Rutgers Football: Greg Schiano attempting unthinkable turnaround
Rutgers must find answers on offense
Only the 0-12 Akron Zips had a worse offense than the Rutgers Scarlet Knights in 2019. Rutgers offense finished 129th in the country in total offense as they mustered just 273.1 yards per game.
The primary reason for the Scarlet Knights’ offensive woes was their inability to find a productive quarterback. Johnny Langan saw the most time under center for Rutgers appearing in 11 games and started the final eight. He finished the season with just 840, four touchdowns and nine interceptions while completing just 50 percent of his passes.
Artur Sitkowski started two games under center for Rutgers and played in three. He threw for 429 yards and a touchdown in total but did put together a strong performance against Boston College as he completed 23-of-33 of his passes for a season-high 304 passing yards and one touchdown. He decided to enter the transfer portal but since has decided he will remain at Rutgers.
In total, between Langan and Sitkowski, Rutgers finished 121st in the nation in passing yards. Thus, it’s no surprise there will be a quarterback battle between not just Langan and Sitkowski this summer but also newcomer in Nebraska graduate transfer Noah Vedral.
No matter who wins the starting job, they will at least have a reliable running back behind them. Isaih Pacheco had a breakout sophomore season in 2019 rushing for 729 yards and seven touchdowns. He will join Kay’Ron Adams and Aaron Young, who both ran for over 175 yards last season to form a trio in the Rutgers backfield.
At wide receiver, the Scarlet Knights return all three leading receivers from 2019. Bo Melton, who led the team with 30 catches for 427 yards and two touchdowns returns for his senior season looking to emerge as an NFL Draft pick.
Raheem Blackshear will also be a senior in 2020. He finished second on the team with 29 catches for 310 yards despite playing just four games. His natural position is running back, but he only had four carries last season.
Finally, Isaiah Washington, who hauled in 18 passes for 272 yards and a touchdown will also be back as he enters his sophomore season.
There’s plenty of returning talent for the Scarlet Knights offense to have a breakout season under new offensive coordinator Sean Gleeson but will need that talent to produce in order to avoid another dreadful offensive year.