God given ability… to look like Patrick Mahomes.
It’s not uncommon for younger athletes to emulate the greats of the game. But if you ask me, the line has to be drawn somewhere… because it’s a little concerning how much Nebraska Cornhuskers sophomore quarterback Dylan Raiola looks like the three-time Super Bowl winning QB Patrick Mahomes.
Raiola resembles Mahomes so much that he went viral last summer on social media before he even played a snap for the Cornhuskers:
Raiola was highly touted five star recruit when he joined Nebraska in 2024, and he’s the son of longtime NFL center Dominic Raiola. It appears that football runs in the family… and a side effect of that may be looking like an already existing NFL star.
If you think I’m exaggerating when I say that Raiola does everything exactly like Mahomes, just look at this video and you should understand:
Seeing double.
Another similarity between the two? Last year, Mahomes’ completion percentage was 67.5%, while Raiola’s was 67.1%. The only difference? The Chiefs QB had a better TD to INT Ratio (26 to 11) than the Cornhuskers QB (13 to 11). But I guess that’s not exactly comparing apples-to-apples since the college and professional game is so much different… and the NFL plays more games a season.
Oh, and if you were wondering what Patrick Mahomes thought about Raiola’s Mahomes-esque tendencies, the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback apparently doesn’t have a problem with it all. In fact, he found it flattering and explained why in a press conference last year:
“It’s cool, honestly. I was that guy. I grew up watching players. When I was growing up, I loved Alex Rodriguez. I played short stop and I’d try to make plays just like him and stuff like that. It helped me become the athlete that I am.
It’s just telling me I’m getting a little old. That’s the biggest thing is that you’ve got these guys that are coming up and doing some of the side arm stuff. But I know Dylan. I trained with him in the offseason. He’s a great kid, a great football player, and I think he’s going to make his own stamp on the game.”
Guess if Mahomes is cool with it, there’s no harm, no foul.
The comparisons between the two quarterbacks fired back up today when a video posted by CBS Sports showed Dylan Raiola talking to his teammates about he and Mahomes sharing a likeness. Some of his Nebraska teammates did have the QB’s back, saying that Raiola had the mohawk fade haircut first. Regardless, the Nebraska quarterback summed up the entire conversation and situation with this quote that’s now going viral:
“I can’t get mad at God for making me look like him. Pat is cool, he knows what it is.”
Raiola also said towards the end of that clip that he’s not cool with the nickname “Mini Mahomes,” and that he’s “trying to be his own guy.” Is he though? Certainly seems like he could make a couple of cosmetic alterations (hairstyle change, shave the Mahomes-style facial hair) and achieve that “own guy” thing a little bit quicker.
Here’s the full convo:
