Rutgers football's no-show against Maryland doesn't inspire confidence in the future
PISCATAWAY – There is nothing wrong with Rutgers football, after spending most of the past decade vacillating between irrelevant and embarrassment, finishing the 2023 regular season with a record of 6-6 and the program’s first legitimate bowl berth since 2014.
By any measure, that’s progress in the fourth year of Greg Schiano’s second tour on the banks.
But there is something very wrong with getting shredded at home in Saturday’s finale by an equally middling Maryland squad, a 42-24 body slam that was not nearly as close as the final score.
There is something wrong with Schiano’s defense – the team’s pride and joy – leaving Terrapin receivers uncovered both downfield and on screens. Maryland threw for 361 yards, and most of that came before the Terps sat on a huge lead.
There is something wrong with Rutgers’ quarterback missing open targets galore against the Big Ten’s ninth-ranked passing defense. Completing 13 of 34 passes for 165 yards is bad on its face. It's worse when you actually watched how errant many of the incompletions were.
There is something wrong with an empty stadium in the third quarter of Senior Day for a bowl-bound squad, fans understandably escaping the cold, and Maryland's players posing for postgame photos on the field as their small fan contingent saluted their seniors on visiting turf.
“We ran out of gas,” Schiano said afterward, pointing to injuries. “At the end of the day that’s part of our development, to build the depth so when you lose people you can still operate at or close to the same level.”
Will the Scarlet faithful show up to the Pinstripe Bowl in four weeks, shivering for college football’s version of the NIT? Probably. Rutgers fans are loyal, but even they have to admit: This is an uninspiring finish. Is there reason to believe Gavin Wimsatt is the future at quarterback? That Schiano, who has proven his chops at making losers competitive, can take the next step and turn competitive into winners on a stage like the Big Ten? That the Scarlet Knights can edge past Maryland, the kind of leap they should aspire to make as the schedule eases with next year’s expansion?
“What comes last is consistency,” Schiano said. “When you build depth, consistency is what comes last. Just couldn’t quite get it done today. And it’s on me. It is totally on me as the head coach. I have to build maybe differently.”
The Terps have pounded Rutgers like a drum over the past eight seasons, outscoring the Scarlet Knights 280-125 while holding a 6-2 advantage during that span. This is the kind of program you have to surpass in order to rise above the Pinstripe Bowl.
"I don't know if it's maybe because we (typically) play them last," Schiano said. "We've been beat up at the end of all the seasons, but every team is to a degree...It's more good players that are developed in the pipeline that lends to being a better team at the end of the season. We'll get there."
Speaking of the end, there is now some pressure on Rutgers to win its bowl game. Finishing the season with five straight losses would be a serious momentum downturn as the transfer portal whirls and the NIL collection plate is passed.
Back in August, most Rutgers fans would have signed for 6-6 and bowl berth. In the big picture, Schiano and his seniors have done a laudable job of exceeding expectations this fall. If the corner does get turned, they can rightly claim to have laid the foundation.
But for today at least, please shelve the moral-victory, it's-going-to-get-better stuff. As this four-hour dissection by Maryland reminded any reasonable observer, it’s an open question as to whether that corner will get turned.
Jerry Carino has covered the New Jersey sports scene since 1996 and the college basketball beat since 2003. He is an Associated Press Top 25 voter. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Rutgers football's no-show against Maryland bodes ill for the future
