RUTGERS (1-1) at KANSAS (1-1)
September 15, 2018 • 12:05 p.m. ET • Fox Sports Regional
David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium • Lawrence, Kan.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers football will head back on the road to take on Kansas Saturday at 12:05 p.m. ET (11:05 a.m. local) at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium. The Scarlet Knights traveled to No. 4 Ohio State last week, starting the season with 2-of-3 games away from Piscataway for the first time since 2012. It will be the first visit to the Sunflower State. RU is 14-6 in non-conference road matchups since 2004.
 
Fox Sports Regional has the television broadcast with Brendan Burke (play-by-play), David Anderson (analyst) and Christian Steckel (reporter) on the call. The game will air on MSG+ locally. Click here for the full clearances. Chris Carlin (play-by-play), Ray Lucas (analyst) and Anthony Fucilli (sideline) are set to deliver the action on the Rutgers IMG Sports Network (WCTC 1450-AM, ESPN NY 98.7-FM, WENJ 97.3-FM, WNJE 920-AM). In addition, Justin Sontupe and Sam Marsdale have the WRSU 88.7-FM student broadcast and the contest will air nationally with the home team call on XM 199 and Sirius 137.
 


SCOUTING RUTGERS
The Scarlet Knights dropped their Big Ten opener at No. 4 Ohio State, 52-3, the earliest conference game on the calendar since 2009. It was the 13th matchup against a ranked Big Ten opponent since joining the conference in 2014. Sophomore Justin Davidovicz connected on a 41-yard field goal on his first collegiate attempt, while senior Trevor Morris led the defense with 11 tackles, including a sack.
 
Freshman Artur Sitkowski has started each of the first two games at quarterback with a 54.2 completion percentage and 243 yards. Fifth-year senior Giovanni Rescigno played the second half last week in his 17^th career game. The veteran has thrown for 1,433 yards and seven touchdowns.
 
Sophomore Raheem Blackshear paces the Scarlet Knights with 206 all-purpose yards so far, leading the offense with 10 receptions. Also in the backfield, graduate student Jonathan Hilliman ranks seventh among active FBS players with 28 career rushing touchdowns and third with 634 carries. Freshman Isaih Pacheco owns a team-high 97 rushing yards as a rookie.
 
Morris is averaging 10 tackles per game, having reached double digits 11 times in his career. Sophomore Elorm Lumor was also in on a sack in Columbus to make it three stops in the backfield this season. The unit has 16 tackles-for-loss and five sacks overall through two weeks, with five and two, respectively, in those categories at the same point last season.
 
The Scarlet Knights previously defeated Texas State, 35-7, in their season opener HighPoint.com Stadium. It was the largest margin of victory for the Scarlet Knights against an FBS opponent since 2009. A balanced offensive attack picked up 218 rushing yards and 205 passing yards to top 200 both ways for the first time since 2015, while the defense did not permit a score and held the Bobcats to 1-of-13 on third down. RU looks to be 2-1 for the second time in three seasons under head coach Chris Ash.
 
SCOUTING KANSAS
The Jayhawks return home after snapping a 46-game road losing streak with a 31-7 victory at Central Michigan. The defense created six turnovers, improving the season team turnover margin to plus three, and held the Chippewas to 103 rushing yards. Joe Dineen Jr. led the way with 14 stops, sitting 13^th among active FBS players with 274 career tackles from the linebacker position. Pooka Williams sparked the offense in his collegiate debut with 125 rushing yards to back quarterback Peyton Bender, who finished 17-of-26 for 130 yards and one touchdown. Bender is a transfer from Washington State, but did not see action in the RU-WSU matchups in 2014 and 2015.
 
Kansas started off the season with a 26-23 home loss in overtime against Nicholls State. The program is led by fourth-year head coach David Beaty.
 
THE SERIES
Rutgers won the only other meeting, 27-14, behind 312 rushing yards on Sept. 26, 2015 in Piscataway. Josh Hicks led the way with 113 yards on the ground with two touchdowns, while Robert Martin added 102. Carlton Agudosi and Matt Flanagan both recorded receiving scores from Chris Laviano. Defensively, Steve Longa registered 13 tackles and Kiy Hester added nine with two pass breakups. The Scarlet Knights led in total offense (513-342), plays (83-62) and first downs (31-18) with a time of possession of 37:59. The Jayhawks were held to 64 rushing yards and recorded only one first down on the ground.
 
Rutgers has played five teams in the current alignment of the Big 12, but has only visited one previous Big 12 stadium, a 1997 trip to Texas. The Scarlet Knights beat both Kansas State (2006 Texas Bowl) and Iowa State (2011 Pinstripe Bowl) in bowl games.
 
In addition, Kansas will mark the 33rd different state Rutgers has played in. The 17 never visited are Alaska, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont and Wyoming.
 
UP NEXT
Rutgers returns home to HighPoint.com Stadium to host Buffalo on Sept. 22 at noon on Big Ten Network. RU leads the all-time series, 5-1, but the two programs have not met since 2007.
 
Follow Rutgers Athletics on Facebook and Twitter (@RUAthletics) for all of the latest news and updates. For specific updates regarding football, follow the program on Twitter (@RFootball). For additional updates, please download the Gameday App.