Rutgers football is 4-0 and is showing its identity. Again.

PISCATAWAY – As soon as Washington kicker Grady Gross’s 55-yard field goal attempt sailed left of the goalpost and the final seconds of the game ticked off the clock, the scoreboard read exactly what Rutgers football needed it to.

Rutgers 21, Washington 18.

It wasn’t an easy win. It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t emphatic.

But it didn’t need to be.

The Scarlet Knights, for the second consecutive week, won by withstanding a late comeback attempt by their opponent. They handled adversity, they made the plays they needed to make and they escaped with a victory.

It was the type of game that a couple years ago, Rutgers probably doesn’t win. Earlier in Greg Schiano’s second stint, once momentum swung toward the sideline of the Scarlet Knights’ opponent, they typically couldn’t get it back.

That’s a characteristic of a younger team, one that not’s accustomed to handling adversity or finding a way to win.

Sep 27, 2024; Piscataway, New Jersey, USA; Rutgers Scarlet Knights celebrates after defeating the Washington Huskies at SHI Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

A lot has changed.

“We’re a disciplined, tough football team, and it takes a little while to develop into that because it’s over time,” coach Greg Schiano said. “Unfortunately there’s no (way to) speed it up, unless you’ve got just unbelievable talent, better than everybody else, which that’s not us. All those little things add up.”

This game could’ve slipped from Rutgers’ grasp.

‘Shows the toughness of our team’

The Scarlet Knights held an 11-point lead early in the fourth quarter after Sam Brown’s 37-yard touchdown run.

They held it until Washington scored a touchdown with less than two minutes left and executed the two-point conversion to make it a three-point game.

After a Rutgers three-and-out, Washington got the ball back…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/rutgers-football-4-0-showing-080240177.html

Author : App.com | Asbury Park Press

Publish date : 2024-09-28 08:02:40

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