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Oct 25, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Rutgers Scarlet Knights head coach Greg Schiano reacts against the Southern California Trojans in the second half at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
PISCATAWAY – Rutgers football needed this bye week.
Badly.
The Scarlet Knights have lost four straight games. They’re banged up. They needed some time to regroup and find some answers to get this season back going in the right direction again, needing two more wins to earn bowl eligibility for a second-straight season.
The first eight games have been tumultuous. Rutgers had some big moments – beating Washington in a fantastic primetime atmosphere at SHI Stadium was the highlight – but also several lows, including the blowout loss to Wisconsin at home and the loss to UCLA, also at home.
The dream many fans had about this being a “special season” has basically ended, though largely for reasons no one could’ve seen coming.
But there’s still time for the Scarlet Knights to turn things around.
With that said, here are five bye-week thoughts and observations:
1. Too many people underestimated the loss of Mohamed Toure
It was bad news for Rutgers at the time.
And it turned out to be a bad omen.
When Greg Schiano announced shortly before the start of the season that Toure would be out for the season with a torn ACL, it meant the Scarlet Knights’ defense, expected to be the team’s backbone, would be without its best player.
Or, as Schiano called him, it’s “alpha.”
Toure could’ve left after last season and headed for the NFL. He had 93 tackles, including a team-leading 9½ for loss and four sacks.
Instead he chose to come back for one more season. Things obviously didn’t go as planned.
But you replace a player of his caliber easily. Or at all.
Toure in many ways…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/five-thoughts-observations-rutgers-football-080444698.html
Author : App.com | Asbury Park Press
Publish date : 2024-10-30 08:04:44
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