I do a post like this every year, where I try and identify targets Rutgers should pursue in the event they enter the portal. Here's the thread from last year and 2022 for reference:
rutgers.forums.rivals.com
rutgers.forums.rivals.com
I'll pat myself on the back, the first guy I highlighted last year was Dymere Miller and he's our leading WR this season. Let's first go through position by position and assess a need at each position group...
QB
Need: 0.
Rutgers has it's starter for next season in Athan Kaliakmanis and the heir apparent in AJ Surace behind him, with Ajani Sheppard as a depth QB as well.
RB
Need: 0-1.
Kyle Monangai is out of eligibility after this season but there is quality depth behind him with Samuel Brown, Antwan Raymond and Jashon Benjamin, with 4 star true freshman John Forster coming in the 2025 recruiting class. Two reasons why this isn't a 0/10...
1) Samuel Brown has suffered his 2nd season ending injury in the past three seasons, I doubt he's back at 100% by next season
2) The staff recently offered another RB in the 2025 class, so they clearly are interested in adding a RB
WR
Need: 0-1.
Rutgers is also in a very good situation long term at WR, with KJ Duff and Ian Strong clearly being the 1/2 punch of the future. Throw in Famah Toure and Ben Black as guys the staff really likes and you have a very good young core. It would be great to add a veteran pass catcher to round out this group, but it's a luxury item.
TE
Need: 0-1.
Kenny Fletcher had an up and down first season as a starter and unfortunately was lost for the season with an injury. The rest of the group (Logan Blake, Mike Higgins, etc) haven't shown a ton either. Rutgrs would use a TE, but It's not near the top of the need list
OL
Need: 1-3.
Hollin Pierce's graduation will leave a gaping hole on the left side of this offensive line. The rest of the starting OL (Bryan Felter, Gus Zilinskas, Kobe Asamoah, Tyler Needham) all have eligibility remaining. LT is an obvious need and upgrading depth behind starters should be a key.
DL
Need: 2-4.
This is probably the biggest area of need this off-season. Rutgers will be losing the majority of it's two deep from a unit that didn't perform up to expectations in 2024 so far (Aaron Lewis, Kyonte Hamilton, Malcolm Ray, Troy Rainey), but Wesley Bailey could return if he wanted which would be a big boost to this unit next year. Regardless, this is a unit that needs a talent infusion in the portal.
LB
Need: 1-2.
Rutgers will lose Tyreem Powell in the off-season, who has been a standout performer when healthy for 4 seasons at RU. They return Mohamed Toure, but he will be coming off of an ACL injury and the LB play has left a lot to be desired this season.
CB
Need: 1-2.
Rutgers loses it's CB1 and CB2 after this season in Robert Longerbeam and Eric Rogers, with Al-Shadee Salaam and Bo Mascoe likely pencilled in as the likely starters next year as things currently stand. Schiano has shown he has a great eye for DBs and has recruited the position well at the HS ranks. But adding a proven CB to this group would help the young guys along.
S
Need: 1-2.
Rutgers loses it's top three safeties in terms of snap counts after this season in Flip Dixon, Desmond Igbinuson and Shaquon Loyal. No position group gets hit harder this off-season than the safety room. Kaj Sanders is the obvious choice to take one of the safety spots this off-season, but Rutgers could really use a couple more safeties to solidify this unit.
So in terms of needs, Rutgers needs between 6 on the low end and 16 on the high end in terms of transfers this off-season (it will be closer to the low end than the high end I'm sure). Here are some realistic players that make sense for Rutgers to target in the hypothetical scenario that they enter the portal:
Potential Portal Targets....
rutgers.rivals.com
2023 SPECULATIVE Portal Targets (11/21 UPDATE: FIRST PORTAL SZN OFFER!)
I did a post like this last year, where I dove into some of the top players from the lower levels (G5/FCS) who have NJ/RU ties of some sort. Here's that thread from last year. Some of the players we identified early last year were: QB Tony Muskett (Monmouth) -> UVA. Just led UVA to a win at #10...
