Kirk Herbstreit on what he said to Dylan Raiola's father and the flip from Georgia football
Florida State fans have painted Kirk Herbstreit as a villain like they have the College Football Playoff Committee for not backing the Seminoles as worthy of making the four-team field.
It was Georgia football fans turn this week to have a beef with the longtime ESPN College GameDay host and analyst.
At issue is whether Herbstreit helped steer five-star Georgia commitment Dylan Raiola to Nebraska.
More: Georgia football No. 1 signing class will make impact, but probably not as fast as transfers
More: Georgia football program tracker: Player movement, staff changes and other news
His father, former Nebraska All-American center Dominic Raiola, said this week that Herbstreit called him when there was “smoke,” in December about his son flipping from Georgia to Nebraska where he signed.
“He said, 'Dude, is this true? He’s got to do it,'” Dominic Raiola told Rivals on their signing day show Wednesday. “For a guy like that to tell me and get behind me. I knew. I knew he needed to do it, but I wasn’t going to sit here and say you need to change that place or be a part of the change of that place.”
Kirk Herbstreit gives his take on the phone call he had with Dylan Raiola's dad before the QB recruit flipped his commitment from Georgia to Nebraska pic.twitter.com/W7fWbSrKHq
— Paul Finebaum (@finebaum) February 8, 2024
Herbstreit said Thursday that he was asked by Dominic Raiola for his opinion on Cornhuskers coach Matt Rhule, someone he likes.
“Are you supposed to say Matt Rhule is a bad guy, Matt Rhule is an idiot, Matt Rhule is a bad coach?” Herbstreit said on the Paul Finebaum Show on the SEC Network. “Or do you say, I like Matt Rhule. I think Matt Rhule is a good coach.”
Herbstreit said the family’s connection to Nebraska—Dylan Raiola’s uncle is the offensive line coach—made them really torn about where he should play college ball.
“I just said, wow, the fact that your son could go to any school, any powerhouse that’s competing for national titles and because of his respect for his own dad, he’s thinking about maybe going to Nebraska, a place that hasn’t competed for national titles in over 20 years,” Herbstreit said. “ That says a lot about who the kid is.”
Herbstreit said he did not sell Raiola on going to Nebraska “and try to tell anybody not to go to Georgia. That’s the most ridiculous thing anybody would do, but I did compliment Matt Rhule. If I’m guilty of anything, I said Matt Rhule is a good coach and he’s a good man.”
This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Kirk Herbstreit on Dylan Raiola flip from Georgia football to Nebraska
