Rutgers’ historic year puts program in spotlight
Coach knows, with success comes heightened expectations
BY MIKE McDONALD
Staff Writer

CHRIS KELLY staff Greg Schiano’s Rutgers football program has emerged a legitimate national power after putting together an 11-2 season, capped off with the school’s first-ever bowl win.

When the Rutgers University football team (11-2) beat Kansas State (7-6) by the final score of 37-10 on Dec. 28 in the Texas Bowl, it marked the end to one of the most illustrious seasons in school history.

The win was the school’s first-ever bowl victory and validated the notion that the Scarlet Knights’ program has reached a level few thought was possible.

Rutgers appears poised to be a national championship contender next season.

While the Scarlet Knights’ emergence certainly has a storybook feel to it, head coach Greg Schiano is quick to downplay the idea that his team is an overnight success.

“I never tried to correct anybody when they called us a ‘Cinderella,’ but no, I don't like that [idea] at all,” he said. “I think Cinderella is year two, all of a sudden you kind of flip the switch. But this has been a hard grind, six years ... I think this program has logically kind of climbed the ladder. I think had we found a way to win all our games, maybe that would have been a Cinderella because we kind of skipped a step, so to speak, but I think right now we're just climbing and building a football program and the next step.”

While the outcome of the Texas Bowl left some wondering if Rutgers deserved a spot in a more esteemed bowl game, the Scarlet Knight players did everything they could do to cap their memorable season. And while the bowl win was certainly rewarding, perhaps the most important thing to happen to Rutgers this season came in the form of a promise from the coach.

When Schiano reinforced his commitment to Rutgers, telling the media, fans, personnel and players that he would be back following this season (thus rejecting what would likely have been several offers from various programs), it showed his loyalty to his school and his players.

While most coaches bolt from school to school to try to move up in the coaching ranks and build their coaching résumés, Schiano insisted he had more work to do at Rutgers. The players responded by playing not only their best game of the year, but possibly the best game ever by a Rutgers team.

Now Schiano and company are already thinking about that next step.

But they’ll have to do it without several players who were key contributors in RU’s recent success. Sitting atop that list is Brian Leonard. Besides being the team’s leader, he has also been a staple on the team for four years. Rutgers football has come a far way since Leonard first stepped onto the field.

And while the Scarlet Knights will certainly miss all of their graduating seniors (like William Beckford, Willie Foster, Clark Harris, Ramel Meekins, Joe Radigan, Devraun Thompson, Brandon Renkart and Derrick Roberson, among others), it was Leonard who over the last few seasons became the face of the program, and whose perseverance, determination and confidence helped shape the identity of the team.

The best example of just how far Rutgers has come, came after the Scarlet Knights suffered what was thought to be a major setback with a shocking loss to Cincinnati.

While in the past such a loss would have set off a tailspin, Rutgers was able to finish the season strong due to both great coaching and great leadership, which simply would not let this team stay down for long.

“As you build and you evolve, your program has to understand the steps as well,” Schiano said. “There are different situations you look at. You look at this season, the Cincinnati game. I think, not to dredge up bad memories, but I think that the next time we're in the same situation, if we're blessed enough to be, we'll be better prepared. Although at the time I thought we were doing things the right way, there are things now I would do differently.

“As we approach next season, I think we're going to have to understand that we were 11-2, and we tied for second, but the team we tied for second with beat us, so we tied for second, but we were in third place in a competitive nature. We know what we have to do, now it's, Can we do it to be the team we want to be?”

Part of what Schiano needs to determine is who will emerge as the next set of leaders?

"That's the interesting part about coaching,” Schiano said. “Talent-wise, we have enough talent. It's going to be chemistry, it's going to be work ethic, it's going to be leadership — all those things that are the impetus to drive the team forward.

“We're at a point now where I don't handle every little thing with the discipline. Bowl week, I'm sure there are things that occurred down there in Houston that never got to my desk, that were taken care of by the seniors before they became issues. Those are the things, hopefully, their tradition and legacy of leadership has been passed down throughout the program, and now it's the next group's chance.

“That's the fun part to me,” the coach added. “A lot of that is the head coach's job, developing leaders. Certainly the assistant coaches help with that, but that's something I can do in the offseason, meet with individuals, meet with leadership groups, try to prepare them for what's ahead.”

