When Greg Schiano made his decision to return to Rutgers as the football program’s head coach in 2020, he knew there was a lot of work and rebuilding that needed to be done. Four seasons later, he is confident that the team has the best chance to see and win a bowl game than it’s had in years.
Schiano’s Second Run in New Jersey
Schiano hadn’t experienced life in the Big Ten as a Scarlet Knight. He reigned as head coach from 2001-2011 as part of the Big East conference. Rutgers made its Big Ten debut in 2014.
In the 2019 season, the decision was made mid-season for Chris Ash to step down as head coach. This left Nunzio Campanile as the interim for the season. When Schiano re-entered the scene, the team was coming off a 2-10 season. It was preceded by 2-10, 4-8, and 1-11 seasons from 2016-2018 respectively. There is still rebuilding to be done. But Schiano was able to pick the team up and lead them in 5-8 and 4-8 seasons in 2021 and 2022.
Schiano recently sat down with NBC reporter Kathryn Tappen. He talked about what Scarlet Knights fans should be more excited about as the 2023 season approaches.
“We play in the best league and college football and we’re getting better and we’re just going to keep getting better and those wins will start to come,” Schiano said in his interview. “And we’ll get back to the days when our fans could plan their holiday trips around our bowls. That’s where we need to get back to.”
Looking for Post-season
Rutgers saw its first bowl game under Schiano in the 2005 season, which ended in a loss. That loss seemed to leave them hungry. The team then saw not only a bowl game for the next 5 consecutive seasons but wins at each one.
But before anyone can talk bowls now, the Scarlet Knights must face the start of their regular season. In 2022, the team ended with a 4-8 season (1-8 Big Ten), finishing seventh in the Big Ten East. One critical aspect the team was missing was a clear starting quarterback. The team bounced between starting Gavin Wimsatt, Evan Simon, and Noah Vederal last season. However, a hopeful decision has been made. This past July, Schiano announced that Wimsatt would be the Scarlet Knights’ starting quarterback this season.
Changes in 2023
He is one of the biggest recruits Rutgers has landed in a while. Though we saw him struggle last season with accuracy and downfield passing, he displays impressive arm strength and overall outstanding athleticism. He seemingly makes a promising choice for this season.
That’s not the only change happening in Piscataway. The team has a new offensive coordinator, Kirk Ciarrocca, this season. Coming from the University of Minnesota, Ciarrocca’s experience developing young quarterbacks looks to be promising for the growth and potential of Wimsatt this season.
We’ll see Schiano, Wimsatt, and the rest of the Scarlet Knights kick off this season at home in a few weeks on September 3rd at noon vs. Northwestern.
Photo courtesy: Kevin R. Wexler/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK
