Quotables
Freshman QB Mike Dare on his training camp experience:
“It has been expected, a lot of hard work, a lot of time in the books. It’s been hot too. The first couple days were hard going into a new system, especially as a freshman having a big playbook and a lot of checks and stuff. It’s different from high school, you have all these checks and all of these reads. It is something to get used to.”
Redshirt freshman DT Eric Wiafe on the differences of his second training camp:
“I think knowing my plays and being more familiar with everything. It is not as hard as it was last camp because I am used to the tempo at practice. But going to prep school helped me a lot because it made me tougher going into camp. Their football was similar to college football.”
DL coach Jim Panagos on freshman Willington Previlon:
“Will has done a real good job early on getting some reps. I have been impressed with him. Once he gets in the weight room, I think his future is bright.”
RB Paul James on the start of the season:
“I can’t wait for that first game to get out there in front of all our fans. I have been playing it over in my mind but I have to be patient. It is something that is in the future so I can’t look into it too much. I have to kind of brush it out and focus on every day of practice.”
Fat Cat Top Five
Top Five Captain Candidates
5.) Keith Lumpkin
4.) Julian Pinnix-Odrick
3.) Paul James
2.) Leonte Carroo
1.) Darius Hamilton
Bobby’s Crystal Ball
Ten players who came in as walk-ons will see the field this season
Recruiting Tidbits
Weekend Visitor
As mentioned earlier this week, class of 2017 RB Jon Taylor of Salem is expected to make it back to campus for a full visit on Saturday and he will also stay for the night scrimmage. It helps Rutgers that Taylor was coached by former Scarlet Knight RB Dennis Thomas who has a strong relationship with his alma mater. Drawing comparisons to another recent small school South Jersey RB product, Corey Clement, Taylor seems much more open to the possibility of playing his college football in NJ.
Expect Rutgers to try to get some other local priority underclassmen recruits on campus for the scrimmage as well as some remaining class of 2016 targets. Getting someone like TE target Jovani Haskins back on campus would give Rutgers a chance to continue to build on the momentum the staff has gained in his recruitment following his recent visit.
Tuesday Visitor
Scarlet Nation has confirmed that Old Tappan athlete Jordan Fuller, NJVarsity’s No.2 ranked in-state recruit in the class of 2016, is planning to get back on campus for a Tuesday visit to Rutgers.
DB Tony Butler – St. Edwards (OH)
Rutgers had been named one of the top schools for the Ohio Cornerback target. However as Butler has narrowed his list to three schools, it looks like Rutgers is on the outside looking in. Scarlet Nation has learned that Butler is favoring West Virginia, Clemson and Arizona State with plans to make a decision somewhere within the next two to three months. Rutgers is considered the No.4 school as of now and could slide back into contention. However, Butler's decision to move up his decision timeline doesn't help Rutgers cause.
DE Chinedu Udeogu - Georgetown Prep (MD)
The defensive lineman maintains a target decision date of early September. While his visit to California went well recently, the Bears took another commitment at defensive end beforehand, a spot that could have been Udeogu's. We are hearing that Cal will likely take two more defensive linemen, but is unclear where Udeogu stands on the Cal board as there may be higher priority prospects available for the Bears.
DB Jarrett Paul – Christ The King (NYC)
Rutgers has made New York City a priority area and the class of 2018 prospect has crept onto the RU radar recently. Paul visited campus with his family on Thursday for practice.
"The convos (with the coaches) were great. The liked my size and length as a DB," said Paul. "Practice was great too. Everything was at a fast and physical pace."
Paul told Scarlet Nation that he spent most of his time with Recruiting Coordinator EJ Barthel, Marcus Berry of Player Personnel and DB Coach Darrell Wilson. Due to a school rule, Paul didn't play varsity last season but he possess the size (6-foot, 175 pounds) that Rutgers has coveted in the defensive backfield recently. He will be a name to remember going forward.
Team Tidbits
The QB Battle
The quarterback position battle is taking longer than was originally anticipated as head coach Kyle Flood was looking to make a decision in the 7-10 day range. A close race has stretched that timeline while tomorrow’s scrimmage could play a role in who is named the starter. This quarterback battle is much different than the ones that have preceded it as it is very close with both quarterbacks bringing certain strengths to the field.
Chris Laviano is in his third year at Rutgers and his biggest jump was evident this past spring. He pulled ahead of Hayden Rettig at the end of April, although Rettig is showing that he will not go away without a fight. Rettig’s biggest jump has been from the spring to the summer as he continues to progress through the month of August. While this is a close race, making the right decision could impact the entire decision. Rutgers will face Washington State and Penn State during the second and third weeks of the season. Against the high octane offense of Washington State and stout defense of Penn State, the quarterback will probably have to make some clutch throws for RU to emerge victorious.
