Oregon benches Thomas for Dylan Raiola, who beats former team Nebraska 17-14

One week after he was benched, Dylan Raiola came off the bench himself on Saturday night and beat the program he left. Oregon coach Dan Lanning started former walk-on Brock Thomas against Nebraska. He made the switch to start the fourth quarter with the Ducks down 14-6, and Raiola led two scoring drives to give Oregon a 17-14 win at Autzen Stadium.

Until then, the Ducks had almost no offense. On3 reported that Thomas finished 9-of-20 for 54 yards with an interception, and his final pass was intercepted just before he came out. Oregon Ducks On SI noted that Oregon managed two first downs and went 0-for-7 on third down in the first half. According to The Associated Press, the Ducks had 91 total yards before the change. Their only points through three quarters came on two Gage Hurych field goals, while the Autzen student section chanted for Raiola.

Raiola's first drive ended in a 37-yard Hurych field goal that cut the lead to 14-9. The next one went 20 plays and 82 yards, as GoDucks.com described it, and ended with a 4-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jamari Johnson in the back of the end zone with 28 seconds left. A two-point conversion made it 17-14. Raiola went 11-of-18 for 59 yards. Those are modest numbers, but they won the game. "A lot of people don't necessarily get second chances," Lanning said afterward, as reported by Oregon Ducks On SI.

The Ducks have been unsettled at quarterback since Dante Moore was carted off with a concussion against USC. He has not played since. Raiola was sharp in relief that night, going 19-of-25 for 289 yards and two touchdowns in a 41-27 win. Two weeks later he went 6-of-19 for 43 yards with two interceptions in the loss to UCLA, and Oregon pulled him midway through that game. That is how Thomas got the start against Nebraska. Saturday's comeback puts Raiola back at the front of the line for the job, though Lanning's choice for next week has not been reported. Akili Smith Jr., a second-year player with one appearance against Portland State, is the other option.

What it means for Illinois and beyond

The win moves Oregon to 4-2 and 2-1 in the Big Ten. It kept the Ducks from falling to three losses, which would have badly hurt their playoff hopes. It still left them with plenty to fix. Each of their last four games has gone one way or the other: the comfortable win at USC, the 84-0 rout of Portland State, the 17-15 loss to UCLA and Saturday's comeback. Oregon has scored 32 points over its last two games. The defense has kept the Ducks in games, holding Nebraska to two touchdowns. Next up is a trip to Illinois on Saturday, October 24, and it will be the first test of whether Raiola can hold up for four quarters after his late rally.

For Nebraska, the loss stings because of who beat them. The Cornhuskers started 5-0, outscoring opponents 218-71, but have now lost two straight by three points each: 20-17 to No. 7 Indiana and 17-14 in Eugene. At 5-2 and 2-2 in conference play, they get a bye week before hosting Washington on October 31.