PISCATAWAY, NJ - The Rutgers defense (2-1) caused
eight fumbles and sacked the quarterback eight times to lead the Scarlet Knights
to a 29-21 victory against Kent State (1-2) Sept. 18 at Rutgers Stadium.
A low snap on a Kent State punt attempt with 3:04 to play in the first quarter
resulted in the game's first points, as the ball went out of the back
of the end zone to give Rutgers a safety and a 2-0 lead.
The Scarlet Knights then scored the game's first touchdown, a 19-yard
pass from Ryan Hart (Coral Springs, FL) to Clark Harris (Manahawkin, NJ) with
1:13 remaining in the first quarter. Jeremy Ito's (Redlands, CA) extra
point gave RU a 9-0 lead.
Another low punt snap found KSU kicker Joshua Brazen with the ball at the back
of the end zone. Rutgers' Orlando Kane (Lawrenceville, NJ) applied the
hit, forcing the ball loose and into the waiting hands of Corey Barnes (Miami,
FL) for a Scarlet Knight touchdown 43 seconds into the second quarter.
A 17-yard Kent State touchdown pass at the 10:19 mark cut the Rutgers lead
to nine (16-7), but RU answered on the next drive, when Hart slung the ball
out to an open Brian Leonard (Gouverneur, NY) in the flat, and he hurdled over
a Golden Flash defender to score from five yards out. Ito's extra point
again extended the Rutgers lead to 16 (23-7), a score that would hold for the
remainder of the half.
Kent State scored the only points of the third quarter, a two-yard rushing
touchdown at the 6:42 mark, to make the score 23-14 in Rutgers' favor.
Ito continued his perfect kicking effort, converting a 24-yard field-goal attempt
with 13:05 to play in the game, to push the Scarlet Knights ahead 26-14.
An 18-yard touchdown run by KSU quarterback Joshua Cribbs pulled the Golden
Flashes to within five points (26-21, 8:52), but Ito's 22-yard field goal
with 5:43 remaining made it an eight-point game (29-21). Kent State moved the
ball to the Rutgers 14-yard line on the next drive, but two passes on third
and fourth down were beyond the reach of the Golden Flash receivers. Then, in
the game's final moments, Joe Porter (Franklin, NJ) thwarted Kent State's
final comeback attempt with his interception at the Rutgers 26-yard line, and
the Scarlet Knights were able to kneel on the ball and run the game's
final 61 seconds off the clock.
Hart completed 19 of 30 passes for 238 yards, throwing two touchdowns. Justise
Hairston (New Britain, CT) carried the ball 14 times for a team-high 57 yards,
while Harris had a career day with his six catches, 108 receiving yards and
first career touchdown. Leonard kept his all-purpose yardage streak alive with
his 104 total yards (34 rushing, 70 receiving), marking the eighth-straight
game that he has eclipsed the century mark.
The Rutgers defense held Kent State to 30 yards rushing on 38 carries and caused
eight fumbles, three of them recovered by Scarlet Knights -- Barnes, Terry Bynes
(Ft. Lauderdale, FL) and J'vonne Parker (Newark, NJ). The eight sacks
resulted in a loss of 76 yards, led by Gary Gibson's (Jamesville, NY)
three. Derrick Roberson (Oakland Park, FL) led the Rutgers defense with nine
tackles, five of them solo, and three passes broken up.
Rutgers will next enjoy a bye week, followed by the Scarlet Knights'
BIG EAST Conference season opener Oct. 2 at Syracuse.
