PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Heisman Trophy candidate Ray Rice (New Rochelle, N.Y.) rushed for 181 yards on 39 carries to help Rutgers to a 30-27 victory over No. 2 South Florida before a school-record 44,267 fans Thursday evening at Rutgers Stadium. Wide receiver Tiquan Underwood supplemented Rice's performance with five catches for 115 yards and two scores, as the Scarlet Knights overcame a halftime deficit to earn the victory before a national television audience on ESPN.
The Scarlet Knights (5-2, 2-1 BIG EAST) limited South Florida (6-1, 1-1 BIG EAST) to just two of 14 conversions on third downs and sacked Bulls quarterback Matt Grothe seven times for 60 yards in losses. Fittingly, the game was settled on a defensive highlight, when Zaire Kitchen (Hightstown, N.J.) intercepted USF's last gasp pass on a fourth down play with 0:49 seconds remaining.
'I thought the defense played hard all night,' said head coach Greg Schiano. 'We made some mistakes, which makes beating a team like South Florida tough, but they played hard. I'm very proud of their effort. They didn't stop chopping all night.'
|
|
Tiquan Underwood scores a first-half touchdown (photo by Tom Ciszek/NJSportsPhoto) |
The workhorse effort of Rice and highlight reel play of Underwood was underscored by clutch performances from unlikely sources via trick plays. A 36 yard pass from Jeremy Ito (Loma Linda, Calif.) on a fake punt led to the opening score, while holder and reserve signal caller Andrew DePaola (Parkton, Md.) threw a key third quarter touchdown pass on an apparent field goal attempt. In addition to his opportunistic toss, Ito made three field goals, including a 51-yarder in the fourth quarter that ultimately provided the game's three point differential.
Rutgers generated 400 total yards, while South Florida amassed 362. The Bulls committed 10 penalties for 99 yards, while the Scarlet Knight were flagged for five penalties (40 yards).
After the game's opening drive stalled at midfield, the Scarlet Knights wasted little time dipping into their bag of tricks. When Ito accepted the deep snap on an apparent punt on a fourth-and-eight play, he instead looked left toward a streaking James Townsend (Delran, N.J.). The senior threw a strike to the fifth-year wide out, producing a first down at the USF 13-yard line. After Rice carried for 12 yards two plays later, the home squad was on the brink of an early touchdown. The Bulls, however, forced RU backwards and the Scarlet Knights settled for a 26-yard Ito field goal with 10:08 remaining in the opening stanza. The kick capped a 12 play, 72-yard drive and marked the second time this season Rutgers had scored on its initial possession.
The Scarlet Knights three point advantage was short lived. The Bulls also scored on their opening possession via a split of the uprights. Delbert Alvarado was good from 47 yards to conclude an eight play, 34 yard drive and knot the score at 3-3.
South Florida took its first lead of the game courtesy of a five play drive that consisted of four plays of 10 yards or better. The final effort was an 18-yard scramble by Matt Grothe, who ran left under pressure and was able to enter the end zone due to the opportunistic blocking of wide receiver Marcus Edwards. The score produced a 10-3 advantage for the visitors with 3:58 showing on the first quarter clock.
Rutgers would tie the score on its next possession with the help of some tough running by Rice. The junior carried seven times on the scoring drive, including a 14-yard rush and a 13-yard carry inside the red zone where he powered through several white and green jerseys. Faced with a third and goal at the three-yard line, Mike Teel (Oakland, N.J.) connected with Underwood to cap the 13 play, 73-yard effort and enable a 10-10 tie to 13:02 remaining before intermission.
The Scarlet Knights were poised to regain possession, but a special teams error would prove costly. Return man Tim Brown (Miami, Fla.) fumbled a punt in traffic and the Bulls recovered at the RU 18. After a holding penalty, Grothe connected with Jessie Hester on a 28-yard touchdown pass to provide the visitors a 17-10 lead after the Alvarado extra point.
A second miscue on special teams by Rutgers generated another offensive opportunity for USF and produced an unusual play that took several minutes to review. A 48-yard Ito field goal attempt was blocked and the ball bounded towards the home end zone. Two South Florida players attempted to gain possession, aiding the ball downfield, before a third Bull scooped-up the bouncing pigskin and entered the end zone. An official signaled touchdown, but the play immediately went to the booth for a review. It was ruled that the second USF player to touch the ball performed an illegal forward pass and USF gained possession at the RU 44. Eight plays later, the Bulls attempted a 45-yard field goal, but the try was wide left.
The first half scoring came to a close on the foot of Ito. A 40-yard field goal with :05 seconds remaining before halftime provided a 17-13 score as the Scarlet Knight headed to the locker room at the midpoint facing a deficit for the first time this season. They did so also holding a 222-202 advantage in total yards, thanks in great part to Rice, who rushed 21 times for 94 yards prior to the break.
Rutgers took the field in the second half in purposeful fashion and the results were positive and immediate. After holding South Florida to a single yard on a three-and-out, the Scarlet Knights required just three plays to find the end zone. The score was the result of a highlight reel connection between Teel and Underwood. After hauling in an aerial at the home 40-yard line, Underwood raced 60 yards down the right sideline to produce a 20-17 lead before a raucous, Scarlet crowd waving white rally towels.
With the momentum on its side and the spectator volume on high, Rutgers once again fell victim to a special teams turnover. Thanks to a strong defensive effort, however, the Scarlet Knights second muffed point inside its own 30 would not lead to USF points. A 27-yard field goal attempt by the Bulls was blocked by Eric Foster (Homestead, Fla.), and the ball recovered by Brandon Renkart (Piscataway, N.J.) at the RU 30-yard line.
This time, it would be the home squad benefiting from a specialty miscue. With Rice carrying the load, Teel engineered a nine play drive that looked to culminate in another Ito field goal attempt. As the Bulls and a national television audience would find out, however, Rutgers was not done exhibiting its ability to orchestrate a trick play. DePaolaaccepted the snap and stood to rifle the ball to Kevin Brock (Hackensack, N.J.), who made a reaching grab. The result was a 15-yard touchdown and a 27-17 lead for the Scarlet Knights with 4:09 remaining in the third quarter.
South Florida reduced its deficit to a touchdown on a 34-yard Alvarado field goal. The kick capped a 10 play, 62 yard drive and snapped a string of five consecutive scoreless possessions for the visitors.
The contest was converted to a two possession game once again thanks to Ito. A line drive attempt from 51 yards cleared the crossbar to give Rutgers a 30-20 lead with 11:59 showing on the game clock. It marked his fifth career field goal of 50 yards or more, including his second against the Bulls. The drive that produced the field goal initiated at the visitor 39 yard-line due to a 15-yard personal foul penalty whistled against the Bulls on a fair catch.
Facing a 10 point fourth quarter deficit, South Florida refused to relent. Grothe engineered an eight play, 70-yard drive, highlighted by a 23-yard Benjamin Williams rush and a 23-yard pass to Cedric Hill. A one yard Mike Ford touchdown run concluded the drive that consumed just 2:37 off the clock and the Bulls were within three, 30-27, with 9:17 remaining. The score, however, would close out the game's scoring.
The Rutgers defense answered a late challenge from the visitors to seal the win. A sack by BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week Joe Lefeged (Germantown, Md.) helped keep the Bulls out of field goal range before an offensive pass interference call further diminished the visitors' hopes of a late comeback. Kitchen's aerial theft proved the ultimate measure.
The Scarlet Knights return to the gridiron next Saturday (Oct. 27) afternoon to host No.7 West Virginia in a 12 noon kickoff at Rutgers Stadium. The game will be televised live on ABC. The contest will mark the 35th meeting between Rutgers and the Mountaineers dating back to 1916.
POST GAME NOTES
Team Notes
Ranked No. 2 in the Associated Press poll, South Florida (6-1, 1-1 BIG EAST) is the highest-ranked opponent that Rutgers (5-2, 2-1 BIG EAST) has ever defeated.
Tonight's attendance of 44,267 is the largest crowd in Rutgers Stadium history. It eclipsed last season's stadium-record crowd of 44,111 vs. #3 Louisville (Nov. 9, 2006). The crowd of 44,267 is the eighth-straight sellout at Rutgers Stadium, the longest streak in school history.
The Rutgers defense had seven sacks against USF and now has 12 in the last two weeks. The Rutgers offense, meanwhile, did not allow a sack against the Bulls.
The Rutgers defense held USF to 2-for-14 on third down attempts in the game.
Rutgers held USF DE George Selvie to two total tackles and one quarterback hurry. Selvie entered the game as the NCAA leader with 11.5 sacks and 21.5 tackles-for-losses.
Rutgers was a perfect 3-for-3 in the red zone and is 25-of-26 inside the red zone this season.
Rutgers is 7-0 when junior RB Ray Rice (New Rochelle, N.Y.) has at least 30 attempts in a game. He finished the USF game with 39 attempts for 181 yards. The Scarlet Knights are also 16-3 when Rice rushes for 100 yards or more in a game.
Player Notes
Junior RB Ray Rice (New Rochelle, N.Y.) surpassed West Virginia's Amos Zereoue (1999-2002; 3,907) for second place all-time in BIG EAST history in rushing yards. Rice now has 3,913 career rushing yards.
Rice became the first USF opponent in 15 games to rush for at least 100 yards against the Bulls. He was also the last one to do it in last season's victory when he amassed 202 yards on 35 carries in Tampa. In three career games against USF, Rice is averaging 180.3 yards rushing per contest.
Rice vs. USF
Year Rushes Yards TDs
2005 26 158 0
2006 35 202 2
2007 39 181 0
Total 100 541 2
Rice's 19th career 100-yard game ties a school record originally set by "JJ" Jennings (1971-73).
Rice has rushed for more than 50 yards in the first quarter in four of seven games this season after his 52 yard, 12-carry performance against the Bulls. He also achieved the feat against Buffalo (9-78), Navy (7-51) and Maryland (8-62).
Rice has 999 yards through seven games this season. Rice is one yard shy of 1,000 yards for the third consecutive season. He would be the first player in 138 seasons of Rutgers football to post three straight 1,000-yard seasons.
Junior WR Tiquan Underwood (Lawrenceville, N.J.) surpassed 100 yards in receiving for the fifth time this season with 114 yards on five receptions. He is the first Scarlet Knight to record five 100-yard receiving games since Tres Moses (2001-05) achieved the feat in 2004.
With Underwood's total against the Bulls, he moved up to fourth-place in Rutgers single-season history in receiving yards with 789 yards on 39 catches.
Senior PK/P Jeremy Ito (Loma Linda, Calif.) completed his first career pass attempt against USF. Facing a 4th-and-8 in the first quarter, Ito lined up for a punt, but upon receiving the snap, threw a 36-yard completion to senior WR James Townsend (Delran, N.J.). The reception was Townsend's first of the season.
With a 51-yard, third-quarter field goal, Ito now has two career field goals of 50 yards or more against USF. Last season, Ito was successful on a career-long 53 yarder in Tampa in what proved to be the winning score against the Bulls. It was also Ito's fifth career field goal of 50 yards or more.
Sophomore holder Andrew DePaola (Hereford, Md.) recorded his first career pass attempt, pass completion and touchdown with a 15-yard touchdown completion to junior TE Kevin Brock (Hackensack, N.J.) on a 4th-and-3 fake field goal play.
True freshman George Johnson (Glassboro, N.J.) registered a career-high seven tackles against USF. His previous career high was five stops against Cincinnati on Oct. 6 of this year.
Sophomore strong safety Zaire Kitchen (Hightstown, N.J.) totaled a career-high six tackles and recorded his first career interception on USF's final offensive play of the game.
Other Notes
The Rutgers Athletic Communications office issued a stadium-record 340 media credentials for tonight's game.
Several New York metropolitan-area athletes, including Mets' third baseman David Wright and former Rutgers offensive lineman and current New York Giants starting center Shaun O'Hara were on the sidelines. Also in attendance were Michael Strahan (New York Giants Defensive End), Plaxico Burress (New York Giants Wide Receiver), Brandon Jacobs (New York Giants Running Back), Derrick Ward (New York Giants Running Back), Reuben Droughns (New York Giants Running Back), and Kawika Mitchell (New York Giants Linebacker).
Eleven NFL teams were also in attendance scouting the game.
Scouts from the Orange, Fiesta, Sun and Meineke Car Care Bowls were in attendance.
POST GAME QUOTES
RUTGERS
On the trick plays working:
"Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. I thought it was an extraordinary play by Andrew DePaola and by Kevin Brock. Kevin Brock really struggled to get out. They were grabbing him and he just fought threw it and then made a tremendous catch."
"Sometimes things are there and you think you have a chance to run it and sometimes they're not. So some weeks you don't even work on it. You work on it in training camp and when you think there is an opportunity you look for it."
"We don't do a lot of that around here, we try to stick to the nuts and bolts but when there's an opportunity we try to take advantage."
On the home crowd:
"I thought our crowds have been awesome all year. I didn't hear any of the stats on the crowd, but I tell you what, it was loud. At one point one of the coaches said to me 'I can hardly hear myself call the plays it was so loud.'"
On the penalty after USF blocked the RU field goal:
"I thought it was illegal touching, moving the ball forward. I'm a little bit embarrassed about how adamant I was about showing it to the officials, but there was a lot on the line and I really felt strongly about it so I was going to make it known. I felt this was a tough game to officiate. There was some real speed on that field. Things are moving fast and I thought the officials did a very good job."
On the performance of the defense:
"I thought the defense played hard all night. We made some mistakes which, against a good football team like South Florida, they're going to find those mistakes immediately. But the kids played incredibly hard. They made some great efforts, outstretched hands knocking the ball down and things like that. It's a game of inches when two good teams are playing so I'm very proud of their effort. They didn't stop chopping all night."
On pressuring Matt Grothe:
"To get Matt Grothe on the ground seven times is a tremendous effort. I think he is a spectacular football player. He's athletic and he can throw on the run. He really is special."
On this win compared to last season against Louisville:
"Last year it was new. We hadn't had that opportunity. I'm not saying its old habit by any means, but its one game in the BIG EAST conference. It's a very tough conference. You see people getting knocked off every week. It's one of seven and now we're 2-1 in the league."
On Ray Rice:
"I think Ray has run tremendously all year. He just keeps running harder and harder. Last week, he ran as hard as I have seen him run, and I think he did it again tonight. He was carrying people on his back. He's on a mission."
MIKE TEEL, Jr. QB, # 14
"We made the key plays tonight to get us the win. The trick plays really got us going and were a real emotional lift for all of us. We came out tonight and got back to what we do best. We've worked hard in every one of our games, but tonight we made the key plays and capitalized on them."
"Top to bottom, the BIG EAST Conference is extremely competitive. Every school is strong, and when you play the conference games, you always have to bring your best to the field. Tonight was a very important BIG EAST win for this team, and we'll get back to work for our next game against West Virginia."
RAY RICE, Jr., RB, #27
"Tonight's win does feel different than last year's win vs. Louisville. I guess because we've been in this situation before and our team was ready to have another huge win."
"It feels great to have a big win against the #2 team in the country. And Thursday night games are special to play. It's like Monday Night Football in the NFL. The atmosphere is electric and we love it."
ERIC FOSTER, Sr. DT, # 56
"I think we did a phenomenal job tonight across the board. The offense, defense, and special teams really came through tonight and it showed."
"We love Thursday night games. We love the fans and the atmosphere they bring. We saw all of those towels waving and that really inspired us. Tonight we really chopped."
"This is a great win for our program, and it's not often you get to play the #2 team in the nation."
SOUTH FLORIDA
Head Coach Jim Leavitt
Opening Statement: "Rutgers played a heck of a ballgame, they really did. They hit all the fake field goal, fake punts. The early one we had the guy covering the receiver and it was a great throw right down the sideline. We just gotta make a play. And on the field goal, we had our arms wrapped around the guy throwing the ball and he did a great job throwing the ball. It was a great football play. Our kicking game was the real big difference of the game. The kickoff return to get out of the gate a few times, that's not good. We gave them good field position a couple of times. We had the field goal blocked and that hurt us certainly. Did we miss another field goal? Yes, that six points right there. We needed to make those things happen. We had the ball on the 50-yard line at the end and that is exactly the situation you want with the chance to at least attempt a field goal or get a touchdown. Rutgers is a good football team, nothing surprised us there. We prepared well. They made more plays than we did tonight. BIG EAST football, the BIG EAST is a pretty good conference. You better be locked in every game because I imagine they are all going to be like this every game."
Play of defense: "We blocked a field goal and picked it up and I thought we scored. Somehow the replay showed we did not score. That would have been a big part of our defense also. I was not in the replay booth and I was certainly disappointed by that but they have to go what they think is right. That was big, a turn of events of 10 points."
Characterization of defense as a whole: "I thought our defense played hard and I think you have to, come on, give Rutgers credit. Rutgers did a good job tonight. Ray Rice is a good running back and he showed it tonight. They had the one big pass play that we missed the tackle and they went out the gate. Our defense did some good things, too. Could we have played better defense, sure, we could have."
On play of offense: "We did not protect very good. We have to get the ball off and Matt probably held onto the ball too much instead of getting rid of the ball. They were getting thru there. We all saw the same thing. You have to be a little disappointed, possibly with the offensive line. There are a number of factors there."
On the race in the BIG EAST and feeling in the locker room: "What you just said I would say ditto (The BIG EAST is still an open race). They are not jumping up and down and excited (in the locker room). They are down. They battled their tail off and worked hard. I am proud of them and they are disappointed certainly."
Another step for the Conference: It's a tremendous conference, BIG EAST football. Boy, if people out there saw this game, they would think it was an unbelievable game, unbelievable plays, the highs and lows. For a fan watching it, it was unbelievable. For a coach watching it, it was a little bit of a strain."
#11 Marcus Edwards, WR
On Rutgers' trick plays: "Special team play always is huge in the game. They had the edge there with the two fakes, key parts of the game. It happens. You can either go up or go down, we have to come back and keep going up. You can't sulk after one loss."
On the No.2 national ranking: "Personally, rankings don't mean much (to me). When you get out of there on the field Saturdays, on Thursdays, it doesn't matter. They scored more than we did tonight."
#21 Trae Williams, DB
On the momentum swing at the end: "I was feeling pretty good. Towards the end I thought we had a chance to win once we stopped them and they only got a field goal."
On the late fumble: "I felt like we either we would either win the game with a touchdown or at least go to overtime with a field goal."
On the feeling in the locker room after first loss: "Everybody is pretty down but it's only one loss and we've still got rest of season ahead of us. My feeling is we still can win the BIG EAST championship."
On the pressure of playing on national TV: "I think we came in with a chip on our shoulder tonight, we wanted to show the nation that we are deserving of our ranking but we just couldn't get it done tonight."
#53 Brouce Mompremier, LB
On the big stops at the end before fumble: "I thought we still had a chance. We're also disappointed we gave up all those points in the first half, it wasn't a good position for our offense, but we thought we still had a chance to win the game beyond that."
On Rutgers' trick plays: "They executed everything they did. We just weren't on cue tonight but we both played a good game."
On overcoming the team's first loss: "We talk about adversity all the time. This is just a part of that, and we have to show what kind of team we have and the true fans that we have. We're not worried about the ranking and all that, just our spot in the BIG EAST."
On the play of Ray Rice: "They were passing a lot, but when Rice did run he did his job. He's a good running back, and did what he needed to do. They won the game, they fought real hard."
On staying focused after the loss: "We just take this weekend off, come back Sunday and watch film and get ready for UConn. We're still in the hunt. We do take it as a one-game season but the season is not over. We're just beginning the hunt for the BIG EAST.
On fans rushing the field: "The fans were crazy but I don't blame them. They won a hell of a game and they have all the reason in the world to celebrate. Our fans would have done the same. You have to celebrate when you win."