rutgers.forums.rivals.com
Potential Transfer Portal Targets (PURE SPECULATION) (NEW NAMES ADDED)
Just want to reiterate that this is PURELY SPECULATION on my part, but wanted to get together a list of guys that might be worth pursuing if they hit the portal in the offseason. These are guys who may have a tie to the area or to Rutgers and might want to step up a level, come closer to home or...
rutgers.forums.rivals.com
I'll pat myself on the back, the first guy I highlighted last year was Dymere Miller and he's our leading WR this season. Let's first go through position by position and assess a need at each position group...
QB
Need: 0.
Rutgers has it's starter for next season in Athan Kaliakmanis and the heir apparent in AJ Surace behind him, with Ajani Sheppard as a depth QB as well.
RB
Need: 0-1.
Kyle Monangai is out of eligibility after this season but there is quality depth behind him with Samuel Brown, Antwan Raymond and Jashon Benjamin, with 4 star true freshman John Forster coming in the 2025 recruiting class. Two reasons why this isn't a 0/10...
1) Samuel Brown has suffered his 2nd season ending injury in the past three seasons, I doubt he's back at 100% by next season
2) The staff recently offered another RB in the 2025 class, so they clearly are interested in adding a RB
WR
Need: 0-1.
Rutgers is also in a very good situation long term at WR, with KJ Duff and Ian Strong clearly being the 1/2 punch of the future. Throw in Famah Toure and Ben Black as guys the staff really likes and you have a very good young core. It would be great to add a veteran pass catcher to round out this group, but it's a luxury item.
TE
Need: 0-1.
Kenny Fletcher had an up and down first season as a starter and unfortunately was lost for the season with an injury. The rest of the group (Logan Blake, Mike Higgins, etc) haven't shown a ton either. Rutgrs would use a TE, but It's not near the top of the need list
OL
Need: 1-3.
Hollin Pierce's graduation will leave a gaping hole on the left side of this offensive line. The rest of the starting OL (Bryan Felter, Gus Zilinskas, Kobe Asamoah, Tyler Needham) all have eligibility remaining. LT is an obvious need and upgrading depth behind starters should be a key.
DL
Need: 2-4.
This is probably the biggest area of need this off-season. Rutgers will be losing the majority of it's two deep from a unit that didn't perform up to expectations in 2024 so far (Aaron Lewis, Kyonte Hamilton, Malcolm Ray, Troy Rainey), but Wesley Bailey could return if he wanted which would be a big boost to this unit next year. Regardless, this is a unit that needs a talent infusion in the portal.
LB
Need: 1-2.
Rutgers will lose Tyreem Powell in the off-season, who has been a standout performer when healthy for 4 seasons at RU. They return Mohamed Toure, but he will be coming off of an ACL injury and the LB play has left a lot to be desired this season.
CB
Need: 1-2.
Rutgers loses it's CB1 and CB2 after this season in Robert Longerbeam and Eric Rogers, with Al-Shadee Salaam and Bo Mascoe likely pencilled in as the likely starters next year as things currently stand. Schiano has shown he has a great eye for DBs and has recruited the position well at the HS ranks. But adding a proven CB to this group would help the young guys along.
S
Need: 1-2.
Rutgers loses it's top three safeties in terms of snap counts after this season in Flip Dixon, Desmond Igbinuson and Shaquon Loyal. No position group gets hit harder this off-season than the safety room. Kaj Sanders is the obvious choice to take one of the safety spots this off-season, but Rutgers could really use a couple more safeties to solidify this unit.
So in terms of needs, Rutgers needs between 6 on the low end and 16 on the high end in terms of transfers this off-season (it will be closer to the low end than the high end I'm sure). Here are some realistic players that make sense for Rutgers to target in the hypothetical scenario that they enter the portal:
Potential Portal Targets....
Potential Transfer Targets for Rutgers Football this upcoming offseason
Mike Broadbent dove into some of the top players who could enter the portal this offseason.
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