Saturday October 4th, 2003, noon Eastern

TV: ESPN Regional (click here for station list)

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Click the "Piscataway Weather" link to the right.
As of Thursday, 1:00 pm, "Partly sunny. Slight chance of showers in the afternoon. Highs in the mid 60s."

Click here for TechSideline.com's VT/Rutgers roster card

VT @ Rutgers Preview
by Jeff Ouellet

With a 4-0 start and a #4 ranking, Virginia Tech is starting what should be a defining conference season in the last year, ironically, that they will be in the Big East. The Hokies are only 7-7 in conference play over the last two seasons, and the issue that VT fans wrestle with is whether the record is a product of system familiarity on the part of opposing Big East coaches, or whether other unanticipated factors such as injuries and youth led to the downturn in conference record. This year may help settle that debate.

The first team on the conference slate this year is Rutgers, a school whose history is undeniable – they played the first college football game and have played more games than any Division I school in the country – and whose record of recent intraconference ineptitude is virtually unparalleled among teams in the BCS conferences. The Scarlet Knights haven’t beaten a ranked opponent since 1988, and Head Coach Greg Schiano is entering his third season and has yet to win a conference game (0-14).

There is some optimism in New Brunswick, though, as the Knights have gone out to a 3-1 start with wins over winless Buffalo and Army, and last week’s win over two-victory Navy. RU lost on the road to its only big time opponent, Michigan State. That might not seem like much progress, but last year RU lost to Buffalo and Villanova and were 1-3 to open the year, so clearly there is improvement.

Schiano is a high-energy coach who most recently was the Miami defensive coordinator. He is the youngest head coach in Division IA football, and he has been very active on the recruiting trail. Many of the Knight’s headline players, particularly on offense, have been recruited over the past two years. The Rutgers defense was supposed to be the strength of the team, but instead the offense has grabbed the early season headlines.

Rutgers has a new offensive coordinator, Craig Ver Steeg, that came from Utah. He has installed the West Coast offense, which schematically made a lot of sense, given the fact that RU has some playmakers on the outside but the offensive line was a big question mark coming into the season. As with most West Coast offenses, the passing game focuses on short timing patterns, and a two-back set is employed with the fullback playing a significant role in the passing attack.

The offense overall has been productive this year, as Rutgers is averaging 34 points per game. The Scarlet Knights rushing attack, the worst in Division I last year, has been bumped up to 151 yards per game. While the 3.4 yards per carry is low, at least the offense has demonstrated a commitment to run the ball. The passing game is averaging 225 yards per game, a solid figure, so the offense is much more balanced than in past years. Rutgers has shown some big play potential, as they have seven pass plays this year of more than 25 yards and 29 runs of more than 10 yards in four games.

The constant in the Rutgers offense is true sophomore quarterback Ryan Hart. Hart got a baptism under fire last year but has acquitted himself very nicely this year, albeit against primarily sub par competition. Hart has solid size at 6’2", 195, and his statistics put him squarely in the middle of the pack for Big East quarterbacks: he is fourth in passing yards at 220 per game, fourth in passing efficiency at 139.3, and he has thrown for 6 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. He is accurate, although his 61% completion rate is fairly typical for a quarterback in a West Coast offense.

Rutgers has a stable of solid backs, with true freshman Justice Hairston breaking out with a 31 carry, 161 yard, 4 touchdown performance against Navy. Hairston was named co-Big East Offensive Player of the Week for his work. He has solid size at 6’1", 210, and received good training at Milford Academy last year. He has been splitting time with JR Clarence Pittman, but I expect Hairston will remain a fixture in the lineup after his performance. His season stats include 299 total rushing yards on a 4.0 per carry average with 5 touchdowns. Pittman has rushed for 182 yards on a 4.3 average.

RU uses its fullback a lot. SO Brian Leonard has fullback size at 6’2", 230, but he is a hybrid as he runs well and has even been given some carries at tailback. Leonard has 184 rushing yards, on an impressive 5.3 yards per carry, and also has contributed 10 pass receptions for 163 yards (16.3 yards per catch) including a 72 yard touchdown. He leads the Scarlet Knights in all purpose yards, so keep an eye on him.

The two leading receivers are the starters for RU: SO Shawn Tucker and JR Tres Moses. Tucker has more size at 6’2" and is, statistically, the big play guy as he has 13 catches for 251 yards, an average of over 19 yards per catch. Moses is the smaller, quick receiver (5’10"), and he has 19 receptions, placing him fifth in the Big East in the category. However, he only is averaging 9.9 yards per catch thus far. He has the quickness to break tackles, however, and he leads the team with three touchdown receptions.

The offensive line was thought to be perhaps the weak link of the whole Rutgers team, but they have played better than expected. New offensive line coach Mario Cristobal had a good college career at Miami, and he has done a nice job thus far with this group.

The experience is towards the left side of the line with seniors Mike Williamson (6’5", 289) and Brian Duffy (6’5", 315) serving as anchors. Perhaps the best player on the line is senior center Marty Pyszczymuka (6’2", 280); if he isn’t the best player, then Duffy deserves the honor. Things aren’t nearly as settled on the right side, as the starters are junior newcomer (transfer) 6’5", 320 John Glass and probably 6’6", 320 junior college All-American Ron Green. Green earned his first start at tackle against Navy, and with the way the Knights ran the ball, I’m assuming he will retain his spot against the Hokies. So, while the experience resides on the left side of the line, RU does have a lot of beef on the right side.

While I do believe that the Rutgers offense is improved, I would also note that the only defense they have played that will resemble VT’s in terms of strength and speed was Michigan State. The Spartans held them to –2 rushing yards, despite the fact that Rutgers made an effort to run the ball nearly half the time (32 rushes/35 passes).

