Good afternoon everyone. Well, I’m busy getting ready for not only today’s scrimmage, but also this weekend’s football action. GMC Hoops will be down at Rutgers Stadium to see Sayreville take on Brick Memorial in the Championship Game of the Central Jersey Group IV State Playoffs.
Speaking of football, and Rutgers, how about the Scarlet Knights. A team given up for dead at 1-5, the Knights won their last six games to be in the running for a bowl game come this weekend when the pairings come out. Capping off the amazing comeback, Rutgers blew out Louisville last night before a raucous partisan crowd that started to leave for the exits before halftime.
After leaving Middlesex County College following MCC’s thrilling win over Brookdale Community College, 81-80, I got into my car, turned on the radio, and the score was already 28-0 in the second quarter. I felt good about that since I didn’t want to end up seeing Rutgers lose. The previous two games I went to very early in the season against Fresno State and North Carolina, were very disappointing losses.
Driving to the game now, I listened on WCTC AM 1450 as the Knights scored three more touchdowns. Mike Teel, who was nearly run out of town, set a school record for touchdowns with 7, and passing yards with 447 while completing 21 of 26 passes for an astounding 81 percent. Jourdan Brooks ran for 124 yards on 11 carries including half of his yardage on a 62 yard jaunt late in the second quarter. He was so hard to stop that the Cardinal defenders had to drag him down by his hair.
Getting there at the half, Rutgers was on top for good, 49-0. Louisville scored a touchdown at the beginning of the third, but Teel threw his final TD pass, a 44 yard strike to Kenny Britt, and then Brooks capped the RU scoring with a 16 yard touchdown run at the 12:43 mark of the fourth quarter for a 63-7 lead. The Cardinals would get another score to round out the 63-14 final. It was a festive mood at Rutgers with the fans cheering and even singing loudly in the stands in the second half.
Rutgers is now in the running for several different bowl games depending on what happens this weekend. Either the Motor City Bowl in Detroit against Ball State, the Papajohns.com bowl against either Troy or North Carolina State, the Sun Bowl, or the Meineke Car Care Bowl vs. North Carolina. Regardless, the determination of this RU squad to come back from such depths of despair to achive their fourth straight bowl appearance is quite an accomplishment.