On Saturday, Rutgers football lost to their Big Ten rivals, the No. 12 Penn State Nittany Lions, The loss sees the Scarlet Knights drop to 6-5 (3-5 Big Ten) on the season.
Rutgers missed red zone opportunities and struggled with penalties and turnovers in what is now three-straight losses for the program.
During his post-game press conference, Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano discussed the critical holding calls in the red zone that led to two field goals instead of touchdowns. Schiano gave credit to the Penn State defense and praised the Nittany Lions for their level of competition.
Schiano described his team’s missed red zone opportunities and turnovers as a factor in their loss.
“Really the game in a nutshell was three turnovers and missed red zone opportunities. If you get there, you have to score and it’s hard to win by threes,” Schiano stated in his post game press conference.
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The Scarlet Knights have attempted 37 red zone trips through 11 games, scoring 22 touchdowns on those 37 attempts (59.5 percent) this season. The Scarlet Knights have now turned the ball over 12 times (seven interceptions and five fumbles).
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“We are developing offense. I told you when we started this (season) there are not going to be any magic pills so it’s gonna take time,” Schiano said.
“We have had some good showings in the red zone and we have had some tough showings in the red zone.”
The Scarlet Knights recorded three turnovers on Saturday, all by quarterback Gavin Wimsatt (two fumbles and one interception). Along with their three turnovers, Rutgers also had six penalties for 48 yards against the Nittany Lions.