Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano met with members of the media on Tuesday to preview the Scarlet Knights’ upcoming road game against Illinois. According to Schiano, the game has been announced as a sellout for Illinois.
Before the questions started, Schiano took the time to mention several Illinois players he believes are game changers for them. These players include quarterback Luke Altmeyer, the entire Fighting Illini running back room, wide receiver Hank Beatty, linebacker Gabe Jacas, and linebacker Dylan
Rosiek.
The first question asked had to do with the injuries to Taj White and Al-Shadee Salaam. As usual, Schiano refused to elaborate on those injuries, but then he went on to talk about how injured the team is this year, and how the 105 rule is not a good fit for developmental college programs. To be clear, the 105 roster limit rule is not in effect yet, but it is being discussed. In a later question, Schiano talks about how the injuries have affected the way they practice, as they have had to significantly lessen their “developmental” practice period due to their limited player availability. The developmental practice period sounds like it is a 20-minute game simulation period for players further down the depth chart.
He also mentioned how the injuries to the team are disproportionately affecting kickoff coverage because most of the guys who would be on kickoff coverage are out.
According to Schiano, he has been meeting with sports science people to help him adjust what they are doing to prevent injuries. This is the second year in a row Rutgers has had a high number of injuries.
The final question had to do with Schiano’s high emotions after their 27-24 win over Purdue. He once again reiterated how happy he was for his guys to get a win after having a tough week that was preceded by four straight losses.
To view the entire press conference, click here.
