Quotables
CB Damon Hayes on being a starting cornerback:
“It is just my time. I was more sad about Bless being out than me playing. I learned a lot from Bless as far as film and little stuff out here, like splits. Ever since I got here as a freshman, both Bless and Isaiah [Wharton] have been helping me out.”
RB Gus Edwards on how he is feeling after five games as a starter:
“I think we are doing a great job with the rotation. Me and Rob [Martin] are splitting carries pretty evenly. I do a lot of things to keep sure my body is good week in and week out, so I feel great.”
Fat Cat Top Five
Top Five Projected RU Defensive Players through final 7 Games
5.) Damon Hayes
4.) Kiy Hester
3.) Kevin Wilkins
2.) Kemoko Turay
1.) Deonte Roberts
Bobby’s Crystal Ball
Rutgers class of 2019 will have significantly more NJ commits than its class of 2018
Recruiting Tidbits
’18 OL Reggie Sutton (Calvert Hall - MD):
One of three Rutgers O-lineman commits, Sutton has put his recruitment behind him and has his sights focused on his season.
"I’ve been playing well on both sides of the ball so far,” Sutton said. “Just trying to make an impact every way I can. We had two losses that we wish we could’ve had back, but we’ve learned from them and bounced back harder the next week to win. I’m excited for the rest of the season and the playoff push.”
’18 DE Matthew Thomas (Midwood – NY
A couple of weeks ago Rutgers commit Matthew Thomas suffered what people thought was a pretty serious injury, he was carted off his high school field and taken to the hospital. It’s been a couple of weeks now and Thomas told us the following regarding his injury.
"I’m getting there. It was just some pinched nerves. I went to the chiropractor recently so he could release them, so I'm feeling a lot better now. I’ll be back for next weeks’ game against Brooklyn Tech hopefully. If not that game, then definitely the week after versus Lincoln."
’18 LB Jayden McDonald (North Gwinnett - GA)
The Georgia linebacker has been racking up tackles and although RU lost a commit from the state of Georgia, it does not look like
“They are going to come together. It’s just a matter of getting back to practice every time and just fixing those mistakes,” McDonald said. The overall record doesn’t affect me at all, I just want to see them doing their best. I can’t speak for any other recruits, but the record doesn’t affect me. It’s all about where I fit in.”
Potential New WR Targets
With Rutgers recently losing a commit in wide receiver EJ Turner, it’s time to take a look at some of the potential targets the staff may look to in order to fill Turner’s vacancy.
Jackson Paraham (Hillsborough - NJ)
Naseim Brantley (Howell School - NJ)
Austin Alexander (St. Thomas More - CT)
RB Terrance Jones (Pope John)
Jones is a big back, who is having a solid season and that has resulted in a Kent State offer recently. Rutgers is also maintaining contact with Jones.
“They love me,” Jones said of the RU staff. “They want to have me down there.”
Rutgers has two running back commits in the class of 2018 (Stevie Scott, Isaih Pacheco) and while both are solid verbals, Jones would be a backup plan should anything happen in the future.
DL Ireland Burke (Pope John)
An injury has limited Burke to just two games this season as he is out for the year. The junior transferred this past year to Pope John from Grand Street Campus in Brooklyn. Recruiting is still busy for Burke. Rutgers is continuing to maintain quite a bit of contact and Burke is also close with former Grand Streeters and current Scarlet Knights Olakunle Fatukasi and Kamaal Seymour. He told Scarlet Nation he is hoping to visit Notre Dame next while his former teammates are also doing their part in trying to sell him on Rutgers.
Coaches on the Road
Secondary coach Bill Busch is set to head out to Erasmus Hall (NY) this Friday. The Dutchmen feature Rutgers commit Kessawn Abraham, along with a lot of talented prospects in the classes of 2019 and 2020.
Offensive line coach AJ Blazek is headed down south to check out the Conway High School (SC) game on Friday, which features Rutgers O-lineman commit Raiqwon O’Neal. Along with O’Neal, the team also features one of the top sophomore defensive ends in the country in Tonka Hemingway.
Eye on Rutgers
All end of the season team
This week’s Eye on Rutgers takes a look at how the final starting lineup might look for the last game of the season on the offensive side of the ball.
QB Johnathan Lewis – It looks to be only a matter of time before Lewis is entrusted with the duty of running the Rutgers offense.
RB Raheem Blackshear – Even though he is one of the smaller running backs, there is a good chance he has a breakout game or two.
TE Jerome Washington – The junior is in line to be Rutgers' offensive MVP and leading pass catcher this season.
RT Micah Clark – The former four-star looks to be getting closer and closer to meaningful reps and that could come at some point this season.
RG Jonah Jackson – He might be the freshest O-lineman at the season's end as he is expected to miss the next 4-6 games.
C Mike Maietti – Rutgers does not have many options at center and it looks like the staff is committed to Maietti now that Jackson is out.
LG Dorian Miller - He will finish out his RU career as a three-year starter and someone who represented the program extremely well.
LT Tariq Cole – The end of the season will be decision time as Cole will decide whether or not to test the NFL Draft waters a year early.
WR Janarion Grant – Assuming he can stay healthy, Grant will be on the field as much as the coaches will let him as he’s always been a gamer.
WR Ahmir Mitchell – Once he returns to the field, fans are likely to see him get better and better each week as he is RU’s No.1 receiver of the future.
WR Bo Melton – It should be only a matter of time before Melton breaks out as he is too talented to watch from the sidelines.
