The cameras are back in Piscataway for another Thursday night showdown. The Rutgers Scarlet Knights host the South Florida Bulls in a key Big East matchup tonight. Both teams are already out of contention for the Big East title, but coming in at 6-2 each time can become bowl eligible with a win tonight. A win will also keep alive their hopes for a Gator Bowl berth. South Florida enters the game ranked #23 in the AP Poll.
The game will be nationally televised on ESPN. Chris Fowler, Craig James, and Jesse Palmer will work the game from the booth and Erin Andrews will be doing the sideline reporting.
Rutgers tends to really show up in these games. Since 2005, they are 6-3 in night games broadcast on ESPN or ESPN2. Tonight marks the fourth consecutive year that Rutgers has been part of a ESPN Thursday night matchup. The Knights have a 3-1 matchup lead against the Bulls. During the last three years, Rutgers has outscored South Florida 101-63. Last season Rutgers went into Tampa and blew out the Bulls by a score of 49-16.
The stadium is expected to be loud tonight. The November football atmosphere should return on The Banks. Rutgers has won six consecutive November home games. The student section will also be introducting the "Chop Squad" in the south end zone. Students will be seated in specific seats and will spell out "R" "U". Should be a nice sight for the television cameras.
Rutgers enters the game leading the entire country in turnover differential. The Knights have gained 25 turnovers so far this season and given up just 7. Three of those seven were in the season opening loss to Cincinnati. Rutgers has forced at least one turnover in every game this year. Their defense will try to continue that trend.
South Florida has a very dangerous QB once again. This time its not Matt Grothe. Redshirt freshman B.J. Daniels took over for Grothe after he suffered a season ending injury. The two quarterbacks are similar in style of play. Daniels can hurt you using his arm as well as his feet. He is very fast and does his best when he gets outside the pocket. Don't be surprised if Rutgers uses a spy against Daniels, possibly one of the safeties. If Rutgers can get pressure on him, Daniels will turn the ball over.
Luckily for Rutgers, it appears the Bulls biggest threat in the passing game is injured and will not play. Wide out Carlton Mitchell is South Florida's answer to Rutgers Tim Brown. Mitchell has an ankle injury. The Bulls do however have other athletes that can certainly take over. The South Florida running game has been their weak spot this season. They did have a good game last week against West Virginia but have struggled as a whole this year. Rutgers will need to stop the run and pressure B.J. Daniels all night. If Daniels is able to run all over the field, Rutgers could be in for a long night.
Rutgers offense can help the defense if they can find a running game and control the clock. So far in Big East play this season, that has not happened. Joe Martinek will need to use his power running style to wear down the South Florida defense.
The big matchup when Rutgers has the ball is on the line. The feature matchup will be between two NFL prospects. Anthony Davis will anchor the Rutgers offensive line and try to keep South Florida defensive end George Selvie away from freshman QB Tom Savage. Selvie is a two-time first team All-American. Selvie is just one of the Bulls defensive stars. Jason Paul-Pierre is the other defensive end and has been doing damage as well. Selvie and Paul-Pierre have combined for five sacks, 17 tackles for loss, and 10 QB hurries this sesaon. Linebacker Kion Wilson has been playing extremely well also. He has led his team in tackles in three straight games.
Rutgers needs to establish a running game that will help set up the passing attack. Savage has been very good at taking care of the ball so far this year. He has thrown just one interception in his young career. If Rutgers can protect Savage and give him some time to throw, he should be able to hook up with wide receivers Tim Brown and Mohamed Sanu. Brown is the obvious big play threat. Third wide out Mark Harrison has also begun to emerge in the offense lately. Again, it all comes down to the running game. South Florida's rushing defense has not been great. Rutgers needs to take advantage of that as much as possible.
Expect yet another hard fought close game between these two schools. Rutgers Stadium should be ready to rock, despite the current weather in the area.
Prediction
Thursday nights in Piscataway are usually when Rutgers shines. I think tonight will be another example. The defense will ride the energy from the crowd and put together a very good game. I expect to see Alex Silvestro have a good good. Devin McCourty should be able to shut down whoever South Florida's replacement for Mitchell is. Ryan D'Imperio and company will stuff South Florida's run game. Offensively, Rutgers however must find a way to run the ball. Cold, rainy, windy weather may limit the passing attack. I do think Rutgers finds a way to mix up the offense despite the weather. Savage will have a good game if Rutgers first establishes the run.
Rutgers 27, South Florida 21