G2
G A M E DAY
SEPTEMBER 2, 2010
T H E DA I LY TA R G U M
KnightsGameday RUTGERS VS NORFOLK STATE
GAME 1: Rutgers Stadium, 7:30 p.m. TV: ESPN3.com RADIO: 1450 AM
Opener offers opportunity for tune-up BY SAM HELLMAN CORRESPONDENT
To the outside world and in the realm of college football, tonight’s game against Norfolk State has very little significance. To the Rutgers football team, 7:30 p.m. tonight marks the culmination of work put in during three grueling weeks of training camp and is critical to the Scarlet Knights’ development. Head coach Greg Schiano, entering his 10th season, preaches that each game is its own season and the players all buy into the idea. “The one-game season for Norfolk State is very important,” said fifth-year senior defensive tackle and team captain Charlie Noonan. “They might not be on the level of a Cincinnati or some other teams we’ve opened against, but we need a very strong showing.” Noonan brings three years worth of game experience to the defensive line in tonight’s matchup, but for key players on every tier of offense and defense, Norfolk State is the time to get game experience in a more meaningful setting, and for some, play at Rutgers Stadium for the first time. “I haven’t really been on a game field since high school and I’m just excited to go out here and prove what I can do,” said redshirt freshman cornerback Logan Ryan, who is poised for significant playing time this season. “I don’t know that I’m going to play yet, but knowing I have a chance and that I’m not redshirting is an exciting feeling. Having that year under my belt, I know more than I did last year. I’m not lost.” In the secondary, Ryan is a key addition in the effort to replace alleverything Devin McCourty along with a slew of cornerbacks with game experience. On the offensive side of the ball, the dearth in experience comes on the line, where three starters from last season are gone to professional football. “There is definitely inexperience, but we all know our roles and have been doing them,” said senior captain and starting center Howard Barbieri. “I’m new to center, but I have started. Art [Forst] is new to right tackle, but he has started and the other guys all have experience too.”
[
INSIDE the NUMBERS
SCARLET KNIGHTS (0-0)
PASSING C. Walley
CMP YDS TD INT. AVG. -- -- ----
RUSHING NO. YDS TD LNG AVG. J. Martinek 206 967 9 61 4.7 62 346 5 34 M. Sanu 5.6
RUSHING D. Branche D. Cotton
NO. YDS TD LNG AVG. 5.3 175 922 10 32 4.7 60 281 2 37
RECEIVING NO. YDS TD LNG AVG. 51 639 3 62 12.5 M. Sanu J. Martinek 12 140 0 27 11.7 48 0 26 7 K. Young 6.9 5 108 0 46 21.6 D. Jefferson
RECEIVING NO. YDS TD J. Wicker 51 958 13 D. Branche 18 250 1 S. Childress 14 136 0 N. McCowan 11 97 0
TKL SCK 1 55 1 44 32 9.5
A. Lowery J. Lefeged J. Freeny
ANDREW HOWARD / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Knight fans can expect a more pleasant opening to the season in 2010 than the brutal situations in 2009 and 2008. The newly expanded stadium did not open well for the Knights last season when Cincinnati, who went on to go undefeated in the regular season, torched Rutgers, 47-15. The year before, Rutgers got off to a 1-5 start after embarrassing losses to Fresno State, North Carolina and Navy to kick off the year. This year, Rutgers gets a chance to tune up against Norfolk State and continue to build momentum on the road against the Sun Belt’s Florida International before jumping into the fire against UNC in Week 3. “We haven’t played well in our first game the last two years and I haven’t liked that,” Schiano said. “We have played well at other times. I remember in 2007, we really played well against Buffalo. In Carolina [in 2006], a
young team really played well. So why, two years in a row, we didn’t play well? I don’t know. Hopefully we have remedied that.” Nor folk State did not stand a chance against Rutgers in 2008, when the two teams last clashed helmets, losing, 59-0, behind three touchdowns by Ray Rice and three more for Mike Teel through the air. This season, Norfolk State’s experience stood out to Schiano as a concern for his team. Schiano said he doesn’t plan on holding much out of the playbook, so look for some Wild Knight snaps for both receivers Mohamed Sanu and Jeremy Deering and an expanded repertoire for quarterback Tom Savage. “This is an experienced and pretty good team we’re playing and we’re going to do ever ything we do,” Schiano said. “We have to get better at what we do and go out and do our best.”
NORFOLK STATE (0-0)
PASSING CMP YDS TD INT. AVG. T. Savage 52.3% 2211 14 7 184.2
DEFENSE
Logan Ryan redshirted last season but is one of the top three cornerbacks this year and will get his first game action here.
]
INT 1 1 0
DEFENSE
A. Taylor C. Hammond O. Anyaugo
INJURIES Probable — S. Shimko Doubtful — J. Tartacoff, K. Young Out — T. Wright, C. Turner, Q. Pratt
INJURIES
SCHEDULE Sept. 2 Sept. 11 Sept. 25 Oct. 2 Oct. 8 Oct. 16 Oct. 23 Nov. 3 Nov. 13 Nov. 20 Nov. 26 Dec. 4
SCHEDULE Sept. 2 Sept. 11 Sept. 18 Sept. 25 Oct. 9 Oct. 16 Oct. 23 Oct. 30 Nov. 6 Nov. 13 Nov. 20
Norfolk State 7:30 8 p.m. FIU N. Carolina TBA TBA Tulane Connecticut 7:30 TBA Army TBA Pittsburgh South Florida 7 p.m. TBA Syracuse TBA Cincinnati TBA Louisville West Virginia TBA
LNG AVG. 71 18.8 53 13.9 9.7 23 8.8 27
TKL SCK 81 5.5 67 3.5 35 1
INT 0 1 0
7:30 4 p.m. Virginia St. 6 pm. Bethune-Cook 4 p.m. 2 p.m. S.C. State 1 p.m. Hampton Florida A&M 2 p.m. 1 pm. Howard Morgan St. 1 p.m. Delaware St. 1 p.m. Savannah St. 2 p.m. Rutgers
N.C. A&T
Key Matchup True freshmen vs. First-team Spartan defense Freshmen Jordan Thomas and Jeremy Deering are sure things to see the field tonight, and Betim Bujari and Chas Dodd might, as well. Against a Division 1-AA opponent, it’s time to see how the freshmen respond when the lights come on.
