Out of spring: Rutgers
In our "Out of Spring" series, Orange and Blue News takes a look at spring football for the Illini's 2018 opponents.
Next up, we take a look at a Big Ten conference foe, the Scarlet Knights of Rutgers. The Illini travel to Piscataway, NJ on October 6, week five of the 2018 season.
Last season, Illinois fell at home to Rutgers 35-24 in one of the most disappointing losses of the 2017 campaign. Graduated senior running back Gus Edwards rushed for 91 yards and two touchdowns, as Rutgers ended a 16-game losing streak in the Big Ten.
Rutgers coach Chris Ash has posted a 6-18 record in two seasons at Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights finished the 2017 season with a 4-8 record, 3-6 in the Big Ten.
During the off season, Jerry Kill stepped down as offensive coordinator due to health concerns. Ash hired John McNulty for his second stint as Rutgers offensive coordinator. He previously held the job from 2007-08 under former coach Greg Schiano. .
Rutgers held its annual Scarlet-White spring game on April 14 at High Point Solutions Stadium in Piscataway. Quarterback Artur Sitkowski passed for 280 yards and three touchdowns, all of them to sophomore wide receiver Bo Melton. Defensive end Kevin Wilkins had 2.5 tackles for a loss, a sack and an interception.
Orange and Blue News spoke to TheKnightReport.net beat writer Chris Nalwasky to get the lowdown on Rutgers. Follow the Knight Report on Twitter @RutgersRivals. Follow Rutgers football @RFootball .
Like Illinois, Rutgers hired a new offensive coordinator in the offseason. What will be different about the offense under John McNulty, and what stood out the most to you this spring?
Chris Nalwasky: John McNulty is familiar with Rutgers. Very familiar actually. McNulty called the plays when Rutgers was at its best in the mid-to-late 2000s. In 2000, the Scarlet Knights had a 3,000-yard passer (Mike Teel), a 2,000-yard rusher (Ray Rice), and two 1,000-yard receivers (Kenny Britt and Tiquan Underwood). McNulty brings a pedigree with having coached in NFL since then with various quarterbacks, tight ends, etc. McNulty will cater to whoever is behind center and the personnel on the team. The players have raved about the offense all spring and it actually looks like one that isn't offensive.
The offense will be more Pro-Style-like with multiple tight end sets. The quarterbacks will take snaps under center. However, expect some RPOs and shotgun plays as well. And, in the spring game, they focused on the passing game and the quarterbacks threw deep more often than not.
Besides the new OC, what were some of the biggest storylines heading into the spring, and what questions were answered?
CN: Another year, and another quarterback competition at Rutgers. Since the day of Mike Teel, there's been quarterback battles going on in Piscataway. Rutgers brought in two early enrollee quarterbacks, Artur Sitkowski and Jalen Chatman, to compete with sophomore Johnathan Lewis and senior Gio Rescigno for the starting signal caller job. As of now, the job is Sitkowski's, but head coach Chris Ash won't name a starting for game one until sometime in training camp. Quarterback is the biggest story and still the biggest question mark as well. Sitkowski has looked good, but comes with freshman mistakes.
What were some of the most interesting position battles this spring and who locked down starting spots?
CN: Quarterback, quarterback....oh....and quarterback. As mentioned, there's another quarterback competition and Rutgers and it is between Sitkowski, Rescigno, and Lewis. However, at this point, the battle seems to be for backup duties between Rescigno and Lewis. Sitkowski looks like he has a pretty good grip on the spot heading into summer.
At weakside linebacker, Trevor Morris and Tyshon Fogg have duked it out all spring. Morris started the last two years while Fogg saw some time as a freshman in 2017. Fogg earned extra reps this spring due to Morris missing the last week of spring camp due to injury.
In areas of uncertainty, Nick Krimin is the front-runner to start at right guard on the offensive line after performing better than the likes of Zach Venesky and Micah Clark,
Who stepped up this spring to replace RB Gus Edwards and WR Janarion Grant as potential playmakers on the offense?
CN: Speaking of the running back and wide receiver positions respectively, two names come to mind -- Raheem Blackshear and Bo Melton. Blackshear, a running back, and Melton, a wide out, are the team's top two playmakers with tons of speed. They might not have the power of an Aaron Judge or a Giancarlo Stanton, but they have the speed and quickness to be home run hitters in their own right. McNulty wants both of them to get more touches. Melton is healthy after getting over a nagging back injury a year ago and caught three touchdowns passes in the spring game.
Any newcomers, whether early enrollees or redshirt freshmen, who broke out this spring?
CN: A lot: CB Tre Avery (RS-Sophomore transfer), LB Malik Dixon (RS-Junior transfer), LB Tyshon Fogg (sophomore), QB Art Sitkowski (Freshman), TE Travis Vokolek (Sophomore), WR Shameen Jones (RS-Freshmen),