A cross-country road trip into a blackout at Rutgers requires disciplined football and the ability to capitalize on opportunities to score. On Friday night, Washington could not do either of those things well. Grady Gross’ 55-yard field goal hooked to the right as time expired, and Rutgers beat Washington 21-18 on Friday night. But that missed field goal only begins to tell the story of Washington’s second loss of the season. That story is similar to the one that contributed to Washington’s first loss of the season. Lack of discipline in critical moments, and points left on the field.
Points Left on the Field
Washington left at least 16 points on the field on Friday evening at Rutgers. Of course, the missed 55-yard field goal as time expired were crucial points. A made field goal would have forced overtime, but there were 13 other points Washington left in the field in Piscataway. In the first quarter, the Huskies drove the ball 10 plays and 69 yards to the Rutgers four-yard line. An incomplete pass on third down forced a field goal attempt where Washington put three points on the board instead of a potential seven.
The Husky red zone offense struggled more than once. It again reached the Rutgers goal line, this time in the third quarter. Will Rogers III went to the air with a wide-open Giles Jackson in the end zone. But Rutgers linebacker Tyreem Powell got a hand on the pass, forcing the turnover on downs. Washington was again left without points.
Gross had a tough day from the field, missing three field goals in total. His first miss came on a 47-yard attempt in the second quarter. Washington backed itself up with a 15-yard penalty, making the try harder for the placekicker. In the fourth quarter, the Huskies drove the ball to the Rutgers 20-yard line with under eight minutes to play in the game. There, Gross missed his second of the day.
Running Back Showcase
We knew we’d see two of the league’s top running backs in this contest on Friday night between Washington and Rutgers. Jonah Coleman and Kyle Monangai each had their share of big plays, and momentum-swinging runs. For Coleman, he had two 35-plus yard runs on the evening. The Washington running back showcased his explosive speed. He found gaps in the defense and bolted into the second level of the defense on each of those runs. Coleman finished with 16 carries and 148 yards.
Monangai showed his skillset as well. The Scarlet Knight tailback had a 28-yard run and a 40-yard run, finishing with 25 carries and 132 yards and a touchdown. Rutgers had taken over on downs inside its two-yard line after a big goal-line stop. On the ensuing play from scrimmage, Monangai took the handoff and found room on the outside. His change of direction skills allowed him to find the edge of the formation, and he proceeded to break five tackles and carry Washington defenders to near mid-field. It helped flip the field in the third quarter.
But Rutgers’ backfield is built on more than Monangai. Samuel Brown V carried the ball just five times on Friday night for 44 yards. He had what turned out to be the game-sealing touchdown in the fourth quarter on a critical third down early in the fourth quarter. Brown found a crease up the middle, and he broke two tackles as he stomped down the middle of the Washington defense. His touchdown put the Scarlet Knights up 21-10, and Washington’s fightback wasn’t enough.
Lack Of Discipline
Late in the second quarter, Washington blocked a field goal and seemed to capture some much-needed momentum. There were under two minutes until the half, and Washington was down just four points. But on the play, an illegal substitution penalty was called for a player entering the field during the play. Vincent Holmes entered the field to celebrate the blocked kick. But he did so before the play was blown dead. The five-yard penalty on Washington gave Rutgers a fresh set of downs. On the ensuing play, Athan Kaliakmanis found Ian Strong in the end zone for six. Just like that, Washington was down 14-3 instead of 7-3.
But that wasn’t the only head-scratching penalty in the first half. Heading into a true road test, staying disciplined was one of the keys we talked about for Washington. In the first half, Washington was the opposite of that. It had four penalties in the first two quarters, one being the illegal substitution. There was also a false start that backed the Huskies up to 1st and 15 in the Rutgers red zone. The long set of chains resulted in just three points in the red zone. In the second quarter, it was a 15-yard personal foul that backed the Huskies into 3rd and 17 instead of 3rd and two. This time it led to one of the missed field goals.
Washington was also called for two unnecessary roughness personal fouls on the game. D’Angalo Titialii lunged at a defenseless Scarlet Knight early in the first quarter. In the second half, Drew Azzopardi jumped on a pile late. Neither drive ended in points.
Big Ten Schedule Underway
The offense had 521 total yards against Rutgers. It averaged 7.9 yards per play. But Washington finished two of four in the red zone with 11 points. The Huskies were two of 12 on third down and had several missed tackles on defense. A lack of discipline and failure to turn drives into points directly contributed to the loss. In the Big Ten, those two components are vital to success. Right now, Washington doesn’t have them.
