Ranking the Top 100 College Football Teams for 2018: No. 86 Rutgers

In the 100 days leading up to the kickoff of the college football season on Saturday, Aug. 25, HERO Sports is ranking the top 100 teams in the FBS. Each day, starting May 17 and ending Aug. 24, a new team is revealed in the HERO Sports Top 100. 

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No. 86 Rutgers

The great news: Rutgers won three Big Ten games, tying the program's highest total since 2012. The bad news: None of those wins came in the Big Ten East, where they are buried beneath four potential playoff contenders.

Still, Chris Ash has the Scarlet Knights trending in the right direction. They have Big Ten-caliber talent at most positions, are developing the quarterback of the future in Artur Sitkowski and have a ton of experience at linebacker and defensive back.

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2017 Record: 4-8 (3-5, Big Ten)

Rutgers doubled their win total in Ash's second season and showed some progress toward being a competent football team. They also showed how far away they are from competing in the Big Ten East.

They were — again — throttled by Ohio State, Penn State and Michigan State, scoring a total of 13 points in three games. The offense was terrible, dull, inconsistent and inept. They were held under 30 points in nine of their 12 games, were shut out twice and averaged an FBS-worst 262 yards per game. 

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Head Coach: Chris Ash (3rd Year, 6-18)

"I look back and laugh sometimes at how much has changed here at Rutgers since we got hired in December," Chris Ash wrote for Sports Illustrated days before Rutgers opened the 2016 season, his first as head coach. "I remember walking into the football facility for the first time, and it felt like a prison. Dull music played. The colors were muted. The few TVs that were up around the building were in standard definition, as the facility wasn't wired for HD"

Two years later, Rutgers still doesn't have the glitz and glamour of their Big Ten East counterparts but the facility no longer feels like a prison. Dull music isn't playing. The colors aren't muted. And they have HDTV. 

Expectations are also higher for the former Ohio State defensive coordinator as he enters year three of the rebuild. Ash has made it clear they're chasing a bowl game.

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Player Losses

RB Gus Edwards, G Dorian Miller. DE Kemoko Turay, DT Sebastian Joseph, S Kiy Hester

Kemoko Turay, the only player with more than two sacks last season (three), was a second-round pick of the Indianapolis Colts. He became the sixth-highest draft pick in program history and the highest since Devin McCourty and Anthony Davis were taken in the first round in 2010.

Elsewhere, defensive tackle Sebastian Joseph was drafted in the sixth round, safety Kiy Hester transferred to FIU for his final season and guard Dorian Miller graduated after starting for three seasons. Gus Edwards is also gone after a productive career.

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Returning Offensive Players

QB Giovanni Rescigno, RB Raheem Blackshear, WR Bo Melton, TE Jerome Washington, OT Tariq Cole, OT Kamaal Seymour, C Michael Maietti

Rutgers' offensive coordinator carousel kept spinning when more health issues forced Jerry Kill into retirement. He was replaced by John McNulty, a longtime college and NFL assistant who was Greg Schiano's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 2007 and 2008. 

He led a balanced offense a decade ago and has experience working with each position group, including quarterback, where senior Giovanni Rescigno and true freshman Artur Sitkowski are competing for the starting job. Rescigno has been bad and should only start if Sitkowski isn't ready.

I could list fictional Rutgers' receivers and the average — or even above-average — fan wouldn't think twice. The Scarlet Knights' top receivers from 2017 had 16, 10 and nine receptions. Not their top returning receivers for 2018. Again, their top receivers from 2017 had 16, 10 and nine receptions. 

They. Could. Not. Pass. The. Ball.

The No. 1 receiver for 2018 appears to be sophomore Bo Melton, who connected multiple times with Sitkowski in the spring game (below) after catching four passes for 83 yards last season. Tight end Jerome Washington is one of the best in the Big Ten, if not the FBS.

Running backs were a huge part of the passing game last year but that wasn't a good thing. It was because they couldn't throw beyond a few yards and were constantly checking down. With Gus Edwards gone, McNulty will spread the wealth but Boston College transfer Jonathan Hilliman and sophomore Raheem Blackshear (below) will get most of the carries. Blackshear is only 5-foot-9, 185 pounds but plays like a 6-foot-2, 230-pounder. He has good burst through the line and makes a nasty first cut.

In my opinion, Blackshear is the best back on this team.

"I know he's not very big, but he's got good feet," Ash said last year. "He's an explosive runner, and late in the game when you've got bigger backs like Gus and Rob in there, to be able to put a fresh, fast, quick guy like Raheem in there, that's huge for the offense."

The offensive line returns three starters, including sophomore center Michael Maietti. He started nine games last year and was part of a line that allowed a Big Ten-best 1.5 sacks per game. Yes, they played large chunks of games against second- and third-team defenses but  the pass protection wasn't horrendous.

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Returning Defensive Players

DE Kevin Wilkins, DE Elorm Lumor, DT Jon Bateky, LB Trevor Morris, LB Deonte Roberts, LB Tyreek Maddox-Williams, CB Isaiah Warton, CB Blessuan Wharton, CB Damon Hayes, S Saquan Hampton

"I think we’re loaded up at linebacker, " Chris Ash said during spring practice.

He's right; linebacker is the best position group on the entire roster. All-Big Ten honorable mention selection Trevor Morris (below) has 222 tackles and 9.5 tackles for loss the last two years. He missed the spring game with a dislocated elbow but will be fine for fall camp.

Rutgers ranked 112th nationally and 12th in the Big Ten with 16 total sacks, their third straight season ranking 90th or worse and 12th or worse, respectively. And both the players and coaches have been very honest in their assessments of a defensive line that couldn't make plays. Ash said the d-line was his biggest concern after spring practice.

"I felt that was one of our biggest weaknesses as a d-line," said defensive tackle Jon Bateky in March. "We really weren't getting to the quarterback enough and helping the defensive backs enough. The last three years, we really haven't been doing it. I feel like that's our main focus as a d-line."

Despite Kiy Hester's transfer, Rutgers' secondary is in good shape. Three-year starting corner Isaiah Wharton is back for his senior year, as are fellow seniors Blessuan Austin (corner) and Saquan Hampton. The wild card is junior Damon Hayes, a 6-foot-1, 198-pounder who started in place of an injured Austin last year. He takes a lot of chances on the back end and while they don't always work, he's a hell of a lot of fun to watch.

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Player Additions

QB Artur Sitkowski, RB Jonathan Hilliman, WR Shameen Jones, WR Eddie Lewis DE Mike Tverdov, DT Jaohne Duggan

It's been a long time since a quarterback with Arthur Sitkowski's potential walked into the Rutgers locker room. The New Jersey native played at IMG Academy and was committed to Miami before flipping to Rutgers. 

Jonathan Hilliman is a graduate transfer from Boston College, where he averaged fewer than four yards per carry in each of his three seasons. Redshirt freshmen Mike Tverdov and Jaohne Duggan played on the second-team defensive line during the spring game. And freshmen receivers Shameen Jones (redshirt) and Eddie Lewis (true) could get looks.

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Schedule

If Rutgers wants bowl eligibility, they better get it before a mid-November gauntlet that features three of the top four Big Ten East teams in consecutive games.

They do play only three road games after mid-September and have a chance at a road win when they visit Kansas in Week 3.