Knights of The Round Table: Toughest teams, players and road games
Scarlet Nation's newest feature shares insight from four former standout Scarlet Knights as this week's topic includes the toughest teams, players and road games. Former RU players Andy Zdobylak, Dennis Thomas, Mike Teel and Kevin Snyder share their thoughts on each of those areas.
OC Andy Zdobylak (1973-74)
Toughest team to play:
"Air Force. In 1973, they beat us bad. We were never really in the game. That next year, they had lost to some top 10 teams by small margins. But we were fired up. We decided we wanted to beat them violently. We felt disrespected the year before. They had their falcons flying around, some would fly high and some would fly low. It was like they were trained. But we dominated them the second time. They took us lightly and we played a vicious, violent game. I put two guys out with clean hits; broken ribs and a broken arm. The next day, I couldn’t get out of bed. I had a boxspring and mattress on the floor and I couldn’t get up. I was actually seeing stars constantly that game. But in the time period, Coach Frank Burns' victory over Air Force compares to Greg Schiano's victory over Louisville. It was a signature victory, not on a national scale, but it made people think, hey, there may be something positive going on at Rutgers."
Toughest player faced:
"John Woodcock from Hawaii. He was 6-foot-4, 250 pounds and he got drafted in the third round. He was the only player who was stronger than me and he had skills. He knew what he was doing. It was a battle on every play. Usually, I could dominate people. With him, I walked up to the line not knowing who is going to kick whose butt. He was a tough kid."
Toughest place to play:
"Hawaii. He were out there for a week. We went surfing on the Bonsai pipeline and had the day off after we practiced. But we played in the old stadium, I think it was called the Hula Bowl. High schools, colleges and semi-pro teams played on it. Imagine dry lava soap, that's what it was. You would get bad cuts and burns just from the field. Fans would be throwing cups of beer at us when we were backed up to the endzone because they were right on top of you. But the cheating was blatant. I read some years later a lot of teams refused to go out there because the cheating was so obvious. I remember one play, there was a quick pass over the center. I didn’t touch anybody because it was a quick pass. A flag came out and since I was the captain, I asked the refs what happened. They said holding on 51, which was my number. I did not even touch anyone. Cheap shots happened all the time. Today, the player would be ejected. Refs did not do a thing. It was kind of a joke. The refs would be talking to the Hawaii players in Hawaiian. They would then look at us and laugh with the referees. It was like we were in a foreign country. We lost the game, it was our last one. And we had just beat Colgate big, we scored over 60 points. And if we beat Hawaii, we would have been considered for a bowl. We finished 7-3-1 that year."
RB Dennis Thomas (1998-2001)
Toughest team to play:
“It was probably a split between Miami and Virginia Tech. I played against both teams when they were each ranked No.1 in the nation. It was a hostile environment in both places, but I think it was more hostile in Blacksburg (Va.) than it was in Miami. Skillset wise, it was closer as far as the talent. But I think in their offensive and defensive line play, and their tight end play, was head over heels better than we were. Playing a No.1 team is a great challenge and it is great for the competitor in you. It is an honor and you really have to bring you’re A-game because they do not want to be knocked off."
Toughest player faced:
“The list goes on and on. Back then, the Big East was surreal. Everyone was stacked. One of the best linebackers we faced was Dan Morgan down at Miami. He was really phenomenal. Kevin Bullock was really good at Syracuse. They called him the bull. Those guys were also on good teams surrounded by a lot of talent.”
Toughest place to play:
“The toughest environment was West Virginia. We played them when they were No.5 in the country. Those fans were extremely involved and they try their best to get you off your game. They will do anything by any means necessary. I was not accustomed to that environment. They feel as though they need to do whatever it takes for their team to be successful. If that means throwing bottles, jumping on the field or shoving you and screaming at you, then that is what they are going to do.”
QB Mike Teel (2005-08)
Toughest team to play:
"West Virginia. It’s got to be West Virginia because we never beat those guys in my career. They were always well coached, always had great players, and they always found a way to somehow beat us. Syracuse was always by far the most physical team. We had a really good run against Syracuse. In my first start, up in the dome, we beat them. We beat them at home in '06, beat them in '07 up there and again at home in '08. We never lost that game, but whenever I would come home, I would wake up on Sunday and go into the treatment room and my body hurt. My body hurt every time we played those guys. They would finish you through the ground and hit you hard. They were just a tough, physical team."
Toughest player faced:
"There are two guys that come to mind. One is Darrelle Revis, just because how talented he was and because he could change the game with one play. The other was another Pitt guy, H.B. Blades, who played MIKE linebacker for them. He had a feel for the game. I'd look at him when I was under center and I'd have a sense that he knew where the play was going to go. It was weird because he was always right. He was such a good player."
Toughest place to play:
“I would say Morgantown (West Virginia). Louisville is a tough place to play too, but Morgantown is really tough. Their fans are unbelievable. They are on top of you. They are throwing stuff at you. They are trying to intimidate you. It is a fun place to play, but a really tough place to play."
LB Kevin Snyder (2011-14)
Toughest team to play:
“When it comes to teams, I would say Ohio State my senior year. They were well coached, they had good linemen, but they were so balanced and so dynamic. They run a lot of offense; different plays and different formations. So you could never really get a good beat on what they were doing. It just made it really hard with the athletes they had all over the place. It was really difficult. You couldn’t take somebody away without leaving someone else to tear you apart.”
Toughest player faced:
“We did an okay job with Zeke Elliot, but he was just an unbelievable player. You hit him behind the line and he somehow finds a way to pick up three or four yards. That is what made him so good. There was never a play where it seemed like we got him and put him in a second or third and long. They always seemed to have a third and manageable, which made things tough for us.”
Toughest place to play:
“There were a lot tough places to play. Louisville was tough, Ohio State was tough because of the sheer number of people. They are loud and the student section is good. Louisville just created a tough environment, with the band with the music with the student section. Plus, they were really good. I think all of that together at Louisville made for a pretty tough place to play.”
For more insight into this latest Knights of the Round Table edition, check out our latest Scarlet Slant.
