HOMEWARD BOUND

Rutgers returns to High Point Solutions Stadium with lofty goals amid change in Big East

KNIGHTS GAMEDAY

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP : OFFENSE

RUTGERS VS. HOWARDGAME 2: High Point Solutions Stadium, 3:30 p.m. TV: Big East Network RADIO: 1450 AM

BY TYLER BARTOSPORTS EDITOR

It has not happened to KyleFlood, but the Rutgers footballteam’s head coach sees the pro-gram’s history dotted with them.

“We have games like that in ourhistory,” Flood said. “It was a littleprior to when I got here, but they’rethere and they’re on the record.”

So while the rest of the Big Eastgrips from Pittsburgh’s upset lossto Football ChampionshipSubdivision opponent YoungstownState last weekend, Flood contin-ues to work on revisionist history.

He understands the temptationof dismissing MEAC foe Howardtomorrow. He is conscious of thelure of looking forward toThursday night’s ESPN televisedmatchup at South Florida.

And he has tape of it happeningin Western Pennsylvania.

Only Flood does not see it withthe Scarlet Knights.

“I think when you have animmature football team, you mightbe fighting that,” Flood said. “Ithink we’ve got a mature footballteam that understands we’ve got anopportunity this week to go … to 2-0 and to keep all of our goals forthis season alive by doing it. I thinkthat’ll be motivation enough.”

Rutgers combats FCS perceptions

SCARLET KNIGHTS (1-0)

PASSINGG. Nova

RUSHINGJ. JamisonS. HugginsRECEIVINGT. WrightJ. JamisonB. ColemanDEFENSEK. GreeneJamal MerrellL. Ryan

YDS158

YDS112

46YDS

294141

AVG.158

AVG.6.23.8

AVG.9.7

20.520.5INT

000

INT.1

LNG4631LNG153443SCK

100

TD1

TD10

TD001

TKL14

77

CMP55.0%

NO.1812

NO.322

TulaneHowardSouth FloridaArkansasConnecticutSyracuseTempleKent StateArmyCincinnatiPittsburghLouisville

W, 24-123:30 p.m.7:30 p.m.TBATBATBATBA3:30 p.m.TBA12 p.m.TBA7:30 p.m.

SCHEDULESept. 1Sept. 8Sept. 13Sept. 22Oct. 6Oct. 13Oct. 20Oct. 27Nov. 10Nov. 17Nov. 24Nov. 29

[HOWARD (1-0)

INSIDEthe

NUMBERS

Key MatchupRUTGERS DEFENSIVE LINE VS. HOWARD PASS PROTECTIONThe Knights recorded three sacks last Saturday against a Tulane team that often timesopted for three-step drops. If the Knights front four can consistently create pressure, it

could go a long way toward an easy afternoon for the team’s secondary.

BRANDONCOLEMANWIDE RECEIVERSophomore6’-6”, 220 lbs.

KALEBJOHNSONTACKLESophomore6’-4”, 300 lbs.

ANTWANLOWERYGUARDJunior6’-4”, 305 lbs.

BETIMBUJARICENTERSophomore6’-4”, 290 lbs.

ANDRECIVILGUARDJunior6’-3”, 275 lbs.

R.J.DILLTACKLESenior6’-7”, 310 lbs.

D.C. JEFFERSONTIGHT ENDSenior6’-6”, 250 lbs

TIMWRIGHTWIDE RECEIVERSenior6’-4”, 220 lbs

GARYNOVAQUARTERBACKSophomore6’-2”, 225 lbs

MICHAELBURTONFULLBACKSophomore6’-0”, 230 lbs

JAWANJAMISONRUNNING BACKSophomore5’-8”, 200 lbs

MARCUSTHOMPSONRIGHT ENDJunior6’-2”, 260 lbs

SCOTT VALLONETACKLESenior6’-3”, 275 lbs

ISAACHOLMESTACKLEJunior6’-3”, 275 lbs

KA’LIALGLAUDLEFT ENDSenior6’-2”, 230 lbs

JAMALMERRELLLINEBACKERJunior6’-4”, 220 lbs

STEVEBEAUHARNAISLINEBACKERSenior6’-2”, 230 lbs

KHASEEMGREENELINEBACKERSenior6’-1”, 230 lbs

MARCUSCOOPERCORNERBACKSenior6’-2”, 190 lbs

LORENZO WATERSSTRONG SAFETYSophomore6’-0”, 200 lbs

DURONHARMONFREE SAFETYSenior6’-1”, 200 lbs

LOGANRYANCORNERBACKJunior6’-0”, 190 lbs

]

MorehouseRutgersNorfolk St.Savannah St.Forida A&MN.C. A&TMorgan St.S.C. St.HamptonGa. SouthernDelaware St.

W, 30-293:30 p.m.4:00 p.m.1 p.m.1 p.m.TBA1 p.m.TBA1 p.m.2 p.m.1 p.m.

SCHEDULESept. 1 Sept. 8Sept. 15Sept. 29Oct. 6Oct. 13Oct. 20Oct. 27Nov. 3Nov. 10Nov. 17

PASSINGR. LigginsCunningham

RUSHINGA. FreemanW. ParkerRECEIVINGB. FlanaganA. FreemanJ. DuncanDEFENSE

INJURIES

YDS13279

YDS6354

YDS563932

INT.00

LNG1913LNG322714SCK

TD21

TD10

TD100

TKL

CMP60.0%90.9%

NO.1412

NO.333

AVG.132

79AVG.

4.54.5

AVG.18.713.010.7INT

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP : DEFENSE

INJURIESQuestionable —WR J. DeeringDoubtful — TE P. Carrezola, DT A. PageOUT — DE M. Booker

Senior linebacker Khaseem Greene recorded a team-high 14 tackles last Saturday at Tulane. Greenesaid a letdown against lowly Howard is not an option. NOAH WHITTENBURG, PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR

GAMEDAY PAGE 2 SEPTEMBER 7, 2012

Outside of the Bison’s (1-0) 4-2-5defense, little is striking about theKnights’ home opener. Rutgers (1-0) opened last season with a 48-0victory against the MEAC’sNorfolk State, and it last beatHoward, 45-7, in 2009.

But larger issues loom.Following tomorrow’s game, the

Knights have four days to preparefor the Bulls, whose success inSeptember at home is well docu-mented. They will have a full prac-tice Sunday, a day usually reservedfor walk-throughs.

And they will next play at homeOct. 6 against Connecticut.

“I can’t remember ever in thefirst month only playing one gameat home,” said senior linebackerKhaseem Greene. “It’s different.It’s unique, and it’s going to tell usa lot about this team.”

It likely will not learn muchabout itself against Howard.

But that does not mean Floodwill not be taking notes.

His offensive line could do wellto follow up its 151 rushing yardsand no-sack performance againstTulane. It likely will.

His defense could save face byminimizing big plays through theair. It likely will.

And sophomore quarterbackGary Nova could use Game 2 as a

confidence builder entering a pair ofhigh-profile matchups — Arkansaswelcomes Rutgers on Sept. 22.

He figures to do so.“At the end of the day, the

South Florida game is going tocome regardless,” Greene said.“We can’t think about that one or else Howard will hit us in the mouth.”

Nova earned his first careerplaying time in last year’s homeopener. He went 6-for-17 for 97yards and a touchdown. A year later, he can of ficially intro-duce himself in style toPiscataway as the Knights’ full-time starter.

This time, he has tape to build from.

“He will learn from that experi-ence,” Flood said. “I have nodoubt about that. And he’ll be bet-ter for it this week. Fortunately forus we’re able to learn from thatexperience and win the game. It’salways nicer to teach and correctafter a win for sure.”

For now, the Knights will focuson themselves. They have a historythat tells them to do so.

“We can only control what wedo,” said senior cornerbackMarcus Cooper. “I’m not reallygoing to start to look at other teamsand see what they’re doing.”

KNIGHT NUGGETS

The Howard offense scoreda touchdown with only 22seconds remaining againstMorehouse State to seal a

30-29 victory. Freshman Jermaine Cunninghamcame off the bench to engineer the drive.

22Howard allowed 218 yards onthe ground in its seasonopener and 472 yards overall.Rutgers, meanwhile, gained

151 rushing yards, led by Jawan Jamison’s 112on only 18 carries. Jamison also scored.

218Rutgers’ longest run playagainst Tulane was threeyards longer than itsbiggest pass. Jamison

ripped off a 46-yard touchdown run to lift theKnights to a 7-0 second quarter advantage.

3Rutgers last outscored aMEAC opponent by 48points. The drubbingcame in a 48-0 victory last

season against N.C. Central in the Knights’home opener at High Point Solutions Stadium.

48

RUTGERS WINS, 38-7Howard returns to Washington,D.C., with little show except itspayout for playing a BCS team.

ANTWAN LOWERYJunior Left Guard

CAN THE RUTGERSPASS DEFENSE CUT

DOWN ON LONGCONVERSIONS?

LOGAN RYANJunior Cornerback

Tulane quarterback Ryan Griffin burnedthe Knights secondary for third-and-long

conversions, extending Green Wavedrives. Howard, meanwhile, has a signal

caller competition on its hands.

“It’s important for the starting five

[offensive lineman]totake all the reps — incamp, in practice. Byus being all together,the sky’s the limit.”

IT ASSERTS ITS WILLIN THE TRENCHESAND AT THE SKILLPOSITIONSThe difference between the FBSand FCS levels largely occursalong the offensive and defensivelines. Rutgers should not have aproblem dictating the pace.

IT CONTROLS THECLOCK AND DOESNOT SUFFER COSTLYTURNOVERSThere is little margin of error forCinderella Howard, which has toplay a near-perfect game andhope everything goes wrong forthe host Knights.

BY JOEY GREGORYASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR

Howard squeezed out a closewin last weekend in its seasonopener against Morehouse.

Freshman quarterback JamieCunningham led a 30-29 victoryen route to being named MEACRookie of the Week.

But the Rutgers football team isnot Morehouse, and Howard headcoach Gary Harrell knows that.

“We know it’s going to be a sit-uation where they’re bigger, sup-posedly stronger,” he said. “I justthink it’s going to be mind overmatter. We just have to be men-tally into the game.”

On paper, the ScarletKnights have a clear advantage,the most glaring dif ferencebeing the subdivision.

Rutgers is a BCS school whileHoward is an FCS school.

Although BCS schools are tra-ditionally more powerful thanFCS schools, Knights head coachKyle Flood sees the two subdivi-sions mixing as a positive.

“You get one more Saturdayexperience for the fan base in yourarea,” Flood said. “I think it givesthe FCS opponent a great opportu-nity to showcase their program.”

Positive or not, the Bison stillhave their hands full tomorrow.To stay competitive, they need tostart with the right frame of mind.

After barely slipping by itsDivision II opponent inMorehouse, Howard needs anupgraded approach.

“They have to get in the mind-set of, ‘I have to play Division Ifootball,’” Harrell said. “Andwhen that play is over, they haveto do it again.”

He is stressing that a teameffort and sound fundamentalswill keep the Bison in the gameand give them a chance for a win.

Harrell and his team havestudied film. They know what toexpect when it comes to theKnights’ style.

Coach stresses mental edge

BY THE NUMBERS

BIG QUESTION

THE ADVANTAGE GOES TO...

OFFENSE

DEFENSE

The Rutgers attack has too many weapons for Howard,which allowed 29 points to Morehouse, to handle.

The Knights are likely upset they gave up a late score toTulane. Chances are they do not want to repeat it.

RUTGERS WINS IF... HOWARD WINS IF...

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

TARGUM’S FINAL VERDICT

COACHING

SPECIAL TEAMS

Head coach Kyle Flood’s consistent demeanor has theKnights at ease in his first season.

Junior Jeremy Deering — or whoever return kicks —could score Rutgers’ first special teams touchdown.

GAMEDAY PAGE 3SEPTEMBER 7, 2012

X-FACTOR

MOMENTUM

The Knights’ home opener at High Point Solutions Stadiumshould provide enough energy to handle the Bison.

Rutgers’ Era of Good Feelings began with a near-steadyshowing against Tulane on the road.

Sophomore Savon Huggins will earn several chances against aweak Howard defense. KEITH FREEMAN, SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Howard head football coach Gary Harrell is well aware of the challenge he faces with Rutgers.Flood earned high praise from Harrell, as well. KEITH FREEMAN, SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

“They’re just a tough team,”he said. “They don’t believe infinesse. They want to go rightat you.”

After watching Rutgers’ gameagainst Tulane, Harrell knows acentral focus of his defense has tobe against the run. The Knightsran nearly twice as many rushingplays as they did passing plays.

And after allowing the MaroonTigers’ 472 yards of total offense,including 218 yards on theground, the Bison have manyconcerns with keeping Rutgersout of the end zone.

But offense is only half ofthe story.

The Knights’ more impressiveside of late has been defense, ledby last year’s Co-Big EastDefensive Player of the Year,Khaseem Greene, who accumu-lated 14 tackles in Saturday’s vic-tory at Tulane. Harrell is wellaware of that.

“We watched [the defense]since we saw the film on Sunday,”

he said. “Now we see why Tulanehad the problems they had.”

Much of that, Harrell said, isbecause all of the players stick totheir assignments, hit their gapsand do their jobs.

But he also gives credit todefensive coordinator Robb Smith.

“[Smith] does a great job asfar as changing up the fronts,slanting the line and incorpo-rating the safeties into therun,” he said.

The difficult part, Harrell said,will be trying to come up with agame plan that will find holes inthe defense and exploit them.

To compete, the offense needsto gain a mental edge, as well astry to create double teams andadjust to what the defensive frontlooks like, he said.

His aim is to identify Rutgers’plan and then find some way todisrupt it.

If the Bison fail to do that, itwill be a very long ride back tothe nation’s capital.

SEPTEMBER 7, 2012GAMEDAY PAGE 4

BY TYLER BARTOSPORTS EDITOR

Despite the gaudy numbers forthe Rutgers football team — 151rushing yards, zero sacks allowedagainst Tulane — the one AntwanLowery cannot get out of his headis five.

The junior left guard got usedto it, starting in training camp.

“It’s important for the startingfive [offensive linemen] to take allthe reps — in camp, in practice —just so on Saturday nights thatfeeling is just like it is in practice,”Lowery said. “By us being alltogether, the sky’s the limit.”

The feeling is not one well known in Piscataway inrecent memory.

Eleven different playersearned starts along the offensiveline last season, and the startingpicture in 2010 was not clear,either. The results showed.

The Scarlet Knights allowed 40sacks in 2009, followed by two-yeartotals of 61 and 30, respectively.Lowery saw the sacks pile in 2010,his first season of playing time.

And while the line improved ayear ago, the Miami native start-ed only three games andappeared in four. But for Lowery,five remains the magic number.

“During camp, when one of theguys went out for a couple plays, asa line we were yelling to get back inbecause we needed to take thosereps together,” he said. “[Offensiveline coach Damian Wroblewski]just lets us take control of usbecause we’re our own police.”The added accountability is tellingconsidering the line’s spotty track record.

But while four one-time startersreturn, nearly all have a new home.

Sophomore Kaleb Johnson

Junior left guard Antwan Lowery points to the line’s improvedcommunication. KEITH FREEMAN, SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

ROLELT KALEB JOHNSON

6-foot-4, 300 pounds

12 career starts

Previous position: RT

LG ANTWAN LOWERY

6-foot-4, 305 pounds

8 career starts

Previous position: RG

C BETIM BUJARI

6-foot-4, 290 pounds

3 career starts

Previous position: RG

RG ANDRE CIVIL

6-foot-4, 305 pounds

14 career starts

Previous position: LT

RT R.J. DILL

6-foot-7, 310 pounds

34 career starts

Maryland transfer

seen, been a part of, have all hadcontinuity to a certain degree,”Flood said. “It doesn’t have to befive, but there’s got to be a certaindegree of continuity. There is achemistry that builds with thoseguys as they gain experienceplaying next to each other.”

Lowery credits his relation-ship with Johnson. Johnson saidBujari has become a vocal leader.And Dill points to Civil as theKnights’ most valuable linemanbecause of his versatility.

They strived for communicationduring training camp, Lowery said,and the early results showed so.

“It’s been a really great feelingto be involved with an offensiveline that cares about each otheras much as we do,” Dill said. “Dowe have our arguments? Yes, butall brothers do.”

It is a dynamic Lowery creditsto Wroblewski, who sharesFlood’s lineage.

Both of their coaching treesinclude stops along the offensiveline at Hofstra and Delaware,where Flood spent a combinednine seasons. He enters hiseighth year in Piscataway, wherehe has seen the ups — 2007’s sec-ond-best sacks allowed totalnationally — and downs — 131sacks allowed since 2009.

Lowery sees the big picture, ifonly because of a cloudy past.

“We left a lot change on the table[against Tulane],” he said. “Therewere plays that if one block wasmade, the ball could’ve sprunghere. Or if one blitz was picked up,Gary would’ve had a little moretime. We know that this is the startof something that can be great.”

swapped tackle spots to the blindside after he sat out the springbecause of offseason surgery.Classmate Betim Bujari playedmostly guard last season, butnow he finds himself making themajority of line calls at center.

Junior Andre Civil, theKnights’ starting left tackle ayear ago, moves to right guard.

And with the revamped unitcomes a remodeled gauge of success.

“It’s not about just rushing for150 yards,” said senior right tack-le R.J. Dill, the line’s newcomer.“If you look at the good thingsonly, you get complacent. Thething here is not to be good Week1. We want to be better in Week 2,better in Week 3.”

The message, Dill said, comesfrom Wroblewski.

The first-year offensive linecoach spent the last five seasonsat Delaware, where he served asthe Blue Hens’ recruiting coordi-nator, among other capacities. Heknows how to sell, Dill said.

“I think Coach Wrobo feelsthat way,” he said. “Until we playa perfect game, I don’t think anyof us will be happy, and I don’tthink it’s really attainable.”

As season openers go, theoffensive line was close.

The Knights’ 151 yards on theground put them over the centurymark for the fourth time in fivegames. Sophomore quarterbackGary Nova saw little pressure inhis first extended playing timesince Nov. 5 against South Florida.

And head coach Kyle Floodplayed only five linemen, despitethe temptation to insert sopho-more Taj Alexander.

“It’s just been my experienceover 19 years that the betteroffensive lines I’ve coached,

GAMEDAY PAGE 5SEPTEMBER 7, 2012

BY JOEY GREGORYASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR

The Rutgers football team’sdefense has been at the fore-front of the program since thedeparture of star running backRay Rice for the NFL.

This season is no different.The Scarlet Knights have

already scored a defensivetouchdown after only onegame — senior cornerbackBrandon Jones ran an intercep-tion to the end zone in the sea-son opener.

Senior linebacker KhaseemGreene has not lost his pen-

REVERSE

Senior defensive end Ka’Lial Glaud is one of the few veterans of the defensive line, and he onlystarted playing there last season. DAILY TARGUM, FILE PHOTO, 2011

DE MARCUS THOMPSON

6-foot-2, 260 pounds

3 career starts

DT SCOTT VALLONE

6-foot-3, 275 pounds

39 career starts

DT ISAAC HOLMES

6-foot-3, 275 pounds

1 career start

DE KA’LIAL GLAUD

6-foot-2, 230 pounds

5 career starts

DE JAMIL MERRELL

6-foot-4, 255 pounds

6 career starts

DE MARVIN BOOKER

6-foot-2, 240 pounds

1 career start

DT DARIUS HAMILTON

6-foot-4, 260 pounds

0 career starts

Jackson, who has played in onlytwo games as a Knight.

“[Not having Booker] takes ahit at our depth a little bit,” Glaudsaid. “Me and Booker were doingthe rotations and getting the sameamount of plays, so it just forcessome of the younger guys … tostep up.”

Jackson does not have thegame experience that players likeGlaud and Vallone do, but Glauddoes not see that as a problem.

He said Jackson has theknowledge of the position andthe rest of the Rutgers defense tocompensate, and he is not proneto making many mistakes.

“When his number getscalled, he can make an impact,”Glaud said. “[He cannot] only dohis job, but also make someplays for us.”

Other than filling gaps left byinjury, the Knights also havesome players adapting to newroles, such as junior defensivetackle Isaac Holmes.

Holmes earned the nodSaturday against Tulane.

“It was a new experience,” hesaid. “To be the guy to go outthere with the first string, afterwatching for so many years, Ithought it was fun.”

During pregame warm-ups,Holmes went out onto the field inan attempt to expel the nervous-ness accompanied with his firstseason-opening start.

Judging by the numbers, hedid so.

The Green Wave managedonly eight rushing yards, a figurethat surprised even Holmes.

“I didn’t know exactly howmany rushing yards they had,”he said. “When we found out theyhad eight, we said, ‘Well, we didour job up front.’”

chant for making tackles, pick-ing up 14 against Tulane.

But with recent injury prob-lems, the defensive line has somequestion marks surrounding it.

Senior defensive end MarvinBooker is the biggest hole to fill.Head coach Kyle Flood said thePiscataway native suffered a bonebruise Saturday at Tulane.

“He’s going to be [out for]probably a couple weeks,” Floodsaid. “You won’t see Marvin untilafter the bye week .”

Although the Knights haveredshirt freshman defensive endMax Issaka back in pads, Flood isnot sure how much he will be

used given his limited time goingfull speed in practice.

In addition, redshirt freshmandefensive tackle Al Page was notat full speed in practice either,making Flood wary of using him.

“I’m not crazy about playingthe guys who don’t hit during theweek,” he said. “I think it’s hardenough to play Division I football,[especially] when you do it with-out practicing.”

Without Page, Booker andpotentially Issaka, Rutgers’ frontfour will have to lean on veteranssuch as Ka’Lial Glaud and ScottVallone, as well as less experi-enced players like Myles

GAME OF THE WEEK

1. Cincinnati2. Connecticut3. Louisville4. RUTGERS5. Temple6. South Florida7. Syracuse8. Pittsburgh

BIG EAST STANDINGS

TEAM RECORD PRE-RANK 2011Football

SYRACUSE

Syracuse looks to erase

memories of last week’s

breakdown loss against

Northwestern at MetLife

Stadium, where No. 2 USC

aims to flex its muscles in

a rare appearance on the

East Coast. Matt Barkley, a

Heisman hopeful, leads the

high-powered USC attack

into the Garden State.

Key Matchup’Cuse QB Ryan Nassib vs. USC Secondary

The 6-foot-2, 229-pound signal caller completed 67.7 percent of his 65passes against Northwestern in a losing effort. He likely will not have the

same luck against a vaunted USC pass defense.

BIGEAST

PREDICTIONNo. 2 USC, 48-17

Playing close to home will not helpthe Orange much this time.

SEPTEMEBR 7, 2012GAMEDAY PAGE 6

NC STATE atCONNECTICUT

The reeling Wolfpack enter East Hartford, Conn.,following a blowout loss against Tennessee in their

season opener. Sophomore running back LyleMcCombs is electric for the Huskies.PREDICTION: Connecticut, 20-7

The Bulls, like Rutgers, fight the temptation tolook ahead to their Big East opener in only five

days. The Wolfpack no longer have do-it-allquarterback Colin Kaepernick at their disposal.

PREDICTION: South Florida, 28-21

SOUTH FLORIDA at NEVADA

USC

Syracuse quarterback Ryan Nassib threw for 470 yards in aseason-opening loss to Northwestern. GETTY IMAGES

1-01-01-01-01-01-00-10-2

4th6th1st3rd8th2nd7th5th

10-35-77-69-49-4*5-75-76-7

*Temple played in the Mid-American Conference last season before accepting aninvitation to rejoin the Big East beginning this season.

as behind the three veterancornerbacks.

But later on he adjusted hisapproach, trying to soak in all theexperienced players had to tell him.

He shares a locker with Jonesand sits with Ryan in meetings.

“I just felt like learning fromthose guys and sitting in meet-ings with those guys [benefitedme],” Johnson said.

But none is more valuable tohim than Cooper. The two haveseveral similarities.

Both are listed at 6-foot-2 and190 pounds, so Cooper canadvise Johnson on how to bestutilize his size.

But perhapswhat is moreimportant is thatboth made thesame transition.Cooper was also areceiver whoswitched to corner-back and found suc-cess. Now he is try-ing to help Johnsondo the same.

Cooper saidJohnson makes

it easy.“Tejay’s work ethic allows him

to do the things that he does,”Cooper said. “He’s a smart kid.He’s always trying to work andtrying to get better. I definitelyexpected to see growth.”

Right now, Johnson’s centralfocus is his footwork. He uses for-mer LSU standout and ArizonaCardinals cornerback and returnman Patrick Peterson as a model.

Peterson is about the samesize, and since he has speed hecan cover smaller players, tallerones and any receiver inbetween, he said.

Good footwork is one of thedeciding factors in a taller corner-back’s effectiveness, Johnson said.

“If he can get his feet as quickas a smaller guy, he’s two timesbetter,” he said.

Johnson has a few more yearsto keep improving, and earning aspot on the depth chart with threeexperienced players is the first ofmany potential accomplishments.

GAMEDAY PAGE 7SEPTEMBER 7, 2012

BY JOSH BAKANASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR

A memory flashed into GaryNova’s mind when he threw aninterception Saturday on fourthdown to Tulane cornerbackRyan Travis.

The sophomore quarterbackon the Rutgers football teamremembered the worst game ofhis career.

Nova was responsible for fourturnovers — two interceptionsand two fumbles — last yearagainst West Virginia.

Whenever he throws an inter-ception, it brings him back to avaluable lesson he learned onthat snowy day at High PointSolutions Stadium.

“Last year against WestVirginia, I would throw the ballaway and get an interception bythe sidelines,” Nova said. “Nowwhen I’m throwing it away, I’mthrowing it in the stands.”

Head coach Kyle Flood namedNova the starting quarterback dur-ing training camp, and Nova got

Nova learns from giveaway

Sophomore Brandon Coleman scored the Knights’ first passingtouchdown. KEITH FREEMAN, SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Sophomore quarterback Gary Nova responded with a 43-yard touchdown to Brandon Colemanfollowing his first interception of the season at Tulane. KEITH FREEMAN, SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Corner’s early timeon ‘D’ shows faith

BY JOEY GREGORYASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR

Tejay Johnson was at a disad-vantage from the moment hearrived at Rutgers.

He was supposed to be a part ofthe 2010 recruiting class, but didnot qualify academically, so he hadto go to Fork Union MilitaryAcademy (Va.) for a year.

Then at the end of his firsttraining camp, the coaching stafftransitioned him to cornerback.

Once he completed his redshirtseason and was ready to play, hefound himself waiting behind threeestablished players in seniorsMarcus Cooper andBrandon Jones, aswell as junior LoganRyan. And he dealtwith injuries that lingered until the spring.

But that did notstop Johnson frommaking a splash inthe season openerat Tulane.

While he didnot earn as signifi-cant an amount of time at corner-back as he did on special teams,he still managed to earn the atten-tion of head coach Kyle Flood.

“I could … point to two tacklesby Tejay Johnson on kickoff cov-erage that are big plays in thegame, probably 25- to 35-, 40-yardfield position swings if he doesn’tmake those tackles,” Flood said.

Most of the special teams arecomposed of defensive players,so the team considers it part ofthe defense, Johnson said.

And kickoff coverage is only onepart of the complex defensive sys-tem Johnson needs to master to bea successful Rutgers cornerback.

“This system is a hard sys-tem,” he said. “We feel like any-thing easy to learn is somethingeasy to stop. It’s very hard tolearn our defense strategy, butonce you learn it, you have tolearn why things are the way theyare. That’s what I’m doing now.”

When he first started learn-ing the system, he saw himself

“We feel like anything easy to

learn is easy to stop.It’s very hard to

learn our defense.” TEJAY JOHNSON

Sophomore Cornerback

his first chance to prove he movedon from his rookie mistakes.

The interception was Nova’sbiggest blunder. Flood brushedoff the mistake.

“Myself, the coaches and Garyalike would like to have that onethrow back on fourth down, but asI said in training camp, he will learnfrom that experience,” Flood said.

Nova made it a point to notforce big plays this season and togive up by throwing the ball awayinstead of risking turning the ballover or losing yardage.

The Don Bosco Prep (N.J.)product did not get manychances to prove himself againstthe Green Wave. He threw theball 20 times and handed it off toa running back 35 times.

Nova acknowledges theoffense around him puts him inposition to be a successfulpasser. That star ts with theoffensive line.

The line’s rotation was consis-tent throughout training camp. Itdeveloped chemistry, enough soto prevent any Tulane sacks.

“The offensive line was great,”Nova said. “They have talent allover the place.”

Nova also enjoys his plethoraof receivers, a part of the teamdeep and balanced enough thateven the best Knights receiversmight not get a chance to catchthe ball during a game.

That was not the case last yearwhen Mohamed Sanu wasaround. The wideout caught 115passes, more than triple the nextleading receiver’s total.

That was Quron Pratt, whocaught 32 passes last year. Thejunior wideout did not catch a sin-gle pass against Tulane.

“Pratt didn’t have a catch lastweek, but in the weeks coming up,he could have 10 catches,” Novasaid. “We need him to be ready,which he will be. These guys knowtheir role, and they’re not selfishguys, so they understand.”

Senior wide receiver TimWright led Rutgers with only threereceptions against the GreenWave. Sophomore wideoutBrandon Coleman and sophomoretailback Jawan Jamison went for ateam-leading 41 yards each.

Nova threw for 151 yards, andTulane quarterback Ryan Griffinout-threw him for 254 yards.

Nova’s interception couldhave been consequential forRutgers, which led only, 10-3,entering the fourth quarter.

A Tulane comeback wouldhave been reasonable, but seniorcornerback Brandon Jones cush-ioned Rutgers’ lead with a touch-down off an interception. Novasealed the deal with a 43-yardtouchdown pass to Coleman togive Rutgers a 24-6 lead.

Overall, Flood was happy withhow Nova’s performance.

“Fortunately for us, we’re ableto learn from that experience andwin the game,” Flood said. “It’salways nicer to teach and correctafter a win for sure.”