Before each Ohio State game, Eleven Warriors catches up with a media member who covers the opposing team to get his or her perspective on the Buckeyes' upcoming opponent.
Rutgers
Scarlet Knights
This week, Ohio State hits the road again to face already bowl-eligible Rutgers. To help break down the matchup, we're joined by Brian Fonseca of the NJ Advance Media/The Star-Ledger, who discussed the overall improvement from the Scarlet Knights, their stout defense, running back Kyle Monangai and more.
Rutgers may have gone to a bowl in 2021, but this is the first time it has won six games in a season since the 2014 season. How much of a boost has this season been to the program that still has four games to go in the regular season?
Brian Fonseca: It's been a humungous boost and injected some real life into the program. It probably came a year before anyone realistically expected considering most thought the ceiling for this season was five wins. On paper, everything had to go right for Rutgers to end the bowl drought, and to this point, it has. The Scarlet Knights have beaten every team they were favored to thus far, look elite defensively and have done enough offensively — run the ball well and don't turn it over — to establish themselves as a middle-tier Big Ten team. Compared to where the program was when Greg Schiano took it over for a second time, that is an enormous leap that should provide some real juice on the recruiting trail and reenergize a beaten-down fanbase that desperately wanted winning football again.
Rutgers’ strength obviously lies with its defense, ranked No. 9 nationally in total defense and No. 13 in scoring defense. What has been the main factor behind the Scarlet Knights’ success on defense?
Fonseca: Rutgers limits big plays — it is one of only two teams in FBS football, along with Ohio State, to not yet allow a 40+ yard play this season — and has one of the best red-zone defenses in the country, allowing FBS opponents to score on just 66.7% of their trips there (fifth-lowest rate in the country, per TeamRankings). There are few weaknesses across the three levels. Linebacker has gone from a weakness to a strength, although the loss of starter Tyreem Powell for the season could be a significant blow; the secondary has been solid thanks to cornerback cornerstones Max Melton and Robert Longerbeam and the addition of Minnesota transfer Flip Dixon at safety; the defensive line is deep, solid against the run and, while they don't have great sack/TFL numbers, put consistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks.
The Scarlet Knights offense runs through running back Kyle Monangai, the current Big Ten leader with 744 rushing yards. How much of a lift has he brought to the offense?
Fonseca: A major boost, especially considering his breakout season came out of nowhere. Everyone expected Samuel Brown, who had a big freshman season cut short with a foot injury, to build on what he did last year. But Brown has been limited, leaving the door open for Monangai to get the lion's share of the reps, and he's taken advantage. He has forced more missed tackles than any RB in the Big Ten (48), is arguably the best blocking running back in the pass game and has shown he can wear down inferior opponents with a pair of big fourth quarters. He struggled in games against Michigan (27 yards) and Wisconsin (16), so the question is, can he replicate that production against the upper-echelon defenses? Saturday will be a good chance for him to prove it.
What have you made of quarterback Gavin Wimsatt’s year? He seems to have had an up-and-down season with seven touchdowns and four interceptions so far.
Fonseca: He has made major strides in two categories:
- After healing up from a nagging ankle injury, he is running the ball better than last year, gaining 362 yards and seven touchdowns on 73 carries (five yards per carry), including the greatest rushing performance by a quarterback in program history against Indiana.
- He has mostly cleaned up his turnover problem. He's thrown four interceptions in 181 attempts, a 2.2% interception rate that is less than half of his 4.8% interception rate (seven in 145 attempts) last year. Half of those picks led to back-breaking pick-sixes against Michigan and Wisconsin, so he has not shown yet that he can protect the ball against a top-tier Big Ten team, but it remains a big step forward from a year ago.
Those two improvements have elevated his floor significantly, but the one major issue that persists — his inaccuracy — keeps his ceiling relatively low. His 50.3% completion percentage is a 6.5% improvement from his dreadful 44.8% completion rate a year ago, but it still ranks dead-last among the 82 FBS quarterbacks with at least 150 attempts, per ProFootballFocus. His adjusted completion percentage — which accounts for wide receiver drops and intentional throwaways — is 61.8%, which also ranks last out of that group.
Essentially, Wimsatt has improved as a quarterback in the past year without question, but inaccuracy remains a significant issue.
Desmond and Davison Igbinosun are both starting cornerbacks on opposite teams. How has Desmond performed this season and does this matchup mean a little more to him knowing his brother is on the other side?
Fonseca: Igbinosun has been solid, with one extraordinary game against Michigan State in which he had four tackles for loss and forced a key fumble. He spoke briefly about the matchup with local reporters, saying they are excited for each other that they are participating in a big game that happens to be against each other.
Who are some players Ohio State fans should pay attention to on either side of the ball that we haven’t mentioned yet?
Fonseca: Aaron Lewis, whose numbers do not account for his disruption as an edge rusher; Mohamed Toure, who is playing lights-out after missing last season with a torn ACL; Flip Dixon, who is playing like one of the best safeties in the league; Christian Dremel, a former walk-on who has become Gavin Wimsatt's favorite passing target.
Ohio State holds a 9-0 edge in this series and is a three-touchdown favorite ahead of Saturday. How do you envision this contest going and give us a score prediction if you have one?
Fonseca: I do believe that Rutgers will hold Ohio State below 49 points for the first time in series history. I do think it will be a competitive game for the majority of the afternoon. I do think that Rutgers' defense will be able to give Kyle McCord and the Buckeyes a tough time. I do think Rutgers will make a big special teams play that will give it hope. But I also think Ohio State's elite defense will be too much for Rutgers to handle, that Wimsatt will commit an ill-timed interception that will shift the tide of the contest, that Ohio State will ultimately pull away because the talent gap is borderline insurmountable. Rutgers is in the best shape it has been in a decade, but it is still a bit away from challenging the No. 1 team in the country. I'll go Ohio State 31, Rutgers 10.
