The Scarlet Knights are starting the season 3-0 for the fifth time in a row after they beat Norfolk State 60-10 on Saturday. The Spartans had no answer for the Knights’ offense or punt block unit, as Rutgers scored two touchdowns off of Norfolk State’s punting team miscues.
The scoring started early for the Knights, who picked up a fumbled snap on the first punt of the game and ran it back for a touchdown after only about a minute of play. Rutgers would miss the extra point attempt, but would block
a punt later in the quarter and run it back, this time securing the point after.
Rutgers’ offense would find its footing in the second quarter, and it was off to the races from there. The Knights’ offense would total 47 points on the day, piling up 378 passing yards and 185 rushing yards. Quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis would complete 18 of 26 passes, good for 309 yards and one touchdown through the air. Even more impressive was the fact that Kaliakmanis was able to put up these kinds of numbers despite star wide receiver Ian Strong missing the game for unknown reasons and several receivers dropping open passes.
His understudy, AJ Surace, saw time in the fourth quarter, where he threw for 58 yards and two touchdowns during his college debut.
The running back room had another strong performance despite CJ Campbell getting knocked out of the game early. Antwan Raymond and Ja’Shon Benjamin took a majority of the snaps for Rutgers, with Raymond carrying the ball 16 times for 79 yards and two touchdowns. Benjamin carried the ball 12 times for 68 yards and one touchdown. Sophomore Ed Guerrier saw decent playing time at the end of the game, rushing 7 times for 25 yards.
The defense, despite only allowing 10 points on the day, showed the same issues they have had in the past two games. Too many big plays, a bad tendency to overpursue, very little pressure until late in the game, and they struggled to tackle runners out in space. Rutgers has less than a week to shore up these issues before it starts Big Ten play.
The Knights will be back in action against Iowa on Friday, September 19th, at 8 pm for their annual blackout game. Be there, be loud, and wear black! Be sure to be in your seats at 7:30 for the pregame light show and firework spectacular.
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