CB Damon Hayes on being a starting cornerback:
“It is just my time. I was more sad about Bless being out than me playing. I learned a lot from Bless as far as film and little stuff out here, like splits. Ever since I got here as a freshman, both Bless and Isaiah [Wharton] have been helping me out.”
RB Gus Edwards on how he is feeling after five games as a starter:
“I think we are doing a great job with the rotation. Me and Rob [Martin] are splitting carries pretty evenly. I do a lot of things to keep sure my body is good week in and week out, so I feel great.”
Fat Cat Top Five
Top Five Projected RU Defensive Players through final 7 Games
5.) Damon Hayes
4.) Kiy Hester
3.) Kevin Wilkins
2.) Kemoko Turay
1.) Deonte Roberts
Bobby’s Crystal Ball
Rutgers class of 2019 will have significantly more NJ commits than its class of 2018
Recruiting Tidbits
’18 OL Reggie Sutton (Calvert Hall - MD):
One of three Rutgers O-lineman commits, Sutton has put his recruitment behind him and has his sights focused on his season.
"I’ve been playing well on both sides of the ball so far,” Sutton said. “Just trying to make an impact every way I can. We had two losses that we wish we could’ve had back, but we’ve learned from them and bounced back harder the next week to win. I’m excited for the rest of the season and the playoff push.”
’18 DE Matthew Thomas (Midwood – NY
A couple of weeks ago Rutgers commit Matthew Thomas suffered what people thought was a pretty serious injury, he was carted off his high school field and taken to the hospital. It’s been a couple of weeks now and Thomas told us the following regarding his injury.
"I’m getting there. It was just some pinched nerves. I went to the chiropractor recently so he could release them, so I'm feeling a lot better now. I’ll be back for next weeks’ game against Brooklyn Tech hopefully. If not that game, then definitely the week after versus Lincoln."
’18 LB Jayden McDonald (North Gwinnett - GA)
The Georgia linebacker has been racking up tackles and although RU lost a commit from the state of Georgia, it does not look like
“They are going to come together. It’s just a matter of getting back to practice every time and just fixing those mistakes,” McDonald said. The overall record doesn’t affect me at all, I just want to see them doing their best. I can’t speak for any other recruits, but the record doesn’t affect me. It’s all about where I fit in.”
Potential New WR Targets
With Rutgers recently losing a commit in wide receiver EJ Turner, it’s time to take a look at some of the potential targets the staff may look to in order to fill Turner’s vacancy.
Jackson Paraham (Hillsborough - NJ)
Naseim Brantley (Howell School - NJ)
Austin Alexander (St. Thomas More - CT)
RB Terrance Jones (Pope John)
Jones is a big back, who is having a solid season and that has resulted in a Kent State offer recently. Rutgers is also maintaining contact with Jones.
“They love me,” Jones said of the RU staff. “They want to have me down there.”
Rutgers has two running back commits in the class of 2018 (Stevie Scott, Isaih Pacheco) and while both are solid verbals, Jones would be a backup plan should anything happen in the future.
DL Ireland Burke (Pope John)
An injury has limited Burke to just two games this season as he is out for the year. The junior transferred this past year to Pope John from Grand Street Campus in Brooklyn. Recruiting is still busy for Burke. Rutgers is continuing to maintain quite a bit of contact and Burke is also close with former Grand Streeters and current Scarlet Knights Olakunle Fatukasi and Kamaal Seymour. He told Scarlet Nation he is hoping to visit Notre Dame next while his former teammates are also doing their part in trying to sell him on Rutgers.
Coaches on the Road
Secondary coach Bill Busch is set to head out to Erasmus Hall (NY) this Friday. The Dutchmen feature Rutgers commit Kessawn Abraham, along with a lot of talented prospects in the classes of 2019 and 2020.
Offensive line coach AJ Blazek is headed down south to check out the Conway High School (SC) game on Friday, which features Rutgers O-lineman commit Raiqwon O’Neal. Along with O’Neal, the team also features one of the top sophomore defensive ends in the country in Tonka Hemingway.
Eye on Rutgers
All end of the season team
This week’s Eye on Rutgers takes a look at how the final starting lineup might look for the last game of the season on the offensive side of the ball.
QB Johnathan Lewis – It looks to be only a matter of time before Lewis is entrusted with the duty of running the Rutgers offense.
RB Raheem Blackshear – Even though he is one of the smaller running backs, there is a good chance he has a breakout game or two.
TE Jerome Washington – The junior is in line to be Rutgers' offensive MVP and leading pass catcher this season.
RT Micah Clark – The former four-star looks to be getting closer and closer to meaningful reps and that could come at some point this season.
RG Jonah Jackson – He might be the freshest O-lineman at the season's end as he is expected to miss the next 4-6 games.
C Mike Maietti – Rutgers does not have many options at center and it looks like the staff is committed to Maietti now that Jackson is out.
LG Dorian Miller - He will finish out his RU career as a three-year starter and someone who represented the program extremely well.
LT Tariq Cole – The end of the season will be decision time as Cole will decide whether or not to test the NFL Draft waters a year early.
WR Janarion Grant – Assuming he can stay healthy, Grant will be on the field as much as the coaches will let him as he’s always been a gamer.
WR Ahmir Mitchell – Once he returns to the field, fans are likely to see him get better and better each week as he is RU’s No.1 receiver of the future.
WR Bo Melton – It should be only a matter of time before Melton breaks out as he is too talented to watch from the sidelines.
