Dylan Raiola came to Nebraska as the potential savior of the former powerhouse program. The five-star recruit in the 2024 class had an adequate freshman season, taking the Cornhuskers to a bowl game.
Instead of talking about improving on his first year in Lincoln, the story around Raiola has shifted to his admiration, if not obsession, over Kansas City Chiefs superstar signal-caller Patrick Mahomes.
From a carbon-copy hairstyle to mimicking Mahomes' pregame routine, without hearing him talk, the influence from one of the NFL's greats is apparent.
Raiola shared some insight on his relationship with the three-time Super Bowl champion by making a bold comparison.
During an interview with CBS Sports for Big Ten media day, Raiola compared his bond with Mahomes to that of two NBA icons.
"The relationship doesn't add pressure for me to perform," Raiola said. "I'm not comparing myself to Kobe, but what Kobe Bryant did to Michael Jordan, that's kind of what it is for me to Patrick. It's all love."
Although he clearly wasn't suggesting he wasn't the same caliber of player as Kobe, Raiola's comment was still worthy of an eye roll, nonetheless.
Kobe and Jordan were in the same league at the same time. The relationship was contingent on the fact that a young Kobe had a similar killer instinct to Jordan, with a comparable skill set.
Raiola isn't even an above-average collegiate quarterback yet, and Mahomes already has an argument to be on the NFL's Mount Rushmore.
Even if the pair is genuinely close, the infatuation will be a bit much until Raiola puts it together on the field.