The outcome of those two games could play a big part in the trajectory of the season. Now entering his fourth season as Rutgers head coach, this quarterback decision could be the biggest one Flood will have made. He’s also had Ralph Friedgen on the practice field with him all week long, which should help in the final decision. Getting the decision right is key to a good start and a potentially good season. So while all eyes will be on the quarterback through the first month of the season, the blame or praise will eventually be doled out on Flood.
New Contributors
This season, there will be a host of new contributors to the Rutgers defense. The first one to play a much more prominent role will be defensive tackle Julian Pinnix-Odrick who has been starting in place of Darius Hamilton at the 3-technique. JPO has added some more weight and managed to stand out quite a bit on the practice field.
“You have to be able to gain the weight, stay flexible and stay fast,” said the 270-plus pound Pinnix-Odrick. “I have not really felt too much of a difference this camp with the extra weight.
Pinnix-Odrick was a highly-touted recruit with more than 20 offers. Another highly-touted prospect, Kiy Hester, looks as though he will be joining JPO as a new contributor this season. Hester used spring practice to help propel him right into the hunt for the starting strong safety position.
“I feel like this spring helped me running on the field and getting the mistakes out,” Hester said. “And then the summer, meeting with coach Rossi really helped. He would tell me what my responsibilities were, how I was doing it and why I was doing it. It really helped me.”
The Corners
The evolution of freshman Blessuan Austin has been a constant theme through the spring and into the summer and he has been joined by a couple of other corners who have continued to play well. Dre Boggs returns for his sophomore season and has been a consistent performer through the summer.
“It’s his mindset. He is really focused on doing the task at hand,” defensive backs coach Darrell Wilson said of Boggs. “He is a really sharp kid. He is good in the meetings and he has really kind of taken on that leadership role. He is kind of one of the older guys in the room.”
Redshirt junior Ruhann Peele has also taken to the adjustment at cornerback as well and could push out Isaiah Wharton for the No.3 spot by the start of the season.
“This corner group I am working with is a really, really talented group,” Wilson added. “I am really pleased with the progress they are making. A lot of it is just the mindset. They are really good athletes, really talented. And they decided they are going to get it done.”
Freshman QB Mike Dare on his training camp experience:
“It has been expected, a lot of hard work, a lot of time in the books. It’s been hot too. The first couple days were hard going into a new system, especially as a freshman having a big playbook and a lot of checks and stuff. It’s different from high school, you have all these checks and all of these reads. It is something to get used to.”
Redshirt freshman DT Eric Wiafe on the differences of his second training camp:
“I think knowing my plays and being more familiar with everything. It is not as hard as it was last camp because I am used to the tempo at practice. But going to prep school helped me a lot because it made me tougher going into camp. Their football was similar to college football.”
DL coach Jim Panagos on freshman Willington Previlon:
“Will has done a real good job early on getting some reps. I have been impressed with him. Once he gets in the weight room, I think his future is bright.”
RB Paul James on the start of the season:
“I can’t wait for that first game to get out there in front of all our fans. I have been playing it over in my mind but I have to be patient. It is something that is in the future so I can’t look into it too much. I have to kind of brush it out and focus on every day of practice.”
Fat Cat Top Five
Top Five Captain Candidates
5.) Keith Lumpkin
4.) Julian Pinnix-Odrick
3.) Paul James
2.) Leonte Carroo
1.) Darius Hamilton
Bobby’s Crystal Ball
Ten players who came in as walk-ons will see the field this season
Recruiting Tidbits
Weekend Visitor
As mentioned earlier this week, class of 2017 RB Jon Taylor of Salem is expected to make it back to campus for a full visit on Saturday and he will also stay for the night scrimmage. It helps Rutgers that Taylor was coached by former Scarlet Knight RB Dennis Thomas who has a strong relationship with his alma mater. Drawing comparisons to another recent small school South Jersey RB product, Corey Clement, Taylor seems much more open to the possibility of playing his college football in NJ.
Expect Rutgers to try to get some other local priority underclassmen recruits on campus for the scrimmage as well as some remaining class of 2016 targets. Getting someone like TE target Jovani Haskins back on campus would give Rutgers a chance to continue to build on the momentum the staff has gained in his recruitment following his recent visit.
Tuesday Visitor
Scarlet Nation has confirmed that Old Tappan athlete Jordan Fuller, NJVarsity’s No.2 ranked in-state recruit in the class of 2016, is planning to get back on campus for a Tuesday visit to Rutgers.
