The Sports Xchange
NCAAF Team Report – Rutgers – INSIDE SLANT
The Scarlet Knights are coming off their second bye week of a 2012 season that has fit neatly into three chunks of four-games each. But Kyle Flood’s team, which had its latest bye week tossed into flux because of Hurricane Sandy, faces a sprint to the finish from here.
Beginning with its game against Army on Nov. 10, the Scarlet Knights close the season with four games in 20 days. Included in that are Big East games at Cincinnati and Pittsburgh and at home against an undefeated Louisville squad — all of which occur in a 13-day span.
There is not much margin for error. With Louisville unbeaten in Big East play, one loss might be enough to eliminate the team from the title race and BCS consideration.
And this was far from a typical bye week. Thanks to the devastation from Hurricane Sandy, Rutgers was limited to two days of practice as power outages caused the campus to cancel classes for the week.
Not what Flood had in mind, particularly given the challenges presented by Army’s triple option. But a sobering lesson for where the sport stands in the greater scheme of things in the state of New Jersey.
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NCAAF Team Report – Rutgers – NOTES, QUOTES
–A pair of Rutgers defenders are finalists for major college football awards. Khaseem Greene is one of 16 still in contention for the Bednarik Award, given annually to the top defensive player in the country. Logan Ryan is one of the final 15 under consideration for the Jim Thorpe Award, given to the top defensive back.
–DB Duron Harmon has been named one of 10 finalists for the annual Awards and Recognition Association (ARA) Sportsmanship Award. He wouldn’t be the first Rutgers player to win the award; Brian Leonard did so in 2006.
–Rutgers coach Kyle Flood missed a practice during the bye week because of a death in the family. Offensive coordinator Dave Brock and defensive coordinator Robb Smith ran the team in his absence.
SERIES HISTORY: Rutgers leads Army 20-18 (last meeting, 2011, 27-12 Rutgers).
SCOUTING THE OFFENSE: Gary Nova is coming off his worst game of the year, so Rutgers fans will be curious to see how well he rebounds from that. The Scarlet Knights will likely lean on Jawan Jamison again to run the football, but also look for Nova to seek out his tall receivers against the Cadets secondary to start getting his confidence back.
SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: Army runs the triple option, and the Cadets are the top rushing attack in college football by the numbers. But the Rutgers run defense is ranked sixth in the country in yards allowed per game, and has something to prove after being torched by Kent State for 224 yards on the ground.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “Fortunately, it wasn’t a Big East opponent. You never want to lose but it’s better that we learn from our mistakes in that game and apply our corrections to the games we have ahead.” — Wide receiver Tim Wright, to The (Newark) Star-Ledger.
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NCAAF Team Report – Rutgers – STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
THIS WEEK’S GAME: Army at Rutgers, Nov. 10 — Rutgers has won the last eight games in this series, but the recent games haven’t been cakewalks. The Scarlet Knights needed overtime to earn a 23-20 win in 2010, and 2011 was a surprisingly competitive 27-12 final.
KEYS TO THE GAME: As long as the Rutgers run defense doesn’t implode, it should have too much firepower for Army. Going forward, the key here is to stay healthy and get clicking on all cylinders heading into the homestretch of the Big East.
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
QB Gary Nova — Nova has been solid most of the season, but enters the week with eight turnovers in his past two games, including a six-interception nightmare against Kent State his last time out. Coach Kyle Flood said he expected that sticking with Nova would pay dividends down the road, and he’s had an extra week to work out any mechanical problems. But the Army game is his last chance to iron out any wrinkles before Big East play resumes.
DT Scott Vallone — Vallone had seven tackles against Kent State, the most he’s had all season. If he can put up similar numbers against Army, it’ll be a good sign that the Scarlet Knights are disrupting the Cadets defense by getting into the backfield before Army can set up its triple option.
LB Khaseem Greene — Greene is all over the field every week, and the defensive player of the year candidate could use his athleticism to pad some of those numbers on Saturday.
ROSTER REPORT
–K Kyle Federico has missed the last three games with a hip injury, but could return for the Army game.
–DT Kenneth Kirksey has been out with a lower leg injury, but is close to being ready to return.
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