PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Now that bowl eligibility has been achieved, the next goal for Rutgers football is now undefined. The idea of ‘No limits’ is something that is now realistically taking hold within the program.
And while running the table in the four remaining games would seem a bit of a stretch, given that two top 10 teams remain on the schedule, it is clear that Rutgers is now playing with house money. ESPN, for instance, is now projecting Rutgers to finish 7-5.
The ‘CHOP’ mentality has not changed or even morphed. But the team appears to be blending the ‘No limits’ mantra this week to embrace the opportunity ahead of them.
Two months ago, the outlook nationally had Rutgers getting maybe four wins. Now with four games left in their season, Rutgers is chasing not just a plateau or a goal, but rather a mindset of being the best they possibly can be.
What that ends up looking like, they say, is up to them.
“The bowl is a ways away. We’re focused on this week, what we have to do for this game,” quarterback Gavin Wimsatt said on Tuesday.
“Coach – he’s been saying this all year: No limits. “No limits on hard we can work, what we can do as a team, what we can do to get better.”
Things like the Big Ten title and the Big Ten Championship are likely out of range for Rutgers, despite their solid record (6-2, 3-2 Big Ten). But getting one or two wins from their final four games would certainly be a step forward for the program.
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Only once since they entered the Big Ten in 2014 has Rutgers had a winning season. One more win this season would get them there.
“Coach Schiano always says no limits. And he says no limits of how far you can go. how hard you can work,” guard Kwabena Asamoah told Rutgers Wire on Tuesday.”
“So you know, just working as hard as you can every day making every day as productive as you can.”
Wimsatt, who has developed nicely this season, sees the next four weeks as the opportunity for Rutgers to continue their program-wide growth. He refers to offensive coordinator [autotag]Kirk Ciarrocca[/autotag], in his first year with the program, as helping to personally shape that mentality.
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“So it’s just like having that mindset where you can always get better at. You know, you never know it well enough,” Wimsatt said.
“That’s a thing coach Ciarrocca talks about – ‘You never know well enough’.Having that mindset (that) you’ll benefit from it. Every day you get better because you feel like you don’t know well enough. So you want to learn just that much more.”
Rutgers hosts No. 3 Ohio State (8-0,5-0 Big Ten) on Saturday at SHI Stadium (12:00 PM ET, CBS).