Check it out: Shaquan Loyal dishes out crushing hit in Rutgers win

Shaquan Loyal produced a highlight reel hit on Sunday for Rutgers football.

For Rutgers, Sunday afternoon was full of highlights. The Scarlet Knights started their season with an impressive 24-7 win, shutting out Northwestern until the game’s final drive. While the Rutgers offense was efficient, their defense was borderline dominant.

Defensive back Shaquan Loyal summed up the day with his physical approach.

In the fourth quarter, Loyal dished out one of the hardest hits of the afternoon. With Northwestern trying to convert and third and eight, Ben Bryant thought he had a man open down the sideline. Loyal had other plans as he broke up the pass with a massive hit on a Wildcats receiver, forcing Bryant’s pass to fall incomplete.

The hit was one of the many ways Loyal made an impact on Sunday afternoon. The Newark native finished tied for fourth on the team in total tackles with four. He also had one sack and two passes defended. As Northwestern struggled to get anything going offensively, Loyal was a big reason why.

[lawrence-related id=29747,29759]

While Loyal’s hit was the talk of social media, his play on Sunday was a preview of what Rutgers can expect for the rest of the season. During the 2022 campaign, he recorded a career-high 27 total tackles as his playing time increased. If Loyal continues to produce hits as he did in the fourth quarter on Sunday, he should get plenty of opportunities to surpass his stats from last year.