Fall 2008 - Rutgers Alumni Association

S P O R T S
U P D A T E
BY JOHN WOODING RC ’78
Rutgers Football 2008:
Moving Beyond Ray Rice
As it looks to keep the momentum of the
last few years alive, Rutgers football has
a daunting task on its hands: filling the
shoes of Ray Rice, one of the greatest
running backs in the school’s history who moved
Quarterback Mike Teel returns for his third season
as starter, and has a shot to rewrite every major
passing record at Rutgers. PHOTO BY TOM CISZEK
on to the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens. All Rice did
while at Rutgers was help lead the Scarlet Knights
to three consecutive bowl games and shatter every
season and career rushing record.
“The neat thing about college football is every
year you lose some guys to graduation, and some
talented new players step in,” head coach Greg
Schiano said at the team’s annual Media Day in
August. “It’s not coincidental that things really took
off during Ray Rice’s time here. But he certainly
had a great supporting cast, and Ray would be the
first to tell you that.”
Schiano is counting on a number of prime
candidates to fill the void, including sophomores
Kordell Young and Mason Robinson. Young, a
former first-team All-State performer who averaged
nearly 11 yards per carry during his career at West
Deptford (NJ) High School, was slated as Rice’s
backup last season before suffering a season-ending
knee injury in the third game of the year. Robinson,
who earned All-State honors at Somerville High
School, stepped in behind Rice in 2007 after Young
was sidelined, and averaged 5.6 yards per carry.
Schiano must find replacements at other key
positions, too. Pedro Sosa UCNB ’08 and Mike
Fladell UCNB ’08 anchored the left side of the
offensive line, while Jeremy Zuttah RC ’08 was a
fixture on the offensive line (he was recently a thirdround
pick of theTampa Bay Bucs). On the defensive
side, inspirational leader Eric Foster UCNB ’08 will
be missed at defensive tackle, as will academic
All-America Brandon Renkart ENG ’08, a starting
linebacker. Record-setting place kicker Jeremy Ito
RC ’08, RBS ’08 has also graduated.
One area that Schiano does not have to worry
about is the passing game, where quarterback Mike
Teel returns for his third season as starter. The
veteran signal caller enters the 2008 campaign with
a good shot at rewriting every major passing record
at Rutgers. He is presently No. 4 in career yards
“
It’s not coincidental
that things really took
off during Ray’s time
here...but he certainly
had a great supporting
cast, and he’d be the
first to tell you that.
— Coach Greg
(5,965), and No. 5 in completions
Schiano” (418), attempts
(746) and touchdowns (34).Teel is on the pre-season
watch lists for both the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm
Award, and the Davey O’Brien Award, both
presented to the nation’s top signal caller.
Teel’s primary targets are also standouts. Tiquan
Underwood and Kenny Britt each surpassed the
Wide receiver Tiquan Underwood PHOTO BY TOM CISZEK
1,000-yard mark in receiving in 2007, just the 26th
time in NCAA history – and the first time in BIG
EAST annals – that two players from the same team
had 1,000 yards receiving in the same season. Britt
was a first-team Sophomore All-American selection
by College Football News in 2007, after catching 62
passes for 1,232 yards. Underwood, a first-team
All-BIG EAST choice last year, hauled in 65 passes
for 1,100 yards. Britt and Underwood are on the
pre-season Biletnikoff Award (nation’s top receiver)
watch list.
Schiano is looking to sophomore Anthony
Davis and junior Ryan Blaszczyk to anchor the
offensive line. Davis started eight games as a
freshman, and is an Outland Trophy (nation’s top
lineman) candidate after being shifted to left tackle.
Blaszczyk stepped in at center last season, starting all
13 games, and enters 2008 as a Rimington Award
(nation’s top center) candidate. Both Blaszczyk and
Davis are mainstays in an offensive line that helped
establish school records last year in scoring (426),
first downs (294) and total offense (5,841 yards).
The Scarlet Knights are also endowed with
considerable power on the defensive side, including
four-year starting safety Courtney Greene and
defensive end Jamaal Westerman. A crunching
hitter, Greene is on the watch list for the Bronko
Nagurski Trophy, which is awarded to the nation’s
top defensive player, and the Lott Trophy, which
recognizes the top impact defensive player. Greene
already has 299 tackles (No. 8 all-time at Rutgers) and
five interceptions in his career. Westerman, who has
appeared in 38 games in the past three seasons,
has shown an ability to penetrate the backfield and
has 20 sacks and 38 tackles for losses in his career.
Intensifying the excitement surrounding Rutgers
football is the stadium itself, whose club level was
completed this season as part of the ongoing expansion
program. For the 2009 season, a total of 13,000
additional seats will be ready for some 12,000 fans
eager for season tickets.
22 1766 MAGAZINE