Dylan Raiola had the opportunity to triumph over his previous team after all.
The Oregon quarterback entered the game in the second half and delivered the winning touchdown pass with just 28 seconds remaining, allowing the Ducks to defeat Nebraska 17-14.
Raiola connected with tight end Jamari Johnson for the decisive score from four yards out. Nebraska managed to advance 35 yards in five plays following the touchdown, but they were unsuccessful in positioning themselves for a game-tying field goal.
The junior quarterback took over for Brock Thomas in the fourth quarter after Thomas had thrown an interception during Oregon’s final drive in the third quarter. That interception occurred while Oregon was behind 7-6, and Nebraska converted the turnover into a touchdown six plays later.
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“So we decided to proceed with a [QB] change,” Oregon coach Dan Lanning stated during his postgame press conference. “I approached Brock and mentioned, ‘hey, we’re aiming to spark something for our guys and need to make a change here. It’s not specifically anything related to your performance, but we need to try something new, right? We can’t keep repeating the same approach.’ Brock responded that he completely understood, loved me, and wanted to do whatever was best for the team, which reflects incredibly courageous behavior in such a scenario.”
“And it must be frustrating in that situation to think, ‘I’m on board with this. Let’s do whatever is necessary to secure the win.’
Raiola promptly guided Oregon to a field goal on a drive that consumed almost half of the fourth quarter, as the Ducks executed 17 plays to travel 69 yards. Following a Nebraska punt, Oregon then orchestrated a five-minute drive covering 82 yards. Raiola’s pass to Johnson marked the 20th play of that drive and the 37th play for Oregon in the final quarter.
Thomas began the game after taking over for Raiola during Oregon’s Week 6 defeat against UCLA. The Ducks committed seven turnovers in that 17-15 loss to the Bruins, causing them to drop out of the AP Top 25 rankings.
On Saturday night, Thomas completed 9 of 20 passes for 54 yards and an interception. Raiola went 11 of 18 passing for 59 yards. Together, they averaged a mere three yards per attempt on their 38 passes.
After spending two seasons as Nebraska’s starting quarterback, Raiola transferred to Oregon. With Dante Moore returning to the Ducks for the 2026 season, Raiola started the season as Moore’s backup, aiming to become the starting quarterback in 2027.
Raiola’s debut as a starter wearing an Oregon uniform came much sooner than anticipated. Moore sustained a concerning concussion in Oregon’s Week 4 victory over USC and has been sidelined for the Ducks’ past two games.
The victory improved Oregon’s record to 4-2 ahead of their upcoming game against Illinois in Week 8. Nebraska currently holds a 5-2 overall record after suffering back-to-back losses and will have a break in Week 8 before facing Washington on Halloween.