Coming into the year this was expected to be a strength, but the defense has not played up to expectations thus far. Rutgers is 74th overall in scoring defense in Division IA, 86th in total defense and a dismal 104th against the run. While they have faced some strong rushing attacks, notably Navy’s spread offense, to yield 373 rushing yards to the Midshipmen last week does not bode well with a VT rushing attack that is just hitting its stride. The Scarlet Knights yield 4.8 yards per rush on average.

Up front, the centerpiece is legitimate pro prospect Raheem Orr. Orr, a 6’4", 260 SR DE, was a highly touted high school player who is finally fulfilling his potential as he leads all Big East defensive linemen in tackles, is tied for first in the conference with three sacks, and is second with seven tackles for losses. He is a solid edge pass rusher and is the most likely player to disrupt the VT passing game.

The other returning starter on the defensive line is SR DT Gary Gibson, who is the biggest player on the line at 6’4", 290. SO DT Luis Rivas is his running mate inside, although he’s light at only 275 pounds. The final spot in Rutgers’ 4-3 is manned by JR DE Alfred Peterson who has significant experience and led all returning Scarlet Knights with eight tackles for a loss last year. Peterson has 21 tackles, 2.5 for a loss, and 1.5 sacks thus far this year.

One name to watch up front for Rutgers is highly touted freshman DT Nate Robinson. Robinson was rated by many as the best defensive tackle in the country, and a consensus top 25 national prospect who initially signed with Miami. He was eventually released from his letter of intent and matriculated to Rutgers. Robinson has not yet played, but it is possible this will be his debut. He was good enough that some were suggesting he might start for UM this year, so keep an eye on him if he plays. He wears #99.

The only returning starter among the linebackers is 6’3", 235 SR middle linebacker Brian Bender, but sophomores William Beckford and Will Gilkison have made more plays this year. Beckford is a typical kid recruited out of Florida – a 6’1", 220 athlete who can run and cover. Beckford is tied for second on the team in tackles, and he also has 4 tackles for a loss. He has an interception as well. Gilkison is 6’2", 230 and has been active with 25 tackles, including 1.5 TFL and 1.5 sacks.

The most experience on the Rutgers defense is in the secondary, where seniors Nate Jones and Brandon Haw capably man the corners and junior strong safety Jarvis Johnson is also a returning starter. Jones is slightly undersized at 5’10", 180, but he is great in run support as he was the leading returning tackler for RU coming into this year with 81 stops. He is tied for second on the team in tackles this year as well. Jones also is one of the top 4-5 cover guys in the Big East according to most scouts, and he has one interception and four passes defensed on the season. His counterpart, Haw, is very experienced with 29 career starts, the most of anyone on the defense. He also has an interception this year.

The leading tackler for RU is strong safety Jarvis Johnson, who is only 5’11", 195 but plays bigger. He has 33 total tackles, 3 passes defensed, and even has blocked a kick this year. Jones has reached double figures in tackles in each of the last three games and will look to sneak up on the line of scrimmage to help contain KJ. The newcomer to the defensive backfield is sophomore Bryan Durango who plays free safety and is primarily responsible for coverage.

Rutgers overall does a nice job on special teams and it seems to be an area of emphasis by Schiano. Last season Nate Jones finished sixth nationally in kickoff returns and took two back for touchdowns, and Rutgers has scored in other ways this year. For example, last week RU blocked a field goal and returned in for an 88 yard touchdown, and Tres Moses also took a punt back for a touchdown earlier this year against Buffalo.

While Jones is only averaging 17.7 yards per return this year – down from over 28 per return last year – he also has only fielded three kickoffs. Amazingly, four games into the season Rutgers has only returned six kickoffs as a team. Still, Jones clearly is a threat. Moses is averaging 18.4 yards per punt return on seven returns, so he is also dangerous with his hands on the football. Both have to be a concern to Frank Beamer.

Rutgers has a sophomore punter named Joe Radigan, and he has done a nice job this year. While his average is just okay, the more important statistic – net punting- is very good, as the Knights average 38.1 yard net per punt. Of course, he will be facing a somewhat scary Pride and Joy team for the first time, but his numbers look good now.

The kicking situation is not good for Rutgers. There are three candidates for the job, none of whom has been named as a starter by Schiano. In total they are 2-7 on field goals and 16-18 on PATs. My guess is that on any fourth and short yardage situations near the red zone, Schiano will look to go for it.

This Rutgers team is better than the last few editions, but VT traditionally thrashes the Scarlet Knights on the road and I just don’t see RU having enough defense to hang with the Hokies. The statistics indicate that VT’s spread and option running attacks will overwhelm Rutgers, and I believe the hype. Rutgers will get their points, but they won’t be able to slow down a Hokie offense that should play better than it did last week against UConn.

Will Stewart's Take: For some weird reason, while the Hokies beat Rutgers handily at home (ave. score since 1996: 40-9), they really blow up on them on the road (ave. score since 1995: 53-14). Virginia Tech really likes the sight of Rutgers Stadium, which can never be called an intimidating venue, even if full (capacity: 41,500).

In the Big East conference, there are two teams that I believe are incapable of beating VT: Boston College is one, Rutgers is the other. (I used to believe Temple was the third, but that's another story, for another time.) I'm not sold on Greg Schiano as a coach, though as a recruiter, he's pretty good. The Ryan Cubit/Bill Cubit mess unfortunately set back the progress of the Rutgers program under Schiano.

They say Rutgers is better; we'll see. For me, it's not a case of picking a winner or a loser here. It's a case of picking the margin. I like Jeff's prediction of 48 points, but I'll up him one point, to 49, and I don't think Rutgers will find the end zone twice.

Will Stewart's Prediction: Virginia Tech 49, Rutgers 13

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