PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers football opened its 2019 season with a home 48-21 win over UMass on Friday night at SHI Stadium.

Here is a quick look at the first win of the year.

BOX SCORE:

PLAYERS OF THE GAME:

OFFENSE — RB Isaih Pacheco

THE SKINNY: We went back and forth on this one between Pacheco and QB McLane Carter, who threw for 340 yards with two touchdowns, but at the end of the day, Pacheco finished with four rushing touchdowns, marking his first ever multi-score game. It was the first four touchdown game on the ground for a Scarlet Knight since Johnathan Lewis did so as a quarterback in 2017.

Along with the four scores, Pacheco finished for a total of 156 yards on the ground on just 20 carries, for an average of 7.8 yard per attempt.

DEFENSE — CB Tre Avery

THE SKINNY: Avery spent the bulk of 2018 season on the sidelines due to injury. In his first extensive collegiate action, Avery made it count. He intercepted a pass in the fourth quarter in the endzone. For good measure, he also returned two kickoffs for 51 yards.

PLAY OF THE GAME: QB McLane Carter threw a nice pass that only WR Bo Melton could catch for the 33-yard touchdown grab. It was Melton’s first score as a Scarlet Knight. The same goes for Carter, who made his Rutgers debut.

UP NEXT: Next Saturday, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights will travel out to Iowa City, Iowa to take on the Hawkeyes in the first Big Ten matchup of the year. The game will take place at noon and will be televised on the Big ten Network.

More to come...