The first ever Scarlet Open by Knights Society considered a huge success
The Knight Society and the Front Office hosted the first annual Scarlet Open today at Topgolf in Edison. The 14-team tournament featured members of the Rutgers men’s basketball team and coaching staff on each squad.
Newroads Financial Group, with incoming freshman Gavin Griffiths in tow, won the event after running through the bracket.
The day started at 11:30, with participants, athletes, and coaches all filing into the main room to socialize as the event got started. Current radio analyst Austin Johnson addressed the crowd, introducing the event and going over the rules, as Knight Society co-founder Geo Baker and head coach Steve Pikiell followed in expressing their gratitude to all of the attendees.
Not a The Knight Report subscriber? Join today for access to all our premium content and message board community. Already INSIDE? Join the conversation on The ROUND TABLE FORUM!
Refreshments were served, and athletes and coaches met up with their teams to pitch their best strategies on how to take home the coveted Scarlet Open trophy. The event’s silent auction included items such as game-worn jerseys, shoes, autographed photos, and more. Former Scarlet Knight Ron Harper Jr. even made a cameo, fresh off signing a new two-way contract with the Toronto Raptors, as did fellow former Knight Luke Nathan.
By 1 p.m., the event was underway. Each team had 20 minutes to accumulate as many points as possible, as teams received a point per yard the ball traveled, with extra points for landing in the colored holes around the course. Eventually, some teams would begin to realize the best strategy was to hit as many balls as humanly possible in the time frame to rack up the points. In the second round, the Rutgers Riot Squad team with senior guard Aiden Terry hit 206 golf balls in 20 minutes, good for one hit every six seconds.
Overall, the event was seen to be a great success by all involved as money was raised to support the student-athletes on the men’s basketball squad.
“I think it was awesome,” Baker said. “It was better than I expected, which is a good thing, just a chance for all the guys to be able to meet and connect with all these Rutgers supporters, all these fans, all these donors. And on the flip side, everyone getting a chance to meet all the players and connect with them. We had kids running around, excited to see Cliff [Omoruyi], or to see Mawot [Mag], Aundre [Hyatt], some of these guys are like their superheroes.”
While meeting and connecting with the players and coaches was a big hit, the aspect of the tournament and the game brought plenty of fun with it as well.
“The competition aspect of it too was really cool,” Baker added. “Getting people to compete for a trophy at the end, seeing a team get a chance to hold it up, I thought overall the entire thing was super special.”
After the golfing was done, the attendees all gathered back in the guest room for awards and dinner. The winner’s trophy was awarded, as well as other special awards such as the Student Leadership Award and Student-Athlete Advocacy Award.
After some parting words from Johnson, Baker, and Pikiell, the squad’s captains also came to the podium to address the crowd. It ultimately ended with a chorus of the “Happy Birthday” song to Aundre Hyatt, led by Derek Simpson.
Not only did the fans enjoy themselves, but the athletes and coaches all seemed to have a great time.
“I thought everyone loved it,” Baker said. “I thought we did a good job of putting guys together with different teams and we made it as interactive as possible, and we stressed to the guys that this is a lot bigger than just financial support. It’s about connecting with these people, and at the end of the day we got a really good group of players too, who want to be here, who want to be a part of the Rutgers community, and that always helps.”
As sports season ramps back up on the Rutgers campus, the Knight Society want to continue the momentum they’re building in terms of events with the Rutgers community.
“We definitely want to continue this type of direction,” Baker said. “Where we’re able to bring fans together to connect with each other, and then also be able to hang out with student-athletes, regardless of sport. The next big one we’re thinking about is something around the homecoming game, where everyone’s coming back to school and we’re able to make that some sort of cultural event, where it’s part of Rutgers culture. You know during homecoming there’s going to be an NIL event as well, so I think that’s something that would be really special.”