STARTING LINEUP: OFFENSE
MOHAMED SANU Wide Receiver
DESMOND STAPLETON Tackle
DESMOND WYNN Guard
HOWARD BARBIERI Center
CALEB RUCH Guard
ART FORST Tackle
D.C. JEFFERSON Tight End
MARK HARRISON Wide Receiver
TOM SAVAGE Quarterback
EDMOND LARYEA Fullback
JOE MARTINEK Running Back
Sophomore 6’-2”, 218 lbs.
Junior 6’-5”, 285 lbs.
Junior 6’-6”, 290 lbs.
Senior 6’-5”, 304 lbs.
Junior 6’-4”, 290 lbs.
Junior 6’-8”, 311 lbs.
Sophomore 6’-6”, 258 lbs
Sophomore 6’-3”, 230 lbs
Sophomore 6’-5”, 226 lbs
Senior 6’-1”, 223 lbs
Junior 6’-0”, 215 lbs
DAVID ROWE Cornerback
JOE LEFEGED Strong Safety
KHASEEM GREENE Free Safety
BRANDON BING Cornerback
Junior 6’-0”, 196 lbs
Senior 6’-1”, 205 lbs
Sophomore 6’-1”, 215 lbs
Senior 5’-11”, 180 lbs
STARTING LINEUP: DEFENSE
JONATHAN FREENY Right end
CHARLIE NOONAN Tackle
SCOTT VALLONE Tackle
ALEX SILVESTRO Left end
MANNY ABREU Linebacker
STEVE BEAUHARNAIS
Linebacker
ANTONIO LOWERY Linebacker
Senior 6’-3”, 250 lbs
Senior 6’-2”, 274 lbs
Sophomore 6’-3”, 270 lbs
Senior 6’-4”, 260 lbs
Junior 6’-3”, 245 lbs
Sophomore 6’-2”, 230 lbs
Senior 6’-2”, 225 lbs
G AMEDAY
T H E DA I LY TA R G U M
SEPTEMBER 2, 2010
G3
ANDREW HOWARD / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Tom Savage and Mohamed Sanu both made splashes as true freshmen, leading Rutgers to a 45-24 St. Petersburg Bowl victory last season.
TAG
TEAM
Savage, Sanu took different paths to Rutgers but clicked once together, hope to use their connection to avoid sophomore slumps BY SAM HELLMAN CORRESPONDENT
Standing uncomfortably in a Rutgers football uniform in front of a screen during a media day photo shoot, Tom Savage slouched his shoulders and exhaled when it was over. Standing two feet behind him in the same photo shoot, Mohamed Sanu did the same thing at the same time. Their eyes met for a brief second as they posed for the next shot and both sophomores burst into laughter without a word. “We know what each other is thinking,” said Sanu, the Scarlet Knights’ top receiver and MVP of last season’s St. Petersburg Bowl. “We’ll look at e a c h other and just think the same thing or laugh at the same joke without saying anything.”
The next afternoon during a training camp practice, a broken play flushed Savage, the team’s incumbent star ting quarterback and most experienced passer in the Big East, out of the pocket. Instead of throwing it away, the 6-foot-5 sophomore hurled a spiral 20 yards down the field to an open Sanu, who snared it and got one foot in bounds. “Sometimes we kind of know what each other is thinking,” Savage said. “I just knew he’d be there and come back to the ball like that and I always trust him to come down with whatever I throw up there.” The bond between teammates, between classmates, between quarterback and receiver is often overdramatized. The importance of friendship varies based on athlete’s personalities. But for the Scarlet Knights’ young guns, the bond is essential. “It’s really important for me to be able to trust who I throw the ball to,” Savage said. “[Having Sanu] is huge because you always have that relief. You always have that guy you can go to and that guy you can call on. All of our receivers are doing great and all of our receivers are coming along and I trust them, but Mohamed’s just a freak. Him and I, our timing is just doing really well.” Savage arrived on the Banks
last year as green and wideeyed as the next freshman, but quickly made a splash when he hit the practice field. Rated as the eighth best pro-style passer in the countr y on Rivals.com, the Cardinal O’Hara High School (Pa.) product chose Rutgers over scholarship offers from top schools such as Georgia, Florida State, Miami and Penn State.
“Sometimes we ... know what each other is thinking. ... I always trust him to come down with whatever I throw.” TOM SAVAGE Sophomore QB
Savage quickly climbed the ladder from fifth on the depth char t to primar y backup by opening day kickof f. Thir ty minutes of football and three interceptions by star ter Dom Natale later, Savage was the starter. Savage compiled an 8-3 record as starting quarterback and set Big East freshman records in passing yards (2,211) and touchdowns (14). Throughout spring practice and training camp, Savage worked solely as Rutgers’ starting quarterback, fighting to avoid any resemblance of a sophomore slump.
“I think he’s grown a little bit as a leader,” said head coach Greg Schiano. “He’s more comfor table in his own skin as the quar terback now. I think it’s allowed him to have a little bit more of a command position.” Sanu traveled a ver y different path to Piscataway. For one, it’s just a 15-mile drive north on Route 1 from South Brunswick High School. But Sanu was unranked nationally and only the No. 22 recr uit in the Garden State. Sanu avoided most camps and combines and verbally committed to Rutgers so early that most schools avoided recr uiting the 6-foot-2 wideout. Sanu enrolled early and had a monstrous spring at safety before moving to wide receiver and starting against Cincinnati. As a freshman, Sanu was second on the team in r eceiving with 639 yards and three touch-
downs. With his background as a high school quarterback, Sanu brought the Wildcat to Rutgers as well, running for 346 yards and five touchdowns, including two in the St. Petersburg Bowl. “I was becoming more comfortable with the offense and more confident in myself. And I’m getting used to the system much more and I was just being myself and letting the game happen,” Sanu said. “I’m more confident. I’ve learned so much since last year and I just |feel like I’m such a more confident player and a much better player.” Going into tonight’s game against Nor folk State, the Savage-to-Sanu connection is as impor tant as ever. With the rest of the receivers either injured, recovering from injur y or lacking any form of playing experience, Savage needs ever ything Sanu has to of fer while he waits for the receiving corps to establish itself. And after the 10-catch, 103yard game for Sanu in last season’s opener, he’s ready to play this year. The nerves, however, are still there. “Of course [they’re still there],” Sanu said. “You’re nervous for everything. You’re nervous when you’re going on your first date. You’re nervous when you’re just doing anything. You’re ner vous taking a test. You’ve always got nerves, but they come and go.”
