Tag: Rutgers history

Throwback Thursday: Rutgers football beats the Fightin’ Blue Hens

Throwback Thursday, November 2, 1968, the Scarlet Knights of Rutgers University faced off against the Fightin’ Blue Hens of Delaware University.

This week fifty-four years ago, the Scarlet Knights faced off against the Fightin’ Blue Hens of Delaware University. It was a very different place not just for college football but for Rutgers athletics as well.

It was 1968 and love and peace was in the air and, before a packed crowd at Rutgers Stadium, the Scarlet Knights beat the University of Delaware 23-14. The Scarlet Knights were led by quarterback Rich Policastro, running back Bryant Mitchell, and wide receiver Bob Stonebraker. These three players led Rutgers in passing, rushing, and receiving yards.  Rich Policastro led the Scarlet Knights with 994 passing yards, Bryant Mitchell with 1,204 rushing yards, and Bob Stonebraker with 448 receiving yards.

At the time, the Scarlet Knights were led by head coach John F. Bateman. In 1968, Bateman, coaching in his 9th season, defeated the Fightin’ Blue Hens to capture their fifth victory. Bateman coached Rutgers from 1960 to 1972, incorporating a record of 73-51. Rutgers went on to finish the 1968 season with an (8-2, 2-0) record, finishing first in the Middle Three Conference. In 1968, Rutgers only two losses were against the Army Cadets (24-0) and Cornell University (17-16).

What was the Middle Three Conference and who belonedg to it? The Middle Three Conference consisted of three teams, Rutgers University, Lehigh University, and Lafayette University. The conference lasted for forty years from 1929 to 1969. The Middle Three Conference wasn’t like the conferences nowadays, it was little more than a three-way rivalry. No league commissioner was established to organize the scheduling and rules.

[lawrence-related id=20348]

After the closing of the Middle Three Conference, it wasn’t till 1991 that Rutgers joined a major conference, the Big East.

[listicle id=20388]

[mm-video type=video id=01ggxfh4agzz8hm28cgn playlist_id=none player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01ggxfh4agzz8hm28cgn/01ggxfh4agzz8hm28cgn-e80109af6a022089658a7f7c1eed8d96.jpg]

 

 

History of the matchup: Rutgers football vs Boston College

History of the all-time matchup between Rutgers football and Boston College

Well, it is official. The start to the college football season is upon us. Rutgers has their first game on the road this year, and it is not a cookie-cutter matchup like they may have had in years past.

First up this season for the Scarlet Knights: a date at Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts against the Boston College Eagles. Saturday’s opponent is not just an average opponent, they are a solid Power Five program from the ACC. The Eagles finished last season at 6-6 and were bowl eligible outright. Their scheduled bowl game was cancelled, but they were named to the game unlike the Scarlet Knights. Boston College is also further along in its rebuild than Rutgers is currently in their third season under head coach Greg Schiano.

When trying to predict games, regardless of whether it’s college or the pros, none is a tougher prediction than the season opener. You can only learn so much from the spring game and training camps. Especially in college where the turnover is so large year-to-year due to graduation or transfers – fans of the sport will look anywhere to try to find a way to determine how their team will fare in Week 1. One of the places you can look is history.

[lawrence-related id=18318]

The history on the gridiron between Rutgers and Boston College dates all the way back to 1919 when the former governor of New Jersey, Woodrow Wilson, was in the oval office. Rutgers started off strong with a 13-7 road victory. The programs would not meet on the field again until 1956 where Boston College got revenge in a big way, winning in New Jersey 32-0.

[lawrence-related id=18347]

There was another small gap – 25 years to be exact – until the Eagles and Scarlet Knights would matchup again. The schools would meet again in 1981 and play each other in non-conference games for 11 straight years. In 1991, both programs joined the Big East conference for it’s first season foraying into football. They would play each other another 14 straight seasons for a total of 25 consecutive years where the teams played each other. When conferences realigned in 2005, the schools snapped their streak and would not see action against one another until 2019, prior to Schiano’s return to the program. That is the most recent matchup in the history between the schools.

[lawrence-related id=18294]

Boston College has dominated the all-time series as they are currently 20-6-1 against Rutgers throughout history. The Scarlet Knights best winning streak was four games from 1986-1989. The Eagles have outdone that streak twice:  winning six in a row in 1956 and and the 1981-1985, and are currently on a dominant 11 game heater dating back to 1995.

Let’s take a look at the history between the two programs, from most recent to that first matchup over a century ago.

[mm-video type=playlist id=01fc3gzhz7qrm49z6q player_id=none image=https://rutgerswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]