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PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Moral victories still count as losses for Rutgers, but in Saturday’s 31-13 defeat to No. 11 Michigan State, the Scarlet Knights showed something they hadn’t done very often in previous losses under prior head coaches. The Scarlet Knights showed a backbone and resolve that could well make them a bowl team this year.
Let’s pump the brakes for a minute on that one. As a disappointed head coach Greg Schiano said after the game, the result wasn’t good enough for his team.
Saturday’s loss underscored that Rutgers certainly isn’t there yet to compete with the very best in the Big Ten, something certainly obvious given the three straight losses to ranked opponents. They need to continue to recruit well, in particular, add some size in the trenches. But Rutgers is clearly trending in the right direction here.
After all, Rutgers went up 7-0 on their first possession of the game and had Michigan State in a fight, at one point the Scarlet Knights were down 14-13 midway through the second quarter. And while football can’t be lived in the land of ifs or buts, had Rutgers not conceded an improbable 94-yard run to Michigan State running back Kenneth Walker at the midpoint of the third quarter, this game could have been very different in the fourth quarter.
In giving Michigan State a fight on Saturday afternoon, Rutgers exorcised the demons of last week’s 52-13 loss to Ohio State, then ranked eleventh in the nation. The Scarlet Knights should have done better in Saturday’s loss.
But this is still a ranked team they lost to, one on the cusp of being top 10 in the nation. And Rutgers hung in there and fought.
There are winnable games in the coming weeks on the schedule, most notably the road game at Northwestern (2-3 coming into this weekend) and at Illinois (2-4). These are the games that will determine what bowl eligibility looks like for Rutgers.
With all due respect to their upcoming opponents – none are of the caliber that Rutgers has faced the past three weeks. Not even close.
And make no mistake about it, that’s what this season under Schiano is all about.
Sure, a signature win over a ranked opponent would have been nice for Rutgers but the ultimate goal in the second year of this rebuild must be meaningful games in November with an eye towards competing for a bowl game.
That’s where games like this past Saturday against Michigan State and two weeks ago at Michigan point towards a team that can get there.
There has to be hope and reasonable optimism after a narrow loss at Michigan three weeks ago and the rebound from last week’s stinging loss to Ohio State that Rutgers can battle for bowl eligibility this year. This is certainly not a perfect team or polished by any stretch of the imagination. But it is one that surely can compete with the second-tier teams in the Big Ten over the coming weeks.
The schedule makers did Rutgers no favors with this tough start to the Big Ten schedule. But now things get more manageable for Rutgers. This one hurts for sure because there is the sense that Rutgers, but for a play or two here or there, could have been much closer…could have been hanging with a ranked Spartans team for much longer.
Now they’ll need to get down to chopping this week. If Rutgers can take a step forward this week, then there is still plenty to play for in the coming weeks.