G4
G AMEDAY
SEPTEMBER 2, 2010
T H E DA I LY TA R G U M
KNIGHT NUGGETS BY THE NUMBERS Entering his 10th season as Rutgers head football coach, Greg Schiano’s opening day record stands at 5-4. He lost each of the past two years against Fresno State and Cincinnati but beat Buffalo the year before.
5-4
Greg Schiano has 19 wins in September — the most of any month. His all-time record is 19-14, and the Scarlet Knights are 11-5 in the month since beginning the 2006 season undefeated.
19
In three games against MEAC opponents under Greg Schiano, Rutgers has outscored them by 135 points. The Scarlet Knights are 3-0 under Schiano and 6-0 all time.
135
Entering his sophomore season, quarterback Tom Savage has 11 starts under his belt, making him the most experienced quarterback in the Big East, where the Knights were picked fifth.
11
BIG QUESTION
Can Rutgers’ second team hold the lead the starters leave the game with?
FRESHMAN QB CHAS DODD
The second team offensive line did not excel during training camp but need to give freshman quarterback Chas Dodd some protection, should he play. ANDREW HOWARD / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Senior defensive end Jonathan Freeny led the defense with 9.5 sacks last season as a pass-rush specialist and will get his first chance as a full-time starter this year on the stacked defensive line.
THE ADVANTAGE GOES TO ...
OFFENSE
An opener against Norfolk State is just what this young offense could use to gain some game experience.
DEFENSE
This defense could be one of the best in Division 1-A, so Norfolk State’s 1-AA offense shouldn’t cross the goalline.
COACHING
In three games against the MEAC, Greg Schiano’s Rutgers teams have won by a combined score of 142-7.
BY SAM HELLMAN CORRESPONDENT
HISTORY
The last time Norfolk State came to Piscataway, they left on the heels of a 59-0 defeat.
MOMENTUM
After embarassing showings in the past two openers, this year Rutgers needs to build momentum early.
X-FACTOR
The Norfolk State band brought the noise three years ago. Halftime might be the most exciting part again.
RUTGERS WINS IF ...
NORFOLK ST. WINS IF ...
EVERYTHING
RUTGERS
GOES ACCORDING
OUT FOR A
HOLDS
REVIS CONTRACT.
TO PLAN.
G The last two openers didn’t go according to plan, but this one doesn’t involve Mardy Gilyard or Ryan Matthews.
No disrespect to Norfolk State, but there’s a reason teams schedule a 1-AA opponent every year.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“You’re nervous when you’re going on your first date. You’re nervous taking a test. You’ve always got nerves, but they come and go.”
Deep d-line shows strength in camp
MOHAMED SANU SOPHOMORE WR
FINAL VERDICT
RUTGERS, 38-3 The Savage/Sanu combo picks up where it left off, with a little help from Jeremy Deering.
In a Rivals.com August article, its staff ranked the Rutgers football team’s defensive line as the 12th best in the nation. “BUZZ: Three starters are back. The new starter is Jonathan Freeny, who had 9.5 sacks last season in a reserve role,” the article said. Could the line be that good this year? Senior starting left end Alex Silvestro says yes. Is the unit that good now? No way, Silvestro said. “That’s a pretty big accomplishment, but people have told me they think we can be pretty good this year,” Silvestro said when told about the rankings. “I always tell them you can say that before the season, but during the season is all that really matters. The only way we can really be one of the best is to go out there and play. That’s all that really matters.” The first scrimmage was a definite success for the defensive line and a sign that Rivals.com may not be too far off. Sophomore defensive tackle Scott Vallone essentially bought real estate property in the offensive backfield, forcing one of two safeties on the day and causing some serious problems for an inexperienced offensive line. Silvestro added two sacks. “I think as a whole, the defense was pretty solid,” Silvestro said. “We came out on fire, pretty intense, and for a first scrimmage, it wasn’t bad. There were a couple of things that we need to improve on. I just think that we can go off that scrimmage and use it as a good start to propel us forward.” The only Scarlet Knight the ar ticle mentioned by name, Freeny, is technically a new starter as he replaces George Johnson at right end. But senior Freeny is about as experienced and seasoned as a non-starter can be. He is a second-team All-Big East selection by both Phil Steele and Athlon and has 33 games under his belt as a sec-
ond-team pass rusher with one career start. Freeny started the PapaJohns.com Bowl as a sophomore, when Jamaal Westerman, now a New York Jet linebacker, couldn’t play with a torn bicep. He has 13.5 career sacks with 9.5 of them coming last season, but ask Freeny and sometimes he still feels like a freshman. “To be honest, I definitely feel like I’m a first-year starter,” Freeny said. “I mean, all of the action I saw before was great for me, but being in there every play is completely different. I know I can do it. It’s just about making adjustments and getting better each day.” The challenge for Frenny throughout camp and throughout the season will be to prove he can stuff the run and not just be a pass-rusher. When asked if he thinks teams will target Freeny in the run game, head coach Greg Schiano responded, “I hope so.” Freeny agreed. “The only way I can prove that I can do it is to do it,” he said. “So
whether it’s a scrimmage or drills with the team or against Norfolk State, I want them to run it at me so I can do my best to stop it.” Behind the starters, the Knights boast decent depth with junior Eric LeGrand being one of the best backup defensive tackles out there and junior Justin Francis hungry for more playing time on the edge. “This is some of the strongest depth we’ve had,” Silvestro said. “We’ve only really replaced one starter and Freeny played a lot last year anyway. I would consider him almost like a returning star ter anyway. Ever y backup behind that has had experience too. That’s something special about being a starter on this line. You’re going to get tired at some points, but you don’t have to worr y about any of our backups going in. They can all do the job.” Knight Note: North Carolina finished second overall in the same rankings. The Scarlet Knights host the Tar Heels in their third game of the year.
