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Some of the buzz about Rutgers football’s rebuild came off with Saturday’s blowout loss to Ohio State (now ranked seventh in the nation). But that isn’t to say that the wheels have come off the season entirely.
In fact, the team’s bowl outlook is still pretty upbeat.
According to ESPN FPI, Rutgers is still projected for bowl eligibility at 6.3 wins (this is down from 6.8 wins last week). But given how things have shaken out on their schedule, they are now favored in four remaining Big Ten games (it was three games last week).
Per ESPN FPI, Rutgers is favored on October 18 at Northwestern (59.4 percent), October 30 at Illinois (63.5 percent), November 6 versus Wisconsin (50.7 percent), and in the season finale on November 27 against Maryland (62.4 percent).
Six wins would get Rutgers into a bowl game. Seven wins would be huge for momentum for the Scarlet Knights and their rebuild in the second season under head coach Greg Schiano.
There also appears to be a winnable game at Indiana on November 13 (40.8 percent). The Hoosiers lost 24-0 at Penn State this past weekend and are a disappointing 2-2 on the year.
The Wisconsin game has turned green for Rutgers after the Badgers suffered a bad weekend home loss to Michigan. Wisconsin is struggling this year but is still a tough opponent.
This Saturday, Rutgers is looking to end a two-game losing streak when No. 11 Michigan State (4-0) comes to SHI Stadium. ESPN FPI has the game at 34.7 percent for Rutgers.