PISCATAWAY -- The JACK position was a new added wrinkle in Rutgers’ defensive scheme and front four a year ago.

It’s back and it looks to be manned by redshirt sophomore Elorm Lumor. Lumor met with TheKnightReport after practice on Tuesday and mentioned how spring ball is going for him.

“It’s going good. Just taking it day by and getting better every day,” Lumor said.

Lumor played in all 12 games with three starts at hybrid defensive end/linebacker spot. An honorable mention selection to the Big Ten Network All-Freshman Team, Lumor totaled 17 tackles with 1.5 for a loss and one sack in 2017.

“It was fun because as you know, the JACK is a little bit of everything. You rush the passer and go out in coverage. I enjoyed it a lot.”

Speaking of getting to the quarterback, that was something the Scarlet Knights struggled with the last couple seasons. Rutgers finished 12th in the 14-team Big Ten Conference and 112th in the nation with 16 sacks as a team in 2017. It was the third straight season the Scarlet Knights were ranked 91st or worst in the nation and 12th or worst in the conference after finishing 33rd in the county in in the 2014-15 season.

“We’re working on that every day,” Lumor said. “We’re trying to get better at rushing the passer because we didn’t have that many sacks last year.”

So what is Lumor and the rest of the defensive linemen doing to get more pressure?

"We talk about pre-snap indicators like down and distance. That’s first and foremost,” defensive line coach Corey Brown said earlier this spring. “We talk about the edges and angles we're trying to create as far as offensive linemen. You may have some guys that are more natural pass rushers by bending the edge, some guys may be more violent or active with their hands. You also need to understand offensive line sets, and work collectively.

"Know that sometimes you have to push the pocket as an interior guy, and one of the edge guy will be able to counter it back. We talk about getting it done as a whole, all four guys involved, with the end result being a condensed pocket and making sure we keep the coverages."

One player that has consistently gotten to the quarterback was former defensive end Kemoko Turay, who started at the JACK as a senior last season. After missing virtually all of his sophomore and junior seasons due to injuries, Turay played in all 12 games with nine starts last year. The 2018 NFL Draft hopeful registered 65 total tackles with 7.0 coming behind the line of scrimmage. He also had four sacks and earned a trip to the Senior Bowl.

Turay was instrumental in 2014, the inaugural Big Ten season for Rutgers, as he broke out as a redshirt freshman recording 7.5 sacks and three blocked kicks.

Lumor picked his brain the best he could.

“I learned that my get-off is really important,” Lumor said. “He’s a pass rush-first guy so I also learned some pass rushing moves from him.”

Lumor said he’s “ready” to contribute even more than he did a year ago. His position coach, Toby Neinas, hopes to break him out of his shell and have him consistently do damage on the field. Once he does, sound the alarm.

“The first thing you notice about Elorm is he’s a beautiful looking kid,” Neinas said on Tuesday. “He’s the way you picture it in your mind the way you want an outside linebacker to look like.

“Elorm as times where he absolutely flashes on film and really, really looks sharp. And then there are some times where he fades a little bit. So, right now I’m trying to help him be more flash than fade. That’s going to be a work in progress. My coaching style tends to be a little bit more slower, but I’m going to up coach my guys and I believe Elorm is very receptive to my style and the more I can connect, the faster the maturation process will occur.”

Lumor was head coach Chris Ash’s first recruit as the third-year head man got the Piscataway, N.J. to flip from Temple to Rutgers after a prep semester at Milford Academy.

Playing just a few minutes down Hoes Lane/Route 18 from Piscataway High School, Lumor is glad he gets to represent his town. Redshirt freshman running back Elijah Barnwell also hails from PHS.

“It’s fun,” he said. “My family and friends come to every game if they want to. It’s fun getting to play for Piscataway.”