(born
December 30 ,
1978 in
Honolulu, Hawaii ) is an
American Football Center with the
Detroit Lions .
Raiola was born in Honolulu and attended
Saint Louis School . Their football team went undefeated in his last three years at the school, which won its 11th straight
Prep Bowl in
1996 , his final year. St. Louis High was rated as the 15th best team in the
US , with Raiola's performance at
Center leading to the
University Of Nebraska offering him a scholarship.
In his first year, he became the first
Freshman offensive lineman to start a game for the Cornhuskers since
Rob Zatechka in
1991 . In
1999 , he became the first sophomore center for the team since
Dave Rimington to participate in postseason play setting a school record for knockdowns which he bettered in
2000 . He was widely picked as an
All-America n in 2000.
Raiola was drafted by the Lions in the
2001 NFL Draft in the second round. He started to get game time as a replacement center in the latter half of the season with a game against the
San Francisco 49ers in
November his first in that position. He was selected as a member of ''
Pro Football Weekly's '' All-Rookie squad during that season.
In
2002 , Raiola started for all 16 games of the season, winning the
Chuck Hughes Most Improved Player award. He was a key member of the offensive line which allowed only 20
Quarterback Sack s for the season, the lowest for the NFL in that season and then a franchise record. Raiola protected both
Quarterback Joey Harrington and
Running Back James Stewart .
Raiola was again a key part of the offensive line in
2003 , starting in all 16 games again. During that season, the offensive line allowed just 11 sacks, a new record for the franchise. He also played more special teams, becoming the long-snapper when
Brantford Banta broke his
Clavicle against the
San Diego Chargers .
In
2004 , Raiola started at center in all 16 games. The Lions' offensive line helped the team's rushing attack to be ranked second for the seven last games of the season. He again became responsible for long-snapping after
Jody Littleton incurred a
Hamstring injury against the
Washington Redskins in the middle of November. His reliability and strong performance led to the Lions offering him a five-year contract extension in
March 2005 .
