Tall Task
October 06, 2005 11:34 AM | General
October 6, 2005
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Need a win? Go to Rutgers. That used to be the thinking of Big East teams when the Scarlet Knights appeared on their football schedule. But that’s not necessarily the case now even though Coach Greg Schiano is just 4-24 in Big East games and 15-35 overall in his fifth season.
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| West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez is wary of 3-1 Rutgers.
All-Pro Photography/Dale Sparks |
Pitt found out the hard way last weekend getting behind 27-0 right off the bat and losing in Piscataway 37-29. In that game Rutgers piled up 453 yards of offense and had four different players score touchdowns to defeat the Panthers for the first time since 1998. The Knights are looking for their first 4-1 start since 1992.
No, this isn’t the same Rutgers team that lost to West Virginia by scores of 80-7, 40-0, 34-15 and 35-30. West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez has seen enough tape of them to be convinced of that.
“They looked fast and they played fast,” Rodriguez said after watching last Friday’s Pitt game. “It was 27-0 at half and it really could have been worse.”
Once an abomination, Rutgers’ offensive has really come alive under third-year offensive coordinator Craig Ver Steeg. The Knights are third among Big East teams in scoring offense (30.5 ppg.), second in passing yards (254.5 ypg.) and second in total offense (407.5 ypg.).
Senior quarterback Ryan Hart is the offensive catalyst and he’s done a great job this year limiting his interceptions. Prior to this season, Hart threw a total of 44 interceptions including 38 the last two seasons. In four games so far the 6-foot-2-inch, 200-pound senior has only thrown two picks and they both came in the last game against Pitt. Before that he had a streak of 127 consecutive passes attempted without an interception.
Hart has thrown for 719 yards and eight touchdowns this year and shows 7,273 yards and 42 touchdowns for his career. Once his career is over he should hold just about every major school passing record.
Hart has plenty of weapons to get the football to, starting with a pair of outstanding receivers in Tres Moses and Shawn Tucker. Moses caught 81 passes last year as a junior and shows 18 catches for 294 yards and a touchdown so far this season. Tucker, a 6-foot-2-inch, 200-pound junior, has caught 13 passes for 194 yards and a touchdown.
“They’re pretty identical and both can run by you,” Rodriguez said. “I’m really impressed with them and as a pair they may be the best we’ve seen so far.”
Complimenting them is 6-foot-6-inch tight end Clark Francis, who caught six passes for 49 yards and a touchdown in last year’s game against West Virginia. Francis is second on the team with 14 catches for 179 yards and a touchdown.
“He really hurt us last year,” said Rodriguez of Francis. “He’s a 6-6 guy that can go get the ball.”
West Virginia can’t afford to drop eight in coverage because the Knights also have a capable runner in fullback Brian Leonard. The 6-foot-2-inch, 235-pound senior has run 68 times for 368 yards and three touchdowns including a pair of 100-yard games against Illinois and Buffalo, and is also third on the team with 14 catches for 175 yards and three touchdowns.
“We’ve had problems against him the last two years running the ball and catching it,” Rodriguez said. “He’s a big, physical guy kind of like Owen Schmitt though he’s a little bit faster. He’s a match-up problem because he runs over DBs and he’s got great ball skills. You’ve got to get a couple of people out there to tackle him because he runs over a lot of people.”
Rodriguez is especially conscious of Rutgers throwing a lot of screen passes to Leonard out of the backfield. Three times the Knights were successful hitting Leonard for big gains, including 33-yard touchdown in the first quarter of the Pitt game.
“He’s got a knack for running that play,” Rodriguez said.
Rutgers is also much improved defensively. The Knights are fourth in the Big East in total defense allowing just 17.8 points per game. Rutgers is effective stopping teams in the red zone, ranking second in the conference with a 66.7 success rate.
This year marks the second consecutive time West Virginia is traveling to Rutgers due to the addition of Louisville, Cincinnati and South Florida into the conference. West Virginia held on for a 35-30 win in a hotly contested game in Piscataway in 2004.
“That’s a tough place to play,” Rodriguez said. “Like everybody else they play better at home than on the road. If you’re going to win championships you’ve got to win a few key games on the road. We’ve been able to win up there before but I’m sure this is going to be a real good test.”
Briefly:
“For being a young team they’re pretty mature,” he said. “The few upperclassmen that we have really understand the deal. The guys that have been around a little bit help explain things to the young guys how important the Big East games are and that every goal we have except for an undefeated season is still out there.”
“I haven’t seen him throw yet but you’ve still got to cover (Hart),” Rodriguez said. “He runs that zone read and what we call the dart tackle-trap play. They run a fake reverse with him, too. I think that was something new; they had an open week before the Pitt game so I’m sure they brought that out as a little surprise.”