Box Score (Final)
Score by Quarters 1 2 3 4 Score
----------------- -- -- -- -- -----
Kent State.......... 0 7 7 7 - 21 Record: (1-2)
Rutgers............. 9 14 0 6 - 29 Record: (2-1)
Scoring Summary:
1st 03:04 RUTGERS - TEAM safety, , KENT 0 - RUTGERS 2
01:13 RUTGERS - HARRIS, Clark 19 yd pass from HART, Ryan (ITO, Jeremy kick),
5-46 1:44, KENT 0 - RUTGERS 9
2nd 14:17 RUTGERS - BARNES, Corey 0 yd fumble recovery (ITO, Jeremy kick),
KENT 0 - RUTGERS 16
10:19 KENT - PRUDEN, Najah 17 yd pass from CRIBBS, Joshua (MAYLE, Travis kick),
14-77 3:52, KENT 7 - RUTGERS 16
06:10 RUTGERS - LEONARD, Brian 5 yd pass from HART, Ryan (ITO, Jeremy kick), 9-80 4:09,
KENT 7 - RUTGERS 23
3rd 06:42 KENT - McCLAUDE, R. 2 yd run (MAYLE, Travis kick), 10-71 4:18,
KENT 14 - RUTGERS 23
4th 13:05 RUTGERS - ITO, Jeremy 24 yd field goal, 13-50 5:53, KENT 14 - RUTGERS 26
08:52 KENT - CRIBBS, Joshua 18 yd run (MAYLE, Travis kick), 9-80 4:06,
KENT 21 - RUTGERS 26
05:43 RUTGERS - ITO, Jeremy 22 yd field goal, 7-66 3:05, KENT 21 - RUTGERS 29
KENT RUTGERS
FIRST DOWNS................... 24 17
RUSHES-YARDS (NET)............ 38-30 36-88
PASSING YDS (NET)............. 311 238
Passes Att-Comp-Int........... 47-29-1 30-19-2
TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS..... 85-341 66-326
Fumble Returns-Yards.......... 0-0 0-0
Punt Returns-Yards............ 2-0 1-8
Kickoff Returns-Yards......... 4-71 4-93
Interception Returns-Yards.... 2-66 1-7
Punts (Number-Avg)............ 5-38.6 5-41.6
Fumbles-Lost.................. 8-3 1-1
Penalties-Yards............... 12-108 10-82
Possession Time............... 31:19 28:41
Third-Down Conversions........ 10 of 20 6 of 15
Fourth-Down Conversions....... 2 of 5 0 of 1
Red-Zone Scores-Chances....... 3-5 4-5
Sacks By: Number-Yards........ 0-0 8-76
RUSHING: Kent State-CRIBBS, Joshua 24-34; ALSTON, David 10-5; McCLAUDE, R. 1-2; DOWERY,
Darrell 1-1; TEAM 2-minus 12. Rutgers-HAIRSTON, Justi 14-57; LEONARD, Brian 20-34;
HART, Ryan 2-minus 3.
PASSING: Kent State-CRIBBS, Joshua 29-47-1-311. Rutgers-HART, Ryan 19-30-2-238.
RECEIVING: Kent State-DOWERY, Darrell 14-145; ALSTON, David 6-27; PRUDEN, Najah 3-63;
McELROY, Tyrell 1-24; NEWTON, Charles 1-21; BUSH, Derrick 1-13; BELL, Brian 1-9; HILL,
Marcus 1-5; BARCUS, Joey 1-4. Rutgers-LEONARD, Brian 8-70; HARRIS, Clark 6-108;
BAKER, Chris 2-19; DANIELS,Marcus 1-27; FOSTER, Willie 1-8; MOSES, Tres 1-6.
INTERCEPTIONS: Kent State-YOUNG, Usama 1-21; ELAM, Abram 1-45. Rutgers-PORTER, Joe 1-7.
FUMBLES: Kent State-CRIBBS, Joshua 3-1; DOWERY, Darrell 2-1; TEAM 2-1; ALSTON, David 1-0.
Rutgers-HAIRSTON, Justi 1-1.
Stadium: Rutgers Stadium Attendance: 25415
Kickoff time: 7:07pm End of Game: 10:29pm Total elapsed time: 3:22
Officials: Referee: Tom Tomczyk; Umpire: Greg Brenner; Linesman: Joseph Griesser;
Line judge: Wayne Mackie; Back judge: Paul Vargo; Field judge: Bruce Williams;
Side judge: James Coleman; Scorer: Gregg Stewart;
Temperature: 62 F Wind: NE 20mph Weather: Cloudy, scat showers
Post Game Notes
HART MOVES INTO FOURTH PLACE ON RU PASSING YARDS LIST
With 238 passing vs. Kent State, junior QB Ryan Hart moved past Eric Hochberg
(1982-85) and into fourth place on the RU all-time passing yardage list, and
moved past Hochberg on the all-time completions list.
RU Top Five, All-Time Passing Yards
1. Scott Erney (1986-89) 7,188
2. Mike McMahon (1997-99) 6,608
3. Ray Lucas (1992-95) 5,896
4. Ryan Hart (2002-) 3,979
5. Eric Hochberg (1982-85) 3,825
RU Top Five, All-Time Completions
1. Scott Erney (1986-89) 614
2. Ray Lucas (1992-95) 514
2. Mike McMahon (1997-99) 482
4. Ryan Hart (2002-) 354
5. Eric Hochberg (1982-85) 337
HART RECORDS CAREER TD PASS NUMBER 21; NOW EIGHTH ON ALL-TIME RU LIST
With two TD passes in the game, Hart now has 21 for his career and is in eighth
place on the Rutgers chart. Next on the list are Brian Fortay (1992-93) and
Bert Kosup (1974, 76-77) with 25 each.
HARRIS HAS CAREER HIGHS IN RECEPTIONS, YARDS; FIRST CAREER TOUCHDOWN
Junior TE Clark Harris posted career highs in receptions (six) and yards (108)
vs. Kent State. Harris’ 19-yard first-quarter TD from QB Ryan Hart was
his first career touchdown. Harris has caught at least three passes in each
of RU’s first three games. Harris’ previous career high in receiving
yards was 67 vs. Michigan State on 9/4/04. Harris’ 108 yards are the most
by a Rutgers TE since Marco Battaglia pulled in nine passes for 121 yards vs.
Boston College on 11/24/95.
BARNES SCORES FIRST CAREER TD
Junior WR Corey Barnes recorded his first career TD in the second quarter vs.
Kent State when he recovered a fumble in the Kent State end zone. Orlando Kane
jarred the ball loose from Kent State punter Joshua Brazen and Barnes pounced
on the loose ball. Barnes had previously thrown a TD pass to WR Shawn Tucker
(36 yards) vs. Boston College on Nov. 30, 2002.
RU’S FIRST SAFETY SINCE NOV. 15, 2003, VS. BOSTON COLLEGE
Rutgers’ first-quarter safety vs. Kent State was the Scarlet Knights’
first safety since Nov. 15, 2003, when DE Raheem Orr sacked BC QB Paul Peterson
in the end zone.
MOSES CONSECUTIVE RECEPTIONS
With his first catch of the game vs. Kent State, a six-yard reception that went
for a first down at 6:38 mark of the first quarter, senior WR Tres Moses has
now had at least one reception in 15 straight games.
MOSES CAREER LONG KICKOFF RETURN
Tres Moses’ 41-yard third-quarter kickoff return vs. Kent State was a
career long.
EIGHT SACKS VS. KENT STATE
The eight sacks by Rutgers were the most sacks by a Rutgers team in the Greg
Schiano era. The previous high sack total under Schiano was five, accomplished
three previous times.
LEONARD OVER 100 IN ALL-PURPOSE YARDS FOR EIGHTH STRAIGHT GAME
With his 104 all-purpose yards vs. Kent State (70 receiving, 34 rushing) junior
RB Brian Leonard has now surpassed the 100-yard mark in all-purpose yardage
in eight straight games.
KANE IS SPECIAL
Sophomore WR Orlando Kane came up with two big special teams plays in the second
quarter vs. Kent State. Kane forced the fumble on punter Joshua Brazen in the
end zone, and then made the tackle on the ensuing Kent State kickoff return
at the Golden Flashes’ 23-yard line.
HAIRSTON SEASON-HIGH RUSHING YARDAGE
Sophomore RB Justice Hairston rushed for a season-high 57 yards on 14 carries
vs. Kent State.
MARCUS DANIELS CAREER-LONG RECEPTION
Sophomore WR Marcus Daniels’ 27-yard fourth-quarter reception, which came
on a third-down play, was a career long. The reception led to a 22-yard Jeremy
Ito field goal.
RUTGERS VS. KENT STATE
With today’s 29-21 win over Kent State, Rutgers now has a 2-0 record vs.
the Golden Flashes. These teams met in the first game at the ‘New”
Rutgers Stadium on Sept. 3, 1994, with the Scarlet Knights earning a 28-6 victory.
RUTGERS VS. THE MAC
Rutgers now has a 6-2-1 all-time record vs. teams that currently are members
of the Mid-American Conference. Kent State marked the first MAC foe Rutgers
has faced since defeating Buffalo 24-10 in the season opener last year.
