Tag: Josh Youngblood

Injury updates: Rutgers football without Kessawn Abraham, Kenny Fletcher; Josh Youngblood is back

Rutgers football will have Josh Youngblood back for game against Michigan.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Josh Youngblood is back for Rutgers football ahead of Saturday’s game at SHI Stadium. But two players on the defense will missing tonight for the Scarlet Knights.

Rutgers hosts No. 5 Michigan on Saturday night at SHI Stadium at 7:30 PM ET on the Big Ten Network.

The return of Youngblood is good news for the Rutgers offense, which was stagnant a week ago in a 31-0 loss at Minnesota. The speedy wide receiver has six catches for 74 yards this season, having last played on Oct. 1 in the loss at Ohio State.

Abraham is missing yet another game due to injury. The senior defensive back hasn’t played since Rutgers’ loss to Nebraska on Oct. 7.

If healthy, Abraham would be considered a likely Day 3 pick in next spring’s NFL Draft. He was the MVP on defense last year as well as a First-Team All-Big Ten selection from Pro Football Focus.

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Last season, he had 43 total tackles and 10 passes defended for Rutgers. In the Gator Bowl against Wake Forest, he had five tackles and two passes defended.

Fletcher, a freshman, has two tackles on the season. The defensive lineman is a former four-star recruit and part of the 2022 recruiting class.

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Josh Youngblood’s growing role with Rutgers football the byproduct of hard work

Josh Youngblood credits his increased role at Rutgers because of his work ethic.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Last season, Josh Youngblood didn’t have a very large role with the Rutgers football program, at least not to start the year. But if Saturday’s season opener points to anything, it shows an increasing responsibility for Youngblood this year.

Youngblood returned kicks, was featured in multiple wide receiver packages and even lined up for one snap as a Wildcat quarterback. It was a full range of athleticism on display in Rutgers’ 22-21 win at Boston College.

He had one catch for five yards, one rush for three yards and two kickoff returns for a total of 53 yards. It was encouraging output for Youngblood, now in his second season at Rutgers after transferring from Kansas State.

Last week, head coach Greg Schiano talked about the impact he felt Youngblood would have in the offense. He said that the playmaker began to show improvement as last season wore on, culminating in an increased role in the Gator Bowl.

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Youngblood pointed to a change in his approach at the mid-point of last season that allowed him to start earning more looks within the offense.

“I’d just say I just started working harder than ever. I just pride myself on hard work,” Youngblood said on Thursday.

“And you know, sometimes when you’re not playing, you can kind of get lost in not working hard, but I just had to dig deep, keep working hard, keep working hard. And then I got a little breakthrough which was the Gator Bowl.

“And I was able to play so it felt good seeing my hard work pay off. “

Now a wide receiver, Youngblood played quarterback while in high school at Berkley Prepatory School (Tampa, FL). So while Saturday’s one snap out of the Wildcat wasn’t exactly foreign to him, it is something that could be a part of the offense for Rutgers.

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Youngblood has speed and the fact that he can throw a nice pass makes him a nice wrinkle in offensive coordinator Sean Gleeson’s offense. It is role that Youngblood sounds willing to embrace.

“It felt good but I can’t really get caught up in it too much. I’m grateful I got back there so we’ll see what happens,” Youngblood said.

“We’ll see what happens, we’ll see what happens. I’ll go talk with coach Gleason.”

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Rutgers football: Greg Schiano is pleased with how his transfer wide receivers played

Rutgers football got some solid performances from their wide receivers in Friday’s spring game.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Taj Harris and Sean Ryan fit in seamlessly to the Rutgers football offense on Friday night during the annual spring game. The two transfer wide receivers added a new dimension to an offense that at times last year was lacking explosiveness.

The integration of Harris and Ryan into the offense is going to be as important for the Scarlet Knights as the production from the quarterback position and the development of the offensive line. All three units were a question mark throughout last season.

And now after the spring game, it appears that the offensive line is improved from last season and that the wide receivers are certainly a more balanced group with the chance to be explosive. [autotag]Bo Melton[/autotag], likely to be taken on Day 3 of the NFL draft, was very good last year and Shameen Jones showed some flashes, but adding the two transfers will be a big help for Rutgers.

“I think they are really going to help us. You know, they come in, they join Shameen, and then a host of other guys,” head coach Greg Schiano said after the game.

“We lose a really fine player in Bo as he leaves for the NFL. And I think it’s really important that what we did through the portal, supplementing what we already have here. We have some young receivers that are going to be really good but they make take a little while to get there. To have some experienced guys on the squad now that, helps a lot.”

Ryan (a transfer from West Virginia) led the Scarlet team with four catches for 48 yards. The White team was led by Harris (a transfer from Syracuse) who had five catches for 49 yards, including a first quarter touchdown catch.

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Harris and Ryan along with Jones gives Rutgers some good talent at wide receiver. If [autotag]Aron Cruickshank[/autotag] can fully recover from his season-ending injury suffered last fall, then Rutgers will be able to go with multiple looks for whoever may be the starting quarterback.

It is a lot of speed on the field as well, something Rutgers has been lacking in recent years.

Lost in the buzz about Harris and Ryan from Friday’s scrimmage was the fact that wide receiver [autotag]Josh Youngblood[/autotag] flashed with two catches for 29 yards.

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An outstanding returner, Youngblood, a transfer from Kansas State, might be the fastest player on the roster.

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Rutgers football: Josh Youngblood showing well this spring

Rutgers football has seen Josh Youngblood emerge this spring.

This spring has been a good one for Rutgers football wide receiver Josh Youngblood. So says Damiere Shaw about his talented – and fast – wide receiver.

Youngblood came to Rutgers as a transfer from Kansas State. He had a reputation as a special teams ace who had the potential to use his athleticism and speed as a wide receiver. His production last year was a bit limited, with just six catches for 52 yards and a touchdown catch in a loss to Ohio State.

But in the Gator Bowl, Youngblood had two catches for 25 yards, showing in the loss to Wake Forest his ability to stretch the field and make plays. His speed makes him an interesting downfield target.

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If he can stay healthy and round out his route tree, then Youngblood could be primed to make a bigger impact at Rutgers this season. For Shaw, in his first year as wide receivers coach with the Scarlet Knights, the showing from Youngblood this spring has been right on track.

“Well, I think Josh Youngblood epitomizes what ‘CHOP’ is. Just mental and physical toughness, focus and perseverance. He’s been able to do that,” Shaw told reporters on Tuesday.

“His journey here has not been perfect but he’s bounced back. He’s had the same attitude day-in-and-day-out. Great attitude, great leader. He’s been doing a phenomenal job.

“I’ve been impressed with him physically on the field but also off of the field.”

At Kansas State, Youngblood’s biggest impact was on special teams as a returner. He was named a 2019 Second Team All-America (CBS Sports, FWAA) as well as a 2019 First Team Freshman All-America in a season where he returned three kickoffs for a touchdown.

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In high school, Youngblood was a three-star recruit at Berkley Prep and the No. 75 athlete in the nation according to ESPN.com.

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