ANDREW HOWARD / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Sophomore defensive tackle Scott Vallone, 94, had a strong showing in the team’s first scrimmage, forcing a safety.
G AMEDAY
T H E DA I LY TA R G U M
SEPTEMBER 2, 2010
T HE DAILY TARGUM’S
OUT
of
BOUNDS WITH
P.J. FLECK
Targum’s football beat writer Sam Hellman chats with first-year wide receivers coach P.J. Fleck about settling in with Rutgers, his boundless energy, and Madden ... Sam Hellman: You made a pretty quick impression among the beat writers with the energy you brought during spring practice. Is that just who you are? PJ Fleck: I definitely have a lot of energy. I think that’s one of the reasons Coach Schiano maybe hired me. I’ve got a lot of energy and it feels like I can bring that to the football team. Energy has been one of our big words the whole season and when the players feel it from you, they’ll respond with the same thing.
THE DAILY TARGUM
Junior Art Forst transitioned from right guard to right tackle during the offseason. The Knights’ offensive line started four starting fives last season and feature two starters in new spots this year.
Questions face o-line in opener BY STEVEN MILLER SPORTS EDITOR
An offensive line that returns five starters is not necessarily the best thing. That was the case last season for the Rutgers football team, which entered its training camp with a unit that started, and won, each of the previous six games. The Scarlet Knights fielded four different starting fives last year, but none were the same as the returning starters and none seemed to fit together just right. This year, head coach Greg Schiano believes he at least has the best five, even though out of their 34 combined career starts, only four are at their current position. “The one thing is: We have kept those five in place,” Schiano said of Desmond Stapleton, Desmond Wynn, Howard Barbieri, Caleb Ruch and Art Forst. “I do think those five are the best five. How will that compare to the defensive lines that we have to play? I don’t know that. I do think those are the best five today.” The biggest question is: How the unit will come together for the first time in a live game? According to Forst, it has been together more than enough. “There’s nothing like game experience, but sometimes people from the outside looking in make a bigger deal about it than it really is,” said Forst, a junior who started 21 games at guard, but will line up at right tackle this season. “The reality of it is the majority of your reps are in practice in this game. You play 13 games and you probably have 150 practice opportunities a year.” With this unit, the only jockeying has been a product of injuries in the spring or early summer camp, so it spent plenty of time together. But junior Wynn, for one, is used to change. After joining Rutgers as a defensive lineman, he
just completed his second training camp on the offensive line. Last year, he was inserted into the starting lineup for three games until an injury sidelined him. “I was learning all the time,” Wynn said. “Ever ything was new to me because I switched so late in the season and I was just running reps with the younger guys. Then the season came and I was tossed right into the fire — boom!” But a year later, Wynn is much more comfortable. And like Forst — at a new position — Barbieri — starting at a new position — and Stapleton — a firsttime starter — he finds himself in a leadership role, although he is still learning himself. “Last camp, I had guys in front of me that I could learn from,” Wynn said. “This year, I’m the first guy and I have to set the example so the younger guys can follow in my footsteps. Guys like Antwan [Lowery] — it’s his first year in camp on the o-line.” And while Wynn may feel responsible to ensure the
younger linemen are on the right page, there is no question he and Stapleton, who line up beside each other on the left side of the line, are on the same page. “The left guard and the left tackle live together,” Forst said. “They’re very close friends and they’ve been that way for the past three years. Me and Caleb have spent a lot of time together. We hang out together, and we’re very close. Even [tight end D.C. Jefferson] is close with both me and Stapleton, so when he lines up, the trust factor is always there, because he’s someone you spend time with.” For this new group, despite the lack of game experience together, the comfort level is there. And for now, Schiano seems to at least have found his five. “Do we feel ready? Yeah. Have we answered any questions? No,” Forst said. “You don’t answer anything until the end of the season. You look back and you evaluate it then.”
SH: Many recruits have sung your praises when I talk to them. What do you think allows you to relate to them so well? PJ: I think it helps being young. I have a small family right now and I’m able to do a lot of things and go different places. I’m not too far away from them either. I’m only 29 years old and I was recruited just like them a few years back, so I think I can relate to them a little bit more, as well, and kind of know what they’re in tune to. I just love life, love being around these guys and love being around young people. That makes me continue to enjoy my job — the recruiting part. SH: When Coach Schiano announced your hiring, your name sounded really familiar to me. Then I remembered playing as you in Madden. PJ: I was not very good. I think my attributes were like 50 across the board. I was as average as you can be in that game. Actually, I was probably one of the worst players. SH: How does that NFL experience help you now? PJ: Just because you played in the National Football League, doesn’t make you a good coach. The one thing with the National Football League, I didn’t play a whole bunch, but when I did, I got around great coaches. When I got to the National Football League, and I learned from a guy by the name of Jerry Sullivan, everything was, ‘Why?’ He answered all my questions and taught me the game and now I can bring that part to my players. I was never a 4.3 guy or 6-foot-4, so I had to be technically sound in everything I did. Nothing ever came natural. For everything that we do, I had to learn it inside and out and I had to be a perfectionist at it. SH: When you took this job, how happy were you to see that the two best offensive weapons were just freshmen? PJ: I was excited that everybody was a freshman. I looked at that roster and I said ‘Holy cow, I’m gonna have guys that are so young.’ When they’re young they do make a lot of mistakes, but the thing is that they don’t know anything right now, so they’re a blank slate. What you teach them is what they’re going to know. A lot of times you get a kid that’s a senior or a junior and it’s tough to break some old habits and that kid will never perfect everything you teach in that one year. Now they get to go through stages and continue to build themselves up so that by the time Mo and the rest of the wide receivers are leaving here, hopefully they’ve perfected everything. From when they’re freshmen to when they’re seniors, they keep things consistent and that’s what we’re trying to do as an offensive staff. SH: What do you like about working with these five true freshman wideouts? PJ: They all have stuff to prove and learn, but the one thing I love about every single one of those kids is that they’re hungry. They want to be coached. They’re here for the right reasons and they’re very humble players. They know they have a lot to learn and the shell is very thin, where you can break through it very easy and coach. They’re being very coachable. Every time a freshman is like that, they’re going to grow so much faster than a freshman who thinks they know it all. SH: What did you know about New Jersey when you took the job? PJ : I’m a Midwest guy and I lived on the West Coast and this is my first trip to the East Coast. I said to my wife, ‘Well, what do we know about New Jersey?’ And I said we know a few things. We know “[Real] Housewives of New Jersey,” we know “The Sopranos,” which is my favorite show — still the reruns — and “The Jersey Shore.” SH: I hope your impression has improved since then? PJ: We got here and obviously it’s a wonderful place. People from New Jersey and the people of Rutgers have been wonderful. Coach Schiano and the staff have treated my family very well. We really enjoy the people out here.
