Rutgers (10-2) vs. Kansas State (7-5)
Dec. 28,
8:00 p.m. ET, NFL Network
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Rutgers went into overtime, three to be
exact, at West Virginia with a chance to go to the Orange Bowl as
the Big East's representative in the BCS. In the heartbreaking,
gut-wrenching loss, the breakout, breakthrough, 10-2 season winds up
with ... the Texas Bowl?
Blame the Big East for making some awful deals with its bowl ties as
Greg Schiano's club now has to fight through the disappointment and
keep the fire it had to get to the brink of the BCS. If the team
comes in flat, the rising Kansas State squad will end Rutgers' year
on a truly disastrous note.
While playing in Houston isn't exactly what Rutgers had in mind,
this might as well be a trip to Glendale for Ron Prince in his first
year as the head man at Kansas State. With the program sliding back
into mediocrity after two straight losing seasons and the retirement
of Bill Snyder, Prince took over the youth movement and has things
pointed in the right direction after a solid 7-5 season highlighted
by a win over Texas.
|
|
National
Rankings |
|
Kansas State |
Rutgers |
|
Total Offense |
|
770th
328 ypg |
67th 333.92 ypg |
|
Total Defense |
|
63rd 334.5 ypg |
7th 259.75 ypg |
|
Scoring Offense |
|
58th 23.83 ppg |
29th 29.17 ppg |
|
Scoring Defense |
|
60th 22.67 ppg |
9th 14.67 ppg |
|
Run Offense |
|
80th 122.17 ypg |
20th 177.58 ypg |
|
Run Defense |
|
70th 143.42 ypg |
25th 106.83 ypg |
|
Pass Offense |
|
52nd 205.83 ypg |
104th 156.33 ypg |
|
Pass Defense |
|
46th 191.08 ypg |
7th 152.92 ypg |
|
Turnover Margin |
|
67th -0.08 |
16th 0.67 |
|
Kansas State
Illinois St W 24-23
Fla Atlantic
W 45-0
Marshall
W 23-7
Louisville L 24-6
at Baylor L 17-3
Okla St
W 31-27
Nebraska L 21-3
at Missouri L 41-21
Iowa State W 31-10
at Colorado W 34-21
Texas W 45-42
at Kansas L 39-20 |
Rutgers
at N Car W 21-16
Illinois
W 33-0
Ohio
W 24-7
Howard
W 56-7
at S Florida W 22-20
at Navy
W 34-0
at Pitt W 20-10
Connecticut
W 24-13
Louisville W 28-25
at Cincinnati L 30-11
Syracuse
W 31-7
at WVU L 41-39 3OT |
|
Position
Ratings
relative to each
other |
|
KSU |
5
highest
1 lowest |
R |
|
3.5 |
Quarterbacks |
3.5 |
|
4 |
RBs |
5 |
|
3.5 |
Receivers |
3 |
|
3.5 |
O
Line |
5 |
|
3.5 |
D
Line |
4 |
|
3.5 |
Linebackers |
4 |
|
3.5 |
Secondary |
4.5 |
|
4.5 |
Spec
Teams |
5 |
|
3.5 |
Coaching |
5 |
|
Yes, the
Wildcats had a relatively easy non-conference schedule beating
Illinois State, Florida Atlantic and Marshall, but it also held down
Louisville in a 24-6 loss. Despite a 1-3 Big 12 start, including a
loss to Baylor, the team was able to turn things around by getting
by the dregs of the North, Iowa State and Colorado, before pulling
off the Texas shocker. An eight-win season might not seem like much,
but if the Wildcats can beat Rutgers, it would be a huge first step
in the Prince era.
Rutgers has to keep its focus for its first 11-win season since 1976
and firmly establish itself as a player on a national scale. While
beating Kansas State isn't like beating Oklahoma, a dominant
performance would show that this team is for real, being able to
dispose of an average also-ran, but a loss might be disastrous for
national perception. It might not be fair, but when it comes to
preseason rankings and battles for at-large BCS spots, games like
this one stick in the voters' minds, for right or wrong.
The Scarlet Knights win with a stifling defense and a killer running
game with the 1-2 rushing punch of Ray Rice and Brian Leonard. The
knock on the team all season long was the passing game, but with the
ground attack so effective, QB Mike Teel hasn't needed to step up
too often.
