Rutgers Football: Schiano talks spring ball and 2021 season
- Jim Kryjer
- Apr 26, 2021
- 4 min read
In an interview with Emmy Award-winning journalist Bruce Beck on the debut of Slice of Knightlife, Rutgers football coach Greg Schiano discussed spring ball, his aspirations for the team, and the importance of building tradition. Schiano is entering his second season as head coach and looking to improve upon last year’s success. Rutgers football won 3 Big Ten conference matchups on the road last season. Although this was an encouraging sign for a team that has not won many games over the past few years, Schiano has his eyes set on the ultimate goal.
“But our expectation is to win the Big 10 conference,” Schiano said. “You’re playing in the conference, your expectation is to win the trophy. Is it realistic to say we would have done that in the first year? No. But we can never lose sight that that's the only acceptable result for our program.”
Schiano’s aspirations do not stop at a conference championship.
“There’ll be steps along the way, but that is the goal and ultimately when you win the Big 10 championship, you have an opportunity to go win the national championship. Because ultimately that's our goal here at Rutgers - to win the national championship, to be the best. If you're going to do something, go be the best.”
At first glance, it may seem like an unrealistic goal in just his second year with the team; however, Schiano and his staff made giant leaps in all aspects of the game last season. The Scarlet Knights had 14 players recognized by the Big Ten conference. Their team also averaged 26.7 points per game, which was the 4th most improved in the nation.
This was, in large part, as a result of offensive coordinator, Sean Gleeson, and the rest of the offensive staff. Their improvements on the offensive side of the ball allowed players such standout star wide receiver, Bo Melton, to excel.
“He's such a great football player, but more importantly, he’s such a great young man,” Schiano said of Melton. “And when your best players are your hardest workers, and they're your best cultural ambassadors, that's when you got something. So I'm just thrilled, thrilled that Bo came back. I'm really excited to see what he can do year two in this system, with everybody else also being in year two, because Bo is an electrifying player.”
There were also improvements on the defensive side of the ball in Schiano’s first year back in Piscataway. In the year prior to Schiano’s return, Rutgers football ranked 126 out of 130 eligible teams in turnovers. This past year, the defense ranked fifth in the country with 19 takeaways and 21 sacks. Led by senior linebacker, Olakunle Fatukasi, the Scarlet Knights will look to maintain that level of success this season.
“[Fatukasi] is a tremendous football player. You know, he led the Big 10 in tackles. Really smart, really tough and a very good athlete. I’m excited that he came back as well.”
Fatukasi was injured at the end of the year, and according to Schiano, the injury showed his value to the Scarlet Knights' defense.
“He wasn't well and couldn't play, and the little bit he did play, he wasn't effective. That really to me showed how important he is to our defensive unit,” Schiano said. “He covers up a lot of people's mistakes just because of the type of player he is. So it's great to have him back and I'll tell you, he has worked. He's had a tremendous offseason.
The Scarlet Knights also made significant improvements in special teams in 2020. Wisconsin transfer, Aron Cruickshank, returned two kicks for touchdowns, and the rest of the squad consistently put the team in good position.
“AC, Aaron Cruickshank, he is a special, special returner,” Schiano said. “This guy has a knack, a feel, whatever you want to call it, and he's electrifying. And he’s as fast as there is out there in the Big 10 conference. He gets a crease, he's gone.”
Schiano also mentioned senior punter Adam Korsak, who earned multiple All-Big Ten honors in 2020.
“Our punter is, in my opinion, one of the best three in America. Adam Korsak - the things he did - when you look at our net punt yardage, what we did in that team... really, really special,” Schiano said.
As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, the football team was unable to host spring practice last season. However, that is not the case this season as 17 members of the 2021 recruiting class were already putting in work in January.
“It's kind of become the trend in college football now - that most kids are starting mid year - and to be able to get them here, get them acclimated, and then to have that extra spring practice,” Schiano said. “So they've been with Coach Butler training all spring, all winter. And now they get a chance to go play the game and learn our schemes, our techniques, really while they’re high school seniors - that’s what it amounts to.”
During spring practices, the football team has a lot more time to develop chemistry, watch film, and learn the schemes of the program. This goes a long way in Schiano’s plan to establish a tradition at Rutgers.
“Real tradition is when your older players pass down what our program is all about to our younger players.”
When asked if he had a message for the best fans in America, Schiano replied, “We need that home field advantage” and added “It’s got to feel like the best in the Big 10.”
The Scarlet Knights kick off their season at home against the Temple Owls on September 4th.
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