THE DAILY TARGUM
Senior offensive lineman Howard Barbieri started at both left and right guards last season but is now the starting center.
G5
G6
GAM
SEPTEMBER 2, 2010
GREG SCHIANO: A DE BY STEVEN MILLER SPORTS EDITOR
ANDREW HOWARD / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Senior safety Joe Lefeged douses head coach Greg Schiano with the Gatorade cooler after the Knights’ St. Petersburg Bowl win — Rutgers’ fourth consecutive bowl victory.
SCHIANO’S PATH TO RUTGERS 2000Rutgers University Head Coach 1999-2000 University of Miami Defensive Coordinator 1996-98 Chicago Bears Defensive Back Coach 1990-96 Penn State University Defensive Back Coach 1989 Rutgers University Graduate Assistant 1988 Ramapo High School Assistant Coach
SCHIANO’S SEASON RECORDS 2001: 2002: 2003: 2004: 2005: 2006: 2007: 2008: 2009:
2-9 (0-7 Big East) 1-11 (0-7 Big East) 5-7 (2-5 Big East) 4-7 (1-5 Big East) 7-5 (4-3 Big East) 11-2 (5-2 Big East) 8-5 (3-4 Big East) 8-5 (5-2 Big East) 9-4 (3-4 Big East)
QUOTES TO NOTE — THE PLAYERS Quarterback Tom Savage on the Big East title: “That’s always the goal. Last year, we weren’t satisfied with that bowl win. Of course we’re going to be happy that we won, but none of it matters if we don’t win the big game. That’s what we’re here for: We’re here to win a National Championship. You hear kids committing here, saying, ‘We want to win a National Championship,’ and that’s what we’re here for. We’re not going to be satisfied with anything less.” Defensive tackle Scott Vallone on his recruitment: “I was meeting with the coaches from Boston College in the athletic director’s office and we were talking, then you heard the helicopter [as Schiano arrived] going off. I just looked at them and was like, ‘Sorry.’ It was still pretty even at that time, even after the helicopter. That didn’t really affect what I thought about Rutgers. But having a conversation with Coach Schiano, that’s what impacted my decision.” Defensive tackle Eric LeGrand on staying in New Jersey: “If you’re from New Jersey, there’s a great school here, so why would you want to go anywhere else? That’s what I believe in. If you can get more Jersey people, highly touted ones, we can represent our home state instead of going somewhere else and representing some other state. There’s a great school here.” Offensive lineman Antwan Lowery on RU’s Miami presence: “It’s known, trust me, it’s known. All of my friends who play ball, they say, ‘Rutgers just offered me,’ or, ‘I’m getting looked at by Rutgers,’ or, ‘I want to take a visit with you.’ It’s amazing how this program has spread. It’s a blessing to see this program build to what it has.”
Mike Miello coached him for four years at Ramapo High School. Miello gave him his first coaching job as an assistant at that same school and then sent him on his way to pursue a college-coaching career. And Miello spent four years on his staf f at Rutgers, but even he advised head coach Greg Schiano against taking the position with the Scarlet Knights. “I kept telling him, up until the night he took the job, I said, ‘Look, you’d be the best thing that could ever happen to Rutgers, but I don’t know that Rutgers is the best thing that could happen to your career,’” Miello said. “At that time, football wasn’t as important as it should be at a Division I level at Rutgers.” As Schiano kicks off his 10th season at the Knights’ helm tonight against Norfolk State, chances are there will be close to 50,000 people at Rutgers Stadium. Since Schiano took over, football became pretty important at Rutgers. **** Head strength and conditioning coach Jay Butler was with Schiano from the beginning — the lone remaining member of the original staf f that set out with one goal in mind: Putting Schiano’s vision into place. “A lot of people told him it could never be done,” said Butler, who was a freshman at Bucknell when Schiano was a senior captain. “He grew up here, and Rutgers wasn’t a factor. But there’s a belief in expectations. You can’t believe in it because it’s something that happened; it’s never happened, never been done.” Schiano couldn’t take a recruit into Rutgers Stadium and show him a packed house — there was no such thing. And he couldn’t point to a vast bowl tradition — there was just a 34-18 loss to Arizona State in the 1978 Garden State Bowl. “So the No. 1 thing we had to do was go out in the state of New Jersey and other areas we recruited, let them know what our dream and our future was, and see if they would buy into it and take a chance,” Miello said. But as much as there are tangible signs — Rutgers Stadium now seats 52,454 and they can claim four bowl victories — the vision, itself, is far from it. “The vision is that, No. 1: Character counts. No. 2: Kids are cared for, both on and off the field,” said Bucknell head coach Joe Susan, who recruited Schiano to play at Bucknell and spent the first nine years on his staf f at Rutgers. “Winning breeds winning, and there’s so much more to winning than the score.
“It’s how you work in the offseason and in the weight room, how you prepare for games. Greg has one set vision as to how those things are done, and it’s something that he’s cultivated over his time in maturing as a head football coach.” Schiano does not shy away from talking about his vision. It began with a “foundation of stone” and a promise that Rutgers would be a factor nationally. Entering his 10th season, Schiano admits where the program is — “We’re going to get there, but we’re not there yet,” he’s said countless times — but more and more often, highly touted recruits have bought into his plans. “You look at him, you talk to him and he’s such a strong-willed guy that you want to be a par t of whatever he’s a par t of,” said Tom Savage, the No. 10 quar terback in the countr y out of high school, according to ESPN. “I knew what his vision was, I knew he wasn’t going to stop until he got it, and I wanted to be par t of it.” **** Schiano certainly took his lumps. After nine seasons, his record stands at 55-55, and it has not been above the .500 mark since his ver y first game against Buffalo on Aug. 30, 2001. It took four seasons of 12-34 football until the Knights broke through and made a bowl game, but even before the 2005 season, changes began to take place. “We played a game at Rutgers in his second year there — my second year as a head coach, too — and it was a ver y good game,” said Larr y Coker, who was of fensive coordinator at Miami when Schiano was the defensive coordinator before taking over the program. “If you look at the score, it doesn’t seem like a close game, but it was an extremely close one. “I was a little bit shocked, to be honest. The year before, we dominated them in Miami — no contest. But this game was totally different, you could tell his players had bought in.” Coker could tell that in the Hurricanes’ 42-17 victor y in Piscataway, the same place where North Carolina head coach Butch Davis visited Schiano a few years later. Davis was the head coach at Miami who hired Schiano as defensive coordinator, per the recommendation of Dave Wannstedt, and became one of his mentors, teaching him not just the football aspects of being a head coach, but the organizational ones as well. Prior to the 2005 season, Davis checked in on his pupil at Rutgers. “A lot of times you can tell a lot about a particular program when you walk the halls or interact with
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the players,” Davis said. “You could obser ve how relaxed they were, the confidence they had, the demeanor. The banter was back and for th between the assistant coaches. You just knew that Greg was putting things in place.” That same season, Schiano took Rutgers to the Insight Bowl — its first since 1978. It was the first time Scott Vallone, Rutgers’ freshman All-American defensive tackle last season, heard of the school that was less than two hours from his New York home. A year later, on Nov. 9, 2006, Rutgers won what might always remain Schiano’s signature game — the one that lit the Empire State Building red and truly put Rutgers on the national landscape — a 28-25 victor y against No. 3 Louisville. “I was here as a recruit at the game, and I rushed the field with ever yone else,” said junior defensive tackle Eric LeGrand, a Colonia, N.J., native. “I remember I couldn’t breathe out there. That definitely had an impact on me, along with ever ything that this program was about and where it was going.” **** Rutgers did not always appear to be Schiano’s dream job. After graduating from Bucknell with a team-high 114 tackles in his All-Conference senior season, Schiano tried to latch on in the Canadian Football League, where he was sent home as a team’s final cut. So the Wyckof f, N.J., native returned to the Ramapo sidelines as an assistant coach while preparing to take the LSATs and go to law school. “I’ll be honest, I came home and told my wife, ‘This kid is never going to see the inside of a law school,’” Miello said. “He was just a natural coach. He was coaching that first week as if he had been coaching for 20 years. Sure enough, at the end of the season he made a decision to stay in it.” So Miello advised him to move to the college level, where he spent a year with Dick Anderson, then-head coach, as a graduate assistant at Rutgers. Schiano would soon follow Anderson to Penn State, but before that he spent some time with his old recruiter from Bucknell — Susan. “I actually inter viewed at Rutgers when Greg was a GA there,” Susan said. “I remember going on a run with him and talking about what Rutgers could be like if we tur ned around the way the University was viewed by the instate population.” For the remainder of the decade, Schiano was only left to think about what it could be like and ask Miello about the state university whenever the pair spoke.
And shor tly after the oppor tunity came and Schiano became the head coach at Rutgers, he received a call from Davis — who left Miami for the Cleveland Browns and left a vacated position that Miami of fered Schiano. There was a lot pulling him away. “I guess they kind of offered him an open checkbook for all of the coordinators and himself,” Miello said. But there was more pulling him back. “It was home for him,” Davis said. “When he explained to me that he was going to accept that opportunity, he made it clear that was home and it was somewhere he felt ver y comfortable and familiar.” After Schiano’s 2006 Coach of the Year season, Miami called again and Michigan joined the list of suitors, but Schiano committed to Rutgers and Rutgers committed to football. The only way Schiano’s commitment would break would be if Rutgers did first, according to Miello. “He’s not one to think of himself first. If he was, he would have said to hell with Rutgers and taken the Miami job. Or to hell with Rutgers and taken the Michigan job,” Miello said. “He’s not one to think of himself. He’s one to think of the goals and the commitment that he’s made.” **** Ask Butler, Susan or Miello — three of the founding fathers from Schiano’s first staff — and there is a simple difference from the Rutgers teams of old: The players. Schiano coined the State of Rutgers and set out to conquer it on the recruiting trail. And while Rutgers recruited better players and made strides under Schiano, a Big East title remains elusive. “That’s not a negative. It’s not like he’s been here 30-some years — he’s not Bobby Bowden,” said freshman cornerback Rashad Knight, a Jacksonville, Fla., native. “I can’t be critical because he hasn’t done it, but I can be part of the first team to do it. That is a goal, to come and help the team by being a par t of that.” Schiano’s union with Rutgers is less than a third of Bowden’s 34year stint at Florida State, less than a quarter of Joe Paterno’s 44 years at Penn State, but he promised a foundation of stone, and by his 10th year, that foundation cer tainly took shape. “It could have easily been what a lot of people said when we first got there: That he’s going to be another flash in the pan and out of here in a couple years,” Susan said. “He knew that wasn’t going to happen.”
