The Rutgers Scarlet Knights (3-1, 2-2 ATS, 2-2 O/U) meet with the #3 Ohio State Buckeyes (4-0, 2-2 ATS, 2-2 O/U) in a Big Ten bout on Saturday evening. The Scarlet Knights had trouble generating offense in a home loss against Iowa in their previous action. The Buckeyes resumed their dominance in a home win against Wisconsin last week. The Buckeyes clobbered Rutgers 52-13 last season.
The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are looking to rebound from their first defeat of the season. They recorded a minor upset win in the season opener, defeating Boston College 22-21 in a game that had the Knights as nine-point dogs. Next, they defeated Wagner and Temple to improve to 3-0 and were nine-point dogs in a 27-10 home loss against Iowa last week. Rutgers has covered the points in two of their four games.
Rutgers has used two QBs led by Evan Simon. The sophomore only attempted 15 passes against Temple but went 28 for 49 with a remarkable 300 passing yards against Iowa. Simon has collected 566 passing yards along with a 3:2 TD to INT ratio on the season.
The offense has used four different RBs this season. Kyle Monangai has received the most carries and has been mediocre, collecting 157 yards on an average of 3.7 yards per rush. They only have one received with at leas t 10 catches in Aron Cruickshank. The senior WR only has 156 receiving yards on the year. The Rutgers offense has only scored a total of 26 points in their last two games.
DOWN HE GOES. ??@chriscrafty_ x @RFootball pic.twitter.com/lYlnWYPih4
— Rutgers On BTN (@RutgersOnBTN) September 25, 2022
The Scarlet Knights' defense is a big reason they are 3-1. They held Temple to only 16 points in week three and despite giving up 27 points last week, they limited the Hawkeyes to just 277 total yards. The pass defense ranks 35th in the FBS while the rush defense is among the best, placing second.
Rutgers is averaging 28.5 points on the year, landing them 84th. The defense is conceding an average of only 17.3 points, tabbing them 25th in the country.