes, he’s a freshman, it’s part of it. But you can’t rely solely on Emmett Johnson and the running game. Lateef is a good runner and opens up parts of the play book that will work well with RPO’s, play action and the running game. Holgorsen knows how to use a talent like Lateef, he just needs to trust himself and cut TJ loose.
I look for this team to rally around TJ and look different. If I’m honest, when I heard Dylan Raiola was out for the season, I never once thought the season was over. It was next man up. And I really like what the next man has to offer.
GO BIG RED!!
Photo courtesy of The Falls City Journal
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