Inside football star Dylan Raiola’s famous sports family including NFL parent

Born in Hawaii in 2005, Dylan began making waves in football as early as high school. He first attended Burleson High School in Texas before transferring to Chandler High School in Arizona for his junior year. He then completed his senior season at Buford High School in Georgia.

In 2023, the star announced his top four schools –  Georgia, Nebraska, Oregon, and USC. However, he changed his mind from Georgia to Nebraska before the end of the year. 

Dylan is the son of the former NFL player Dominic Raiola. During his junior season, he set a Nebraska record with 145 pancake blocks, ultimately finishing his college career with an impressive 371. In his final year with the program, Raiola was named a consensus All-American and became the first-ever recipient of the Rimington Award in 2000. Dominic was selected by The Detroit, Lions in the second round of the 2001 NFL draft.

“To be around that kind of atmosphere, and that level of football play, I didn’t understand it back then, but now to look back, I’m very grateful I have that experience,” Dylan told Hail Varsity. “To be around great football players like Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson and a bunch more, it was just a cool lifestyle to grow up in, of going to games on Sunday, and then kind of just celebrating.”

The football star’s mom, Yvonne Raiola, also has experience in the sporting world. The mother-of-three represented the University of Hawaii in Water Polo before she married Dominic. She was also a former athlete and took part in the All-State Track Relay Team in school.

Dylan’s uncle is Donovan Raiola, who is currently the offensive line coach for the Huskers – a position he has held since 2022. “Having an uncle (here) is special,” said Dylan. “He’s always there to remind me why I’m here, and he’s right there for me. Even though all the coaches care for me tremendously, that’s blood, a family relationship that you can’t substitute. So it’s like having my dad here honestly, just because they’re similar and they kind of say the same things. So it’s just pretty cool.”

It seems Donovan saw his nephew’s sporting abilities from a young age. “When he was 2 years old,” he shared. “Sunday night football was on. He could hardly say mom and dad, and the Patriots are playing. He’s sitting there, jumping around the couch, and he looks up, he’s like ‘Tom Brady.’ I was like, ‘What?'”

Dylan’s brother, Dayton Raiola, is a promising quarterback from Buford, GA. Unlike his brother, Dayon is a left-handed passer. And that’s not all – Dylan’s sister, Taylor Raiola, has been the Director of Volleyball Operations at Mississippi State University since June 2025.