After another tough loss against Penn State, Rutgers Football is looking to finish the season strong as they shift their focus onto Maryland who will come to town for the final regular season game of the year.
GAME BROADCAST / DETAILS...
Where: Piscataway, New Jersey
Stadium: SHI Stadium (Official capacity of 52,454)
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
Television: BTN
Odds Via Yahoo Sportsbook: Maryland -120 Favorite (-1.5 point spread), over/under is 43.5
SECOND HALF SORROWS....
It’s been a season of two halves for Maryland as they started their year with an impressive 5-0 record. Since that strong start they’ve gone just 1-5 including losing four in a row to Big Ten teams. Last week they came up short of upsetting No. 3 Michigan at home, 31-24.
Brian Williams' defense has been a huge factor in the Terrapins losing streak. During their four game skid they gave up an average of 37 points per game. This includes getting crushed 51-13 against Penn State.
One bright spot to an otherwise disappointing season for Maryland is their Senior signal caller Taulia Tagovailoa. The Hawaii native is leading the Big Ten in passing this year with 3,016 yards and is tied for the lead in passing touchdowns with 22. He is looking to jumpstart an offense that hasn’t scored 30 points in a game since September 30th against Indiana.
Playing a struggling Maryland team could be just what Greg Schiano wanted as he’s looking for his squad to break their own losing streak.
A CLOSE SERIES....
It’s been a pretty even series between these conference foes during the 11 games where they matched up with each other. Since Rutgers officially joined the Big Ten in 2014 they’ve beaten Maryland 3 times and once in 2009 as a member of the Big East.
Their most recent win against Maryland in the Schiano 2.0 era was in 2020 during the shortened COVID-19 season when they won 27-24 in College Park. This was an overtime thriller where they won on a game winning field goal.
The losses in this series haven’t been pretty for Rutgers. The worst of them came back in 2019 when they lost 48-7 at home in Piscataway. That was during a 2-10 season and in the midst of an 18-game Big Ten losing streak.
Rutgers is looking to stop the bleeding and end their three game losing streak to get their first win against Maryland since 2020.
A CHANCE TO END THE SEASON STRONG...
The Scarlet Knights look to finish on a high note after a surprisingly positive season. Their defense hasn’t flinched a bit these last few weeks even in losses they are pulling out strong performances. Last week against Penn State they were down only 13-6 going into the 4th quarter, but there’s only so much your defense could do when you aren’t scoring touchdowns.
During RU’s three-game losing streak they’ve only scored a pathetic one touchdown. Quarterback Gavin Wimsatt has thrown for 352 yards and three interceptions in those three games. Wimsatt will need to be more efficient passing and use his legs if Rutgers wants to win this game.
Setting up breakout star running back Kyle Monangai and getting him going early will be a huge X-factor in winning this game. He hasn’t broken over 40 yards since November 4th against Ohio State and he hasn’t scored a touchdown since October 14th against Michigan State.
Rutgers is looking to add to their highest win total in the Schiano 2.0 era. If they want to one day contend in the Big Ten these are the games that they must win. The future's looking bright in Piscataway as Schiano keeps exceeding expectations.
NOTABLE TERPS TO WATCH....
Quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa
2023 Stats: 65.% Completion percentage, 3,014 yards, 22 touchdowns, 10 interceptions
Running back Roman Hemby
2023 Stats: 550 yards on 120 carries and 4 touchdowns, 32 catches for 274 yards and 2 touchdowns
Wide Receiver Jeshaun Jones
2023 Stats: 49 catches, 677 yards and 4 touchdowns
Wide Receiver Kaden Prather
2023 Stats: 40 catches, 604 yards and 5 touchdowns
Linebacker Kellan Wyatt
2023 Stats: 34 tackles, 6.5 TFL, 4.5 sacks
Defensive Back Beau Brade
2023 Stats: 66 tackles, 3.5 TFL, 1 int, 6 passes defended
Defensive Back Tarheeb Still
2023 Stats: 38 tackles, 2 TFL, 5 int
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