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Nebraska football HC Matt Rhule reveals ‘love’ message to injured Dylan Raiola
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- Nebraska football HC Matt Rhule reveals ‘love’ message to injured Dylan Raiola
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The post Nebraska football HC Matt Rhule reveals 'love' message to injured Dylan Raiola appeared first on ClutchPoints .
Nebraska head football coach Matt Rhule truly loves Dylan Raiola like his own son.
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Nebraska suffered a four-point loss to USC in Week 10, but left the game much more concerned about Raiola, who suffered a concerning ankle injury late in the game. Rhule revealed after the game that the sophomore tried to return to the game, but he could not let him do so.
"The trainers didn't want him to go out there," Rhule said, via Husker Online on YouTube. "They didn't say, 'No, he can't,' they were just kind of like, 'He shouldn't be out there.' So I told Dylan, 'I love you too much to ask you to play when you're hurt like this.'"
Raiola suffered the injury while getting sacked by USC defensive end Anthony Lucas, who hit him from behind and rolled up on the quarterback's ankle. The sack also pushed him into another defender, adding pressure to the 20-year-old's leg.
Raiola exited the game in the third down and did not return to the game. Rhule said he was not only concerned with the visible pain that his quarterback was in, but was also considering his injury history with that ankle.
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The Nebraska quarterback previously hurt his ankle at the end of his freshman year. He initially picked up the injury in a Week 6 game against Maryland , when he was controversially hit by a defender while trying to limp off the field.
Nebraska turns to TJ Lateef after Dylan Raiola injury
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Raiola's injury forced Rhule to turn to true freshman TJ Lateef, a three-star prospect from Orange, California. Lateef played the final 27 minutes of the game and went 5-of-7 for seven passing yards.
Rhule said Lateef has a "bright future," but the team was clearly handicapped for most of the second half. Nebraska turned to its run game and rode the hot hand of running back Emmett Johnson , who fielded 29 carries for 165 rushing yards.
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Rhule has remained mum on Raiola's injury status and has yet to make an official Week 11 declaration. The 6-3 Cornhuskers travel to the West Coast to face the other Los Angeles-based Big Ten team, UCLA , on Nov. 8.
If Raiola misses his first game of the year in Week 11, Lateef could be in line for his first career start. Senior Jalyn Gramstad , redshirt freshman Bode Soukup, redshirt freshman Marcos Davila and junior Luke Longval are the remaining quarterbacks on the roster. Tight end Henrich Haarberg also has eight career starts under center.
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