(This article was updated to add a photo)
The Washington Huskies have made the long trip to Piscataway, New Jersey, for a Friday night matchup with the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. However, that was back in 2017 under head coach Chris Petersen to open the season, and it wasn’t a Big Ten conference showdown.
This time, coach Jedd Fisch will take the Huskies across the country for a matchup with a much better Rutgers team led by coach Greg Schiano. Although the Huskies have been led by a stellar defense and headlined by quarterback Will Rogers and running back Jonah Coleman, this will be by far the toughest game they’ve had to play so far in 2024.
Rutgers is hosting a “blackout” night for the fans, meaning everyone in the stadium will be wearing black, and Schiano is not taking his opponents from the West Coast lightly.
“It’s an unbelievable job that (defensive coordinator Steve Belichick) has done,” Schiano said on Monday. “He’s certainly an excellent coach. And what they do is unique. No one else really plays defense like that. It’s unique. It’s very much like the New England package. He’s put his own slant on it but, it’s a challenge.”
One guy I did not give enough credit to when watching live was EDGE/iDL hybrid Voi Tunuufi.
Tunuufi’s pressure numbers will likely be extremely impressive. For example here he executed a filthy spin move that could have been a sack of the OL doesn’t try to trip him. pic.twitter.com/cLKDA1LkOD
— Ben Glassmire (@BenGlassmireNFL) September 23, 2024
“Their interior front is very stout, It’s going to be hard to get movement there,” he continued. “They do an excellent job of covering. They play with really good technique. They mix it up. They really mix up the fronts, they present several different fronts, several different looks to you that are really going to test our rules.”
The Huskies rank No. 11 in the nation in total defense thanks to Belichick revitalizing the group, while offensively, Fisch has the Huskies at No. 31, 11 spots below Rutgers, whose offensive attack revolves around star running back Kyle Monangai.
Schiano was quick to compliment Rogers, who has been extremely efficient at the helm of Fisch’s offense this season.
“He is performing at an incredibly high level right now,” he said. “Coach Fisch is an excellent head coach, an excellent offensive coordinator, and he’s really good with the quarterbacks. You can see the effects that he’s had. Will, earlier in his career has thrown interceptions. When I heard he was going there, I thought, ‘Oh, maybe we’ll get a few.’ But he’s not playing that way now. He’s very, very good with the football.”