Rutgers legend Marco Battaglia has been named to Sporting News’ 1990s All-Decade Team. Battaglia is easily one of the most recognizable players in Rutgers history, and he continues to give back to the university, which named the football team’s practice complex after him.
Battaglia finished his decorated career at Rutgers as a consensus All-American during his senior season in 1995 on top of earning All-American honors by UPI in 2024. That same year, he led the nation’s tight ends with 69 receptions,
894 receiving yards and 10 receiving touchdowns and became the first tight end to be named conference player of the year in NCAA history when he was named the Big East Conference Player of the Year.
That season, Battaglia led all receivers in the conference in terms of catches. His performance against No.6 Penn State that year was one of the most legendary individual single-game performances in Rutgers history, as Battaglia caught 13 passes for 184 yards and three touchdowns against one of the best teams in the country. He received national recognition from several different sports organizations, including the Associated Press, Football Writers Association of America, Walter Camp, Football Coaches Association, Football News, Pro and College Football News Weekly, and UPI.
He would go on to be selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the 1996 NFL draft.