Kansas State doesn't do any one thing all that well, but its
defense, at times, has been good while the offense has stepped up
over the second half of the season after starting the year
struggling to get into the end zone. The maturity of young players
like QB Josh Freeman and RB Leon Patton has helped, but they still
have a long way to go before they reach their immense potential.
This is a team to watch out for over the next few years.
This is a showcase game for Rice and Freeman and a chance for many
to see what these 2007 stars can do. Unfortunately, it's being
played on the NFL Network, which is still limited in its reach, at
the same time as the California vs. Texas A&M Holiday Bowl played on
ESPN. At the very least, try to TiVo this. It'll be a hard-fought,
entertaining game if you like defense and running games.
Players to watch: Left tackle Pedro Sosa, left guard
Mike Fladell, center Darnell Stapleton, right guard
Cameron Stephenson, and right tackle Jeremy Zuttah. These
five unsung stars form the foundation of the Rutgers offense paving
the way for 2,131 rushing yards while allowing just eight sacks.
Zuttah and Sosa, the junior tackles, are the best of the bunch, but
the interior isn't far behind. The more they dominate the decent,
but not special Kansas State defensive line, the more Rutgers will
control the game.
The one Kansas State defensive lineman Rutgers does have to account
for on every play is playmaker Ian Campbell, who's not all
that heavy at around 240 pounds on a 6-4 frame, but has a great
motor and is quick at getting into the backfield with 11.5 sacks on
the year along with a Big 12 leading 16 tackles for loss. He'll
match up on Zuttah early on in a battle of all-conference stars, but
with Rutgers certain to try to win with the running game, Campbell's
effectiveness might be limited early on.
The big key for Kansas State will be the play of freshman QB Josh
Freeman, who has all the tools to become something special, but
he's still a first-year player who makes too many mistakes trying to
make plays that aren't there. At 6-6 and around 240 pounds, he's a
big presence with a live arm able to make all the throws, and he's
mobile. Now he has to be able to protect the ball after throwing 13
interceptions on the year with the team going 0-4 when he throws two
picks or more.
Of course, the star of stars in this game is Ray Rice, who
was deep in the heart of the Heisman race (or at least the hunt for
second place) until he was held to 54 yards in the loss to
Cincinnati. He's a scoring machine with at least one touchdown in
every game this year and 19 on the year while rushing for 1,624
yards with nine 100-yard games. He's a quick back with home run
hitting speed once he gets through the line, and with the way Kansas
State has problems at times tackling, he should be able to break off
several long runs.
Rutgers will win if...
its defensive line can hold up.
Rutgers relies on defensive speed and quickness at the sacrifice of
size. The starting defensive line averages a mere 254 pounds per
man, but still held up against the West Virginia running game
allowing just 195 yards and hasn't been rumbled on for more than 200
all year. Kansas State is going to try to pound away with its big
offensive line hoping to wear the defensive front four down, so the
longer it can hold up, and the more pressure Freeman is under, the
better. Getting long, sustained drives from Ray Rice and the offense
would be nice.
Kansas State will win if... Mike Teel isn't
hot. The Rutgers quarterback has been inconsistent throughout the
year, bottoming out with a four-interception game in the loss to
Cincinnati. He responded by completing 29 of 41 passes for 424 yards
and three touchdowns with no interceptions in the wins over Syracuse
and West Virginia, and if he's getting time and is accurate, Kansas
State's in big trouble. The Wildcats will sell out early to stop the
run, and has to use its defensive quickness to keep FB Brian Leonard
and TE Clark Harris from making too much out of the short passing
game. If KSU can throw Teel off and an extra safety or two can cheat
up to stop Rice, the Rutgers offense could be in trouble.
What will happen: About 17 people outside of the greater
Manhattan, Kansas area will watch this, but it'll be entertaining.
Kansas State will be fired up while Rutgers might need a few minutes
to get rolling. The Scarlet Knight offensive line will dominate as
the game goes on, while the secondary will pick off Freeman at least
twice after getting down early. The KSU ground game won't be working
early, so Freeman will panic a bit and try to push too many plays
deep to get the attack kickstarted. That'll play right into Rutgers'
hands.
Line: Rutgers -7 ... CFN Prediction:
Rutgers
38 ... Kansas State 24
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