Stock up, stock down plus day-after thoughts: Rutgers Football at Minnesota
The Rutgers Football team had a rough go of things at Minnesota on Saturday afternoon. The Golden Gophers beat the Scarlet Knights, 31-0.
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For more on the game, check out TKR's day-after thoughts and observations and its weekly stock report below.
STOCK UP
P Adam Korsak
How does a 77-yard punt sound? That's exactly what Korsak the wizard booted away in the second quarter. Rutgers faced a 4th-and-9 from the Rutgers 9-yard line, and he punted the ball down to the Gophers' 14-yard line. Korsak also had one downed the 1-yard line in the first quarter. Korsak also had a big 63-yard punt. He's back.
WR Sean Ryan
On a day where multiple receivers dropped passes, Ryan didn't, and he continues to make somewhat of an impact. It's not all him, of course, as the two quarterbacks were just 9-for-24 passing for 86 yards, but Ryan has made big plays as of late and is doing the best he can given the situation. Ryan caught four balls for 46 yards on Saturday.
STOCK DOWN
RB Samuel Brown
Brown was on his way to have a major role for the back half of the schedule, but an injury will sideline him the rest of the season. The freshman started for the first time last week and racked up 28 carries for over 100 yards. Many fans were excited to see his potential.
Rutgers offense
Instead of singling players or coaches, we'll group the whole offense together. Rutgers couldn't move the ball whatsoever, as it had just134 total yards with three turnovers. Gavin Wimsatt and Noah Vedral each threw interceptions, while Wimsatt also fumbled. The Scarlet Knights ran just 45 plays to the Gophers' 74 and had the ball for just over 18 minutes in the game while Minnesota had the rock for 41 minutes and change. Oh, and no points.
3rd down and red zone defense
The Scarlet Knights failed to play complementary football which forced the defense on the field for a long time. Nonetheless, Minnesota kept moving the chains as it was 13-of-19 on third down and 4-for-4 in the red zone with three touchdowns. The defense has bailed out the offense on many occasions this year, but this was a game where it got tired and couldn't keep up
5 DAY-AFTER THOUGHTS
-- The streak lives on. Rutgers had a chance to stop Minnesota RB Mo Ibrahim's 100-yard rushing streak, but he is now up to 16-straight games over the century mark. Ibrahim ran 36 times for 159 yards and three touchdowns. The Scarlet Knights couldn't bring him down.
-- Wimsatt did the offense no favors. The redshirt freshman QB got the start this week, and was inaccurate, completing only 6-of-17 passes for 68 yards while running for just nine yards on four carries. He turned the ball over twice with an interception and a fumble, too. This was his first extensive action since the Wagner game. He didn't play last week and he missed a few contests due to an injury. QB play has to be better across the board.
-- Maybe the high defensive stats were a fluke. For as bad as the Rutgers offense has been, three teams it has played, Iowa, Temple, and Boston College, are ranked even lower on offense. Plus, there was also FCS foe, Wagner, which Rutgers dominated. Rutgers couldn't stop Minnesota's ground game, and then the Gophers also hit the Scarlet Knights in the air at times as well. It doesn't get an easier coming up either.
-- RU needs more of a pass rush. OK, Minnesota pounded the ball on the ground, and last week, Indiana mostly got the ball out quickly. Still, Rutgers didn't have a sack in this one and has just six in Big Ten play. Only Minnesota has less. Rutgers needs to essentially play perfect in all three phases to earn wins, and one of the main factors has to be getting to the quarterback and bringing him down. Rutgers was credited with only one QB pressure too by Wesley Bailey.
-- Bowl game chances slipping away. Nobody is really thinking about a bowl game after a blowout that is also a shutout. But at 4-4 with four games left, Rutgers technically can still get to six wins, but will be nearly impossible. The only other really winnable game for the Scarlet Knights remaining is Michigan State. The rest of the games against Michigan and Penn State, who are both ranked, as well las Maryland, will be tough ones. Something to keep an eye on instead is any progress from the offense.
Follow Chris Nalwasky on Twitter @ChrisNalwasky.
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