Dylan Raiola commits to Georgia Bulldogs; Kirby Smart lands nation's top 2024 prospect
The two-time defending national champions have landed the class of 2024's prized prospect.
Pinnacle High School (Arizona) 6-foot-3, 200-pound quarterback Dylan Raiola committed to the Georgia Bulldogs, he announced on social media Monday.
Raiola is a consensus five-star and the No. 1 recruit in the country according to major recruiting services. He threw for 3,341 yards, 32 touchdowns and five picks as a sophomore and 2.435 yards, 22 touchdowns and five picks as a junior at Chandler (Arizona).
Rumblings that Raiola was set to announce his decision circulated on social media Sunday. NFL analyst Dan Orlovsky strongly hinted he'd decided on Georgia. Raiola's older sister, TCU volleyball player Taylor Raiola, responded with dog emojis.
He was initially committed to Ohio State, but backed out of that verbal commitment in December. He took unofficial visits to Georgia, Nebraska and USC this spring and Georgia emerged the heavy favorite.
There were natural ties to Nebraska, where his father Dominic Raiola starred in the late 1990s before playing in the NFL. He was admittedly intrigued by USC, especially after coach Lincoln Riley bringing in former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, who coached Patrick Mahomes at Texas Tech.
Ultimately, Georgia won out. Raiola, who transferred to Pinnacle from Chandler after his junior season, cited "love" for Georgia head coach Kirby Smart and quality control coach Mike Bobo.
Bobo developed L.A. Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford at Georgia, whose arm talent and polish at a young age have been compared to Raiola.
Here's what Raiola told SBLive about Georgia at the Elite 11 Eugene regional on May 1:
"It's no secret that I love (head coach Kirby) Smart and what he does. Great leader. His coaching staff is all pulling for the same reasons, they're on the same page. And just being around (offensive quality control coach Mike Bobo) ... seeing how I fit in that system is pretty cool, so I'm going to have a hard decision to make, but I'm very blessed to be in the position I'm in."
