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There has been a fair amount of doom and gloom following a tough loss for Rutgers football this past weekend to Ohio State. But for those outside the Scarlet Knights bubble, the program is clearly on the rebuild.
Not only does ESPN FPI have Rutgers as getting six wins (if not seven) in their latest projection update, but Phil Harrison of USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s ‘Buckeyes Wire’ thinks Rutgers is heading to a bowl game.
And in a bit of an ironic twist, Harrison has Rutgers going back to where it all began.
Harrison’s choice for Rutgers is the Guaranteed Rate Bowl. The December 28 game would be against Texas Tech at Chase Field in Phoenix, AZ.
The choice is an intriguing one for Rutgers since the program’s first bowl game under Schiano (and just second overall in their history) was the then Insight Bowl at Chase Field in 2005. Rutgers narrowly lost that game 45-40 but the bowl trip set them up for a 2006 season that remains the highwater mark in Scarlet Knights history.
This will be the first season featuring the bowl game’s tie-in with the Big Ten. Last season’s game was canceled due to COVID-19.
In 2019, then known as the Cheez-It Bowl, saw No. 24 Air Force beat Washington 31-21.
Rutgers hasn’t made a bowl game since 2014 when they beat North Carolina in the Quick Lane Bowl.
So far this season, Rutgers is 3-2. After beating West Virginia this past weekend, Texas Tech is 4-1.