DB Tony Butler – St. Edwards (OH)
Rutgers had been named one of the top schools for the Ohio Cornerback target. However as Butler has narrowed his list to three schools, it looks like Rutgers is on the outside looking in. Scarlet Nation has learned that Butler is favoring West Virginia, Clemson and Arizona State with plans to make a decision somewhere within the next two to three months. Rutgers is considered the No.4 school as of now and could slide back into contention. However, Butler's decision to move up his decision timeline doesn't help Rutgers cause.
DE Chinedu Udeogu - Georgetown Prep (MD)
The defensive lineman maintains a target decision date of early September. While his visit to California went well recently, the Bears took another commitment at defensive end beforehand, a spot that could have been Udeogu's. We are hearing that Cal will likely take two more defensive linemen, but is unclear where Udeogu stands on the Cal board as there may be higher priority prospects available for the Bears.
DB Jarrett Paul – Christ The King (NYC)
Rutgers has made New York City a priority area and the class of 2018 prospect has crept onto the RU radar recently. Paul visited campus with his family on Thursday for practice.
"The convos (with the coaches) were great. The liked my size and length as a DB," said Paul. "Practice was great too. Everything was at a fast and physical pace."
Paul told Scarlet Nation that he spent most of his time with Recruiting Coordinator EJ Barthel, Marcus Berry of Player Personnel and DB Coach Darrell Wilson. Due to a school rule, Paul didn't play varsity last season but he possess the size (6-foot, 175 pounds) that Rutgers has coveted in the defensive backfield recently. He will be a name to remember going forward.
Team Tidbits
The QB Battle
The quarterback position battle is taking longer than was originally anticipated as head coach Kyle Flood was looking to make a decision in the 7-10 day range. A close race has stretched that timeline while tomorrow’s scrimmage could play a role in who is named the starter. This quarterback battle is much different than the ones that have preceded it as it is very close with both quarterbacks bringing certain strengths to the field.
Chris Laviano is in his third year at Rutgers and his biggest jump was evident this past spring. He pulled ahead of Hayden Rettig at the end of April, although Rettig is showing that he will not go away without a fight. Rettig’s biggest jump has been from the spring to the summer as he continues to progress through the month of August. While this is a close race, making the right decision could impact the entire decision. Rutgers will face Washington State and Penn State during the second and third weeks of the season. Against the high octane offense of Washington State and stout defense of Penn State, the quarterback will probably have to make some clutch throws for RU to emerge victorious.
The outcome of those two games could play a big part in the trajectory of the season. Now entering his fourth season as Rutgers head coach, this quarterback decision could be the biggest one Flood will have made. He’s also had Ralph Friedgen on the practice field with him all week long, which should help in the final decision. Getting the decision right is key to a good start and a potentially good season. So while all eyes will be on the quarterback through the first month of the season, the blame or praise will eventually be doled out on Flood.
New Contributors
This season, there will be a host of new contributors to the Rutgers defense. The first one to play a much more prominent role will be defensive tackle Julian Pinnix-Odrick who has been starting in place of Darius Hamilton at the 3-technique. JPO has added some more weight and managed to stand out quite a bit on the practice field.
“You have to be able to gain the weight, stay flexible and stay fast,” said the 270-plus pound Pinnix-Odrick. “I have not really felt too much of a difference this camp with the extra weight.
Pinnix-Odrick was a highly-touted recruit with more than 20 offers. Another highly-touted prospect, Kiy Hester, looks as though he will be joining JPO as a new contributor this season. Hester used spring practice to help propel him right into the hunt for the starting strong safety position.
“I feel like this spring helped me running on the field and getting the mistakes out,” Hester said. “And then the summer, meeting with coach Rossi really helped. He would tell me what my responsibilities were, how I was doing it and why I was doing it. It really helped me.”
The Corners
The evolution of freshman Blessuan Austin has been a constant theme through the spring and into the summer and he has been joined by a couple of other corners who have continued to play well. Dre Boggs returns for his sophomore season and has been a consistent performer through the summer.
“It’s his mindset. He is really focused on doing the task at hand,” defensive backs coach Darrell Wilson said of Boggs. “He is a really sharp kid. He is good in the meetings and he has really kind of taken on that leadership role. He is kind of one of the older guys in the room.”
Redshirt junior Ruhann Peele has also taken to the adjustment at cornerback as well and could push out Isaiah Wharton for the No.3 spot by the start of the season.
“This corner group I am working with is a really, really talented group,” Wilson added. “I am really pleased with the progress they are making. A lot of it is just the mindset. They are really good athletes, really talented. And they decided they are going to get it done.”
