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One of the bright spots on offense for Rutgers football this year is the emergence of Kyle Monangai. The freshman running back has looked solid and put together some quality production through the season’s first seven games.
Monangai has 125 rushing yards on 34 carries along with three rushing touchdowns. His hard, physical running between the tackles has been a big presence for a Rutgers offense that at times has struggled to move the ball this year, especially in Big Ten play. The Scarlet Knights are 3-4 on the year and have lost their last four games, all in Big Ten play.
And with Monangai seemingly improving as the season is wearing on, the freshman running back will likely see an uptick in carries and snaps. His ability to churn out yards and keep the pile moving are attributes that could and should help Rutgers as they look to snap a four-game losing streak this Saturday at Illinois (3-5).
“Yeah, I think Kyle’s improved every step of the way since he’s joined our program. Kyle is a legitimate Big Ten back,” head coach Greg Schiano told reporters on Monday. “I think he runs extremely hard. He’s decisive. Has he made some mistakes? Sure. We all have, but I think his arrow is up. I think he’s a promising, promising running back into sleep.”
Monangai is coming off a game two weeks ago where he had 31 rushing yards on six carries in a 21-7 loss at Northwestern.
His emergence this year comes after a recruitment two years ago that saw Monangai a bit under the radar despite playing at national powerhouse Don Bosco Prep. Besides Rutgers, Monangai’s only other Power Five offer was from Pac-12 program Cal.