There will be 13 starters returning next fall, which should give the team some stability going into next season.

"We'll see,” Schiano said. “We do have 13 starters coming back, could be 14 if you consider Timmy Brown a starter. Jeremy Ito would be another guy. I've looked at all the depths at the positions.

“For recruiting, you have to look a year ahead and see where your needs will be. We have a chance, from an athletic standpoint, to be a very good team, so we'll see how the chemistry is. This year we were fortunate. If you look, our five offensive linemen started every game. That's rare to be blessed like that without an injury. Same thing with the linebackers, quarterback. We were really very, very fortunate to be able to stay healthy in a lot of positions.

“One of them where we weren't [healthy], wideout, was one where we had depth,” the coach added. “No matter how young we might be, we had guys we could put out there. That all goes into play in how your year ends up from a win-loss standpoint, but from a starting standpoint, I think getting into the ’07 season we have some good, talented players to start with, and we'll see where it goes.”

Despite Schiano’s optimism, there are already skeptics wondering aloud whether RU can consistently maintain a successful program.

Schiano has higher aspirations.

"I look at it as just that, a springboard,” he said. “It's a great accomplishment by this senior class, but if it's not a springboard, then it's all wasted, because we're building something here to stand the test of time. Not every year are you going to be champions and not every year are you going to win 11 games; there are ebbs and flows. But our goal is to be a winning football team year in and year out. Some years you'll be in the top 10, some years you'll win the national championships, some years you'll drift back a little bit. But to be a consistent winner, that's what we came here to build, and that's what we're going to give the school, and that's what we're going to give the state.”

While those are lofty expectations indeed, Schiano is hardly shying away from the challenge.

"I think expectations will be heightened, and they should be,” he said. “That's what we want. That's what we're trying to create. We hope we'd be better than just the top 25 after what we did. ... I said the last few years we've talked about making history here at Rutgers, and I think by winning a bowl game we made history. But as importantly, and maybe more importantly, is that we've started a tradition, a new tradition here at Rutgers, and that, I think, is the legacy these seniors will leave behind. Bowl traditions, all these traditions, they have to start somewhere, and this is what this group of seniors gets to do.”

Another sign of just how far the Rutgers University football program has come is the sudden interest in Schiano’s coaching staff — yet another sign of the respect RU is getting following this historic season.

"My assistants already have gotten calls, which we'll see how that all plays out,” Schiano said. “I keep that confidential because there's a lot of reasons. Number one, it's different when an assistant gets a call and investigates a job than when a head coach does, because you're running the program, you're the leader of the program. These guys are just checking things out to see if things are better for their family. But no doubt, when you win, especially when you take a program that hasn't won, people say, well what are they doing? Our guys are respected coaches throughout the country, both on a collegiate level and a professional level.”

Naturally, Schiano would hate to lose any of his assistant coaches, all of whom have helped change the perception of Rutgers football during Schiano’s regime.

“Certainly, I think the continuity of our staff has helped over the last two years, and I would love to keep this group together,” he said. “It's a great group of coaches, a great chemistry, but I also know we have quality coaches that are going to get offers that advance their careers. My philosophy is when guys lay on the line for you and for the program, I do everything I can to help them better themselves and better their situation, whether it be at Rutgers or somewhere else.”

This past weekend, the coach had plans to finally relax and savor the victory. And such a break was certainly well deserved, since all he has done is put Rutgers University on the map and take a once depleted, undermanned, underachieving football team and turn them into a nationally ranked team with the expectations to be a perennial competitive team year after year.

"This is, without a doubt, the most rewarding experience I've had in coaching,” the coach said following his team’s victory on Thursday. “Because you're in charge of everything, you're responsible for everything, it's very hectic — that bowl trip. Bowl trips are very hectic for a head coach, for all the coaches, but especially for the head coach, when you think about all the different things that have to happen, all the logistics you're not used to doing. You're constantly planning, thinking, checking, but that's why this weekend I want to just relax and enjoy the season we had. Then this Tuesday it's time to get cracking.

“The reality is, we're already dealing with offseason surgery stuff, trying to plan those, so you never really get away, but that's OK,” Schiano added. “I’ve said it many times — my job is my hobby, so I enjoy it; I just want to get some rest.”