Nebraska, Michigan, Maryland, and Iowa Give the Big Ten a Third Chance. Vegas Big Ten Predictions for Week 4 Here.
Saturday Blitz Vegas Big Ten Predictions Week 4
Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Navy Midshipmen
Line: Navy by 6
Kyle Flood’s Rutgers Scarlet Knights have earned some respect after starting the season 2-0 and playing Penn State down to the wire. Despite losing to Penn State, they neutralized Christian Hackenberg and would have won easily were it not for 5 turnovers. This is a great defense with an offense that can move the ball when it’s not turning the ball over, and that’s going to be the key this week against a Navy team always known for discipline. Don’t turn it over. Rutgers needs to get Paul James the ball more against Navy, as he already has 267 yards on the season and only had 14 carries Saturday. That’s unacceptable and partially the reason so many turnovers were forced. The key for them to winning is to make sure they stick to the run game with James and Desmon Peoples and have quarterback Gary Nova come through to keep drives alive.
Navy, meanwhile, has gained lots of respect after playing Ohio State close for a half and then winning its next two games to move to 2-1. This is typical Navy football with the way it has been running the Triple Option, having only thrown 19 passes all year. Simply continuing that is all they need to do this weekend in Annapolis, and they need to make sure they don’t turn the ball over. On defense, the Midshipmen need to stack the line against Rutgers and force Nova to beat them, because while he makes plays, he’s proven that he’s prone to mistakes. That is going to be the key for the Midshipmen pulling out a victory on Saturday. They need to control the ball, control the clock, control the line of scrimmage, and force the other team into making mistakes. All the old-school cliche rules for winning football essentially.
Prediction
Navy is being way too overhyped after that close game with Ohio State. The Buckeyes picked it up in the second half, and they have looked ugly in their past two wins. They’ll finally be exposed this weekend as Rutger comes in and pulls out the victory. The Scarlet Knights will have a big day running the football, and Nova will have a few nice plays at quarterback to complement it. The Navy offense will have some nice drives and put up points, but it won’t be enough.
Rutgers: 28 Navy: 17