Butch Davis on interviewing Schiano: “It went extraordinarily well. Everything Dave [Wannstedt] had said about Greg was true. He was very smart, had a very good, diversified background, not only from the time he spent with Dave, but the time he spent at Penn State. You got a real sense that he was a good person, as well as being a good football coach. A lot of times, people get hung up on just the X’s and O’s of whether someone can draw up schemes on a chalkboard and if they have all the answers for any number of football-related things. A significant amount of the success of a coach is related to their communication skills, their people skills, how they’re going to be able to deal with adversity, what type of family man are they. Greg was somebody who was very impressive. He was married, and he had a great love for his family, and it just appeared he was going to be a very good candidate.” Joe Susan on “the chop”: “We went up on Illinois and wound up losing. Obviously, we were all impacted by that loss, after going in there, being ahead handily at halftime, and then they came back to win. We had talked about that previously, but never in that context. Where, if you’re in a forest and your only way out is with an axe, if you focus on chopping one tree at a time, ultimately, you’ll see daylight and work your way out of the forest. That’s where he brought it into play.” Mike Miello on Miami’s job offer: “We were on the job for about two weeks when Butch Davis, who was one of Greg’s mentors, left Miami to go to the Cleveland Browns. He called Greg and said, ‘Listen they’re going to call you — the president and [athletic director] — and they’re going to offer you the job, so get ready.’ He called me in and we were talking about it, and I said, ‘What do you think?’ We were just on the job, and to be honest, we had really been working 20 hours a day around the state, telling people what we were going to do and to buy into it. And I said, ‘You know what? If you want this job, that’s fine, but we better put our families in witness protection. We’ll never get out of this state alive after what we’ve been promising these past two weeks.’ An hour later, he called me in and said, ‘Well, I just cost you a lot of money.’ I said, ‘Why, what happened?’ And he said, ‘We turned the job down.’ I guess they kind of offered him an open checkbook for all of the coordinators and himself. I just laughed and said, ‘That’s OK, thank God. You made the right call.’ He certainly did. He made the right call.”
ANDREW HOWARD / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Through his first nine seasons at Rutgers, head coach Greg Schiano compiled a 55-55 record. A win over Norfolk State would put his record above the .500 mark for the first time since his first game.
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T HIS W EEK ’S FOOTBALL A CTION
GRID PICKS
TA R GUM S P O R TS S TA FF Norfolk St. at RUTGERS No. 15 Pittsburgh at Utah No. 3 Boise St. at No. 10 Va. Tech No. 21 LSU at No. 18 North Carolina Villanova at Temple Norfolk St. at RUTGERS No. 15 Pittsburgh at Utah No. 3 Boise St. at No. 10 Va. Tech No. 21 LSU at No. 18 North Carolina Villanova at Temple
RUTGERS
RUTGERS
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh
Va. Tech STEVEN MILLER SPORTS EDITOR
UNC Temple
A.J. JANKOWSKI ASSOC. SPORTS EDITOR
RUTGERS
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh
Boise St.
Boise St.
UNC Temple
CORRESPONDENT SAM HELLMAN FOOTBALL BEAT WRITER
Temple
RUTGERS
LSU
TYLER BARTO CORRESPONDENT
Villanova
GUES T P R ED ICTIO NS Norfolk St. at RUTGERS No. 15 Pittsburgh at Utah No. 3 Boise St. at No. 10 Va. Tech No. 21 LSU at No. 18 North Carolina Villanova at Temple Norfolk St. at RUTGERS No. 15 Pittsburgh at Utah No. 3 Boise St. at No. 10 Va. Tech No. 21 LSU at No. 18 North Carolina Villanova at Temple
RUTGERS
RUTGERS
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh
Boise St. BOBBY DEREN RIVALS.COM
LSU Temple RUTGERS Utah Va. Tech
KYLE FRANKO TARGUM ALUM
UNC Temple
Va. Tech LSU
MATTHEW STEIN TARGUM ALUM
Villanova RUTGERS Utah Va. Tech LSU Temple
‘NCAA ’11’ predicts 9-4 finish for RU BY SAM HELLMAN
Boise St. LSU
T H E DA I LY TA R G U M
ADAM HELFGOTT WRSU PERSONALITY
The Daily Targum’s weekly NCAA Football simulation returns for the 2010 season, using EA Sports’ “NCAA ’11” to predict the results of each week’s game and the overall season. We updated the rosters, twodeep and skill levels of the Scarlet Knights to represent a more accurate team, update the depth chart based on injuries and changes in the real world each week, and let the simulation take care of the rest. With Norfolk State as a nonexistent team in the game because of its Division 1-AA status, we started off with an overall season simulation, where the Knights finished with a 9-4 record, a third-place mark in the Big East and a victory in the Emerald Bowl over Fresno State. (Note: The Pinstripe Bowl is not in “NCAA ’11”) The season started strong with easy wins over Norfolk State and Florida International before North Carolina threw a wrench into the situation with a 56-13 trouncing of Rutgers. The Knights rebounded to play well the second half of the season with the other three losses coming at Pittsburgh, at Cincinnati and at home against Connecticut. Head coach Greg Schiano got his elusive first win over West Virginia in a 24-20 decision to end the regular season.
Quarterback Tom Savage earned second team All-Big East accolades with a very solid sophomore season, throwing for 24 touchdowns and 3,010 yards despite 16 interceptions. Running back Joe Martinek followed suit on the second team All-Big East squad with 1,001 yards and 11 touchdowns. True freshman Jordan Thomas was right behind him in the running game with 639 yards and five touchdowns on 4.1 yards per carry. No receivers earned All-Big East accolades, but Mohamed Sanu led the group with 73 catches for 880 yards and seven touchdowns. Tight end D.C. Jefferson hauled in 58 balls to finish second on the team with 732 yards and seven touchdowns. Mark Harrison went for 603 yards and five touchdowns and true freshman Jeremy Deering had 19 catches for 197 yards and two touchdowns. Defensively, linebacker Manny Abreu earned first team All-Big East honors with 93 tackles, six sacks and an interception. Antonio Lowery (71 tackles, two sacks), Khaseem Greene (34 tackles, three picks) and Joe Lefeged (65 tackles, four picks) all made the second team. Jonathan Freeny led Rutgers in sacks with 9.5 for the second straight season and David Rowe tied Greene with three picks. On special teams, Mason Robinson made second team All-Big East, returning both a punt and a kick for a touchdown, and kicker San San Te made 19 of 22 field goals.
GETTING TO KNOW THE WILD KNIGHT In this segment of Football 101, we take a look FOOTBALL 101 at the use of the Wildcat formation. Referred to as the Wild Knight when run by Rutgers, the Wildcat formation emerged as a successful weapon for the Scarlet Knights last season and this year will likely continue to do so. In this formation, the quarterback moves out wide — or out of the play entirely — with a receiver or running back handling the snap. For Rutgers, the responsibility goes to sophomore Mohamed Sanu, who played quarterback in high school. Sanu receives the snap and has the option to hand off to a sweeping running back, run the ball himself or throw. The major advantage to this formation is that with the quarterback not under center, the defense has to cover an extra man, leaving more room to run for Sanu. Last season, Sanu was second on the team in rushing yards because of the Wild Knight and he threw a touchdown pass. Don’t expect too much of the formation against Norfolk State tonight, but by the time North Carolina game rolls around, Sanu and the Wild Knight will be a regular part of the offense. — Staff Report
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T H E DA I LY TA R G U M
New-look corner unit out to earn Schiano’s trust BY STEVEN MILLER SPORTS EDITOR
Chances are Brandon Bing remembers last year’s season opener quite clearly — the 396 yards and three touchdowns Cincinnati put up through the air in a Bearcat romp. He just doesn’t like to think back to his first career start. “I try not to go back into the past, especially since it wasn’t what we expected or wanted,” the senior cornerback said. “I try not to go back to that game, but this year’s opener is totally different from last year — a different year, a different team.” Take a look at how different this year’s opener is for the secondary, and there are three key absences: Tony Pike, Mardy Gilyard and Devin McCourty. Pike and Gilyard, of course, were the reason a renovated Rutgers Stadium was unveiled last season under less than desirable conditions. But no matter what Football Championship Series opponent Norfolk State throws at the defense, it should not be nearly as worrisome. Pike and Gilyard’s absence means the secondary won’t be offered nearly as tough of a test, but McCourty’s absence is the reason the group still has something to prove. There is no question McCourty will impact a football game in New Jersey tonight, it’s just a matter of which: Patriots-Giants at New Meadowlands Stadium or RutgersNorfolk State in Piscataway. The Scarlet Knights are hoping it is the one he will actually be playing in.
“Devin McCourty is not a person you’re tr ying to replace,” Bing said. “I just feel like if each guy plays better, then as a team we can be better than we were last year. It’s not about replacing Devin McCourty — that’s not going to happen. But if we play as a team, the way we’re starting to bond now, we’ll be better for it.” And the bonding of this cornerback corps, its coming together, will be magnified because it truly is a new-look unit. Junior David Rowe made 10 starts last season, replacing Bing after the second game, but for the first time, they are No. 1 and 2 on the depth chart. Behind them are Logan Ryan and Marcus Cooper. The former spent last season redshirting, the latter spent it in six games as a wide receiver. But Rowe established himself as a competent starter last year and Bing ended camp with his most consistent stretch of performances, according to head coach Greg Schiano. Add that Ryan is living up to the expectations in practice that were set when he was a highly-touted recruit, and there may not be reason to worry. “I wouldn’t call us unknown,” Rowe said. “I think we had a really good camp and once we get into the season, hopefully we make it known that we can play the position pretty well.” That was the goal for Bing a year ago — to make it known he was a good cornerback and that he deserved Schiano’s trust. A year later, he recognizes he’s still trying to prove the same thing.
“Last year, starting the first game, I didn’t feel like he had 100 percent trust in me. I was still making mistakes I shouldn’t have made as a starter,” Bing said. “Now I’m trying not to think too much about it, but focusing on being more consistent. “Before, he’d probably look at the corner and worr y about whether I’d make a play or not. Now he should be able to say, ‘OK, next guy,’ without even looking at me. You have to build that trust, and that’s the biggest thing for me.” And as much as one player can earn trust without performing in a game, Ryan appears to have done it. He stood out in the spring, when he established his spot in the defense’s subpackages and moved Rowe in to cover the slot receiver, but there was no letup in the summer. “I sat back, took a deep breath and relaxed,” Ryan said. “If I just do my job and let the plays come to me, I can earn the coaches’ trust.” While the new unit of Rowe, Ryan and Bing certainly has confidence in its members, it also recognizes that that trust still has to be earned. Norfolk State isn’t the worst opponent against which to make that first step. “No worry at all. I’m very confident in how we’ve been gelling and playing lately,” Bing said. “Us bonding off the field helps us on the field — you build trust with this guy or that guy. We’re playing well, now we just have to take it to the other opponents.”
ANDREW HOWARD / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Senior Brandon Bing (above) started the first two games last season before junior David Rowe took over as the second cornerback.
ANDREW HOWARD / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
G AMEDAY
T H E DA I LY TA R G U M
BIGEAST GAME OF THE WEEK
SEPTEMBER 2, 2010
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UCONN at MICHIGAN UConn head coach Randy Edsall has his squad primed for a shot at the Big East title in a wideopen conference. Running back Jordan Todman will run wild against a porous Michigan defense.
PREDICTION: UConn, 31-24
AT NO. 15 PITT
CINCINNATI at FRESNO ST.
UTAH
It’s a rematch of the 2005 Fiesta Bowl, won 35-7 by Utah. But this matchup promises to be different. The duo of running backs Dion Lewis and Ray Graham highlight Pitt’s offensive attack due in part to first-year starter Tino Sunseri under center. Utah stands tall at home, going 60 at Ray-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City last season.
Bearcats quarterback Zach Collaros is poised to break former Louisville signal caller Brian Brohm’s 2007 Big East single season yards record, starting against a suspect WAC defense. PREDICTION: CINCINNATI, 48-35
BIG EAST PRESEASON POLL
THE DAILY TARGUM
Sophomore running back Dion Lewis is the focal point of Pitt’s offense after winning Big East Rookie of the Year.
Key Matchup
PREDICTION
Utah’s O-Line vs. Pitt’s D-Line
PITTSBURGH, 24-13
Co-Big East Preseason Defensive Players of the Year, Greg Romeus and Mick Williams, line up opposite a Utah offensive line that returns two Presason All-Moutain West Conference selections.
Lewis carries the Panthers past the Utes in his path to the Heisman.
TEAM RECORD BIG EAST POINTS 1. Pittsburgh 0-0 0-0 38 T-2. West Virginia 0-0 0-0 32 T-2. Cincinnati 0-0 0-0 32 4. Connecticut 0-0 0-0 28 5. RUTGERS 0-0 0-0 19 6. South Florida 0-0 0-0 16 7. Syracuse 0-0 0-0 10 8. Louisville 0-0 0-0 5 * Eight points awarded for first place, seven for second place, etc. * Five members of the Targum sports desk submitted ballots