The Rutgers Scarlet Knights don’t have the football reputation and brand name USC owns. However, the Scarlet Knights are in a position the Trojans recently inhabited.
We talked to Rutgers Wire editor Kristian Dyer about the state of the Rutgers football program. Dyer said to us that one of the central needs for the Scarlet Knights is to get their offensive line to improve to a significant extent. Rutgers just hasn’t been physical enough to control the ball and keep it away from the potent offenses it faces in the Big Ten, particularly Ohio State. Rutgers coach Greg Schiano plays a smashmouth style, and the Knights need to be able to keep opposing offenses off the field.
USC didn’t need to keep opposing offenses off the field in the final years of the Clay Helton era, but the Trojans’ did need their offensive line to function better so that the offense could truly take off. Drake London was a superstar, but he would have been even better if the Trojans had a stronger running game which earned respect from opposing defenses. Because USC couldn’t get tough yards on 3rd and 2 or 4th and 1, the Trojans’ offense — like the team’s ceiling — was notably limited.
In this sense, Rutgers’ current offensive line problems represent a clear connection with USC’s struggles in the final years before Lincoln Riley rescued the program.
Here’s the full conversation with Kristian Dyer of Rutgers Wire:
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