{"id":566905,"date":"2026-02-05T00:57:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T00:57:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/566905\/"},"modified":"2026-02-05T00:57:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T00:57:09","slug":"dayton-raiola-commits-to-oregon-reunites-with-brother-in-eugene","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/566905\/","title":{"rendered":"Dayton Raiola commits to Oregon, reunites with brother in Eugene"},"content":{"rendered":"

Buford<\/a><\/strong> (Ga.) quarterback Dayton Raiola<\/a><\/strong> has found his college home.<\/p>\n

The former Nebraska<\/a><\/strong> commit, who helped lead Buford to a national championship, has committed to Oregon<\/a><\/strong>, joining head coach Dan Lanning<\/a><\/strong> and reuniting with his brother, Dylan Raiola<\/a><\/strong>, in Eugene. Raiola will make the transition from quarterback to tight end at the next level, a move he has fully embraced.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I like about Oregon is that it\u2019s a very high-level, elite program,\u201d Raiola told Rivals. \u201cComing from a program like Buford, everyone is held to a certain standard. That\u2019s where I excel best, and Oregon is very similar \u2014 just at the college level. There\u2019s definitely a high standard there.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Raiola, Oregon\u2019s reputation hardly needed selling.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat made them stand out speaks for itself \u2014 it\u2019s just Oregon,\u201d he said. \u201cGrowing up in Hawaii, Oregon was always right there. Marcus Mariota, the Polynesian presence, that\u2019s a big factor for me. Being around my people from back home means a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n

Raiola spoke highly of Lanning, pointing to both his leadership and his authenticity.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s an amazing person, most importantly,\u201d Raiola said. \u201cHe really cares about his players. Coach Lanning holds everyone to a high standard, which is why they\u2019re so successful, but I also know if I ever need something, Coach Lanning will be there for me no matter what.\u201d<\/p>\n

That combination of accountability and support helped solidify Oregon as the right fit.<\/p>\n

A special opportunity with his brother<\/p>\n

One of the biggest factors in Raiola\u2019s decision was the chance to continue playing alongside his brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cStaying with Dylan was a very big part of my decision,\u201d he said. \u201cHe\u2019s like my best friend. We grew up doing everything together. We push each other every day and hold each other accountable. If he\u2019s not doing enough, I\u2019ll tell him. If I\u2019m not doing enough, I know he\u2019ll tell me.\u201d<\/p>\n

The journey has come full circle.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe played together from youth football to middle school, high school, and now college,\u201d Raiola said. \u201cIt\u2019s pretty surreal. Not many kids get to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Embracing the move to tight end<\/p>\n

Oregon\u2019s staff presented Raiola with the idea of transitioning from quarterback to tight end, and the concept clicked immediately.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s something Oregon brought up, and I actually liked the idea right away,\u201d Raiola said. \u201cI played my first game at tight end in the Polynesian Bowl against some of the best competition in the world, and I didn\u2019t do too bad.\u201d<\/p>\n

Raiola believes his background gives him a natural advantage at the position.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been catching passes from my brother in the backyard my whole life,\u201d he said. \u201cNow I\u2019ll just be doing it for real.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also leans on his football lineage. Raiola\u2019s father played 14 years in the NFL as a center, providing a built-in resource for blocking and run-game knowledge.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I ever need help with blocking or understanding the run game, I can always go to my dad,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Raiola is confident in what he brings to the Ducks.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know I\u2019ll give maximum effort,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ll be one of the hardest workers in the room. And coming from quarterback, I think I can be a very smart tight end \u2014 understanding coverages, zones, leverage \u2014 all of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Raiola is happy about his new home in Eugene<\/p>\n

As the process comes to a close, Raiola says the feeling is one of gratitude and excitement.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt really feels amazing,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m glad I found a home where I can keep getting better every single day. A program like Oregon is taking a chance on me, and I\u2019m not taking that for granted. I\u2019m very thankful, very grateful \u2014 all glory to God.\u201d<\/p>\n

With his commitment now locked in, Raiola begins the next chapter of his football journey \u2014 alongside family, within a demanding culture, and at one of college football\u2019s premier programs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Buford (Ga.) quarterback Dayton Raiola has found his college home. The former Nebraska commit, who helped lead Buford…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":566906,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[43],"tags":[246960,185705,1318,17505,1317,1315,1316,62,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-566905","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ncaa-football","8":"tag-buford-wolves-buford","9":"tag-dayton-raiola-26-buford","10":"tag-football","11":"tag-ga","12":"tag-ncaa","13":"tag-ncaa-football","14":"tag-ncaafootball","15":"tag-sports","16":"tag-united-states","17":"tag-unitedstates","18":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116015309954034721","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/566905","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=566905"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/566905\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/566906"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=566905"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=566905"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=566905"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}