12/19/2020 football Edit

Rutgers Football vs. Nebraska: Three Thoughts on the game

Craig Epstein

Staff Writer

Following last week’s thrilling overtime victory against Maryland, Rutgers wrapped up its Big Ten season with a 28-21 loss to Nebraska and 3-6 record.

Here are three thoughts after the game:

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Defense Ran Out Of Gas

Whether it was through injuries or eight straight weeks of football, Rutgers’ defense seemed to have finally worn down as they allowed over 600 yards of total offense on the day.

“I hate to categorize reasons why you lost. There were certainly a lot of people that weren’t playing,” Head Coach Greg Schiano said in his postgame press conference. “There’s a reason that guys are first-team players and second-team players and third-team players. You do stack them by who is performing the best at the time.”

Not only did the Scarlet Knights go into this game without defensive lineman Michael Dwumfour and defensive back Brendon White, but they were without linebacker Olakunle Fatukasi for most of it as well due to an injury. Also, it felt as though after just about every play a Rutgers defender was down with some sort of an ailment.

“I think as some things went, injuries, the guys really started to feel it, it was hard to focus on the things that were most important to win this game,” Schiano added. “That’s what gets you is you get a little bit off and not against a team like that. They are big and they are talented.”

All in all, while giving up 255 yards through the air and 365 yards on the ground is never a good thing, it is understandable for a team that is as bruised and battered as Rutgers.

A Tough Day For The Offense

Despite the defense forcing four turnovers, the Scarlet Knights’ offense did not do a good job capitalizing on Nebraska’s many mistakes as they only turned them into 10 points. Outside of a long fourth-down touchdown run from Isaih Pacheco, Rutgers’ offense was largely lifeless as their only other TD came in the form of a 98-yard kickoff return from Aron Cruickshank.

“There were enough chances for us to cash in to win this game we just couldn’t do it,” Schiano explained. “That also was part of growing up as a program. But you can’t put a value on these games we got to play. To play nine football games this year, when we didn’t think we were going to play any, that’s really going to pay off for us going forward.”

There is a reason as to why, if healthy, Noah Vedral has started every game this season. While Artur Sitkowski might have the superior arm, Vedral’s mobility and decision making makes for a better fit when it comes to Offensive Coordinator Sean Gleeson’s offense.

“Noah really tried but he wasn’t very close,” Schiano said when asked how close Vedral was to playing. “He wanted to play but his body just wouldn’t cooperate.”

In the end, while the backup quarterback is typically the most talked about player on the team, especially at Rutgers, sometimes we have to trust the coaches when it comes to making the right decision on who the starter is week in and week out.

To Bowl Or Not To Bowl?

With this loss, Rutgers’ season has likely come to an end with them matching the program’s conference win total (3) from the previous four seasons combined.

“I really love these kids, they worked so hard to be able to do this,” Schiano said. “Like I said, there’s only 14 teams in our league and you could say we’re lucky. Well maybe, but I always believe you make your own luck.”

While becoming bowl eligible would have been a nice cherry on top of an already much improved season from years past, at this point adding a tenth game to the schedule would have just felt unnecessary.

“These kids sacrificed so much, so when two out of 14 teams are able to play all nine games, I think they worked really, really hard to play the game that they love to play and to play it together,” Schiano continued. “That’s why I felt so bad for them down in that locker room, because for some of them, this is it, and some of them, they are going to miss their teammates that aren’t going to be around next year, next semester.”

This team proved everything it was going to prove in its nine straight weeks of Big Ten play and showed that while it is far from a finished product, the direction it is headed is pointing upwards and the journey to get there should be a fun one.