Monday Morning QB: AJ Surace's debut showed glimpses of Rutgers' offensive future
After nearly two years on campus and countless musings of his potential, AJ Surace finally made his Rutgers debut on Saturday, in the Scarlet Knights’ 60-10 win over Norfolk State.
With a big lead and a victory over the Spartans already mostly decided, Surace got the start of the fourth quarter up 46-10. He led two touchdown drives totaling 16 plays and 72 total yards, finishing 4-for-7 through the air for 58 yards and the two scores.
“I think AJ shows why we do have a lot of faith in him,” Head coach Greg Schiano said after the game. “Very cool under pressure in the pocket, and then delivered some nice balls.”
The Notre Dame (N.J) product was just happy to be out there for the first time.
“Obviously it was my first time, so I definitely thought it was a really good experience to be out there,” Surace said following the game. “Especially with all the guys. I think that whole group, I played a lot with all in training camp and so far this season, so it was really just a fun experience and valuable, I’d say.”
Schiano almost wished the redshirt freshman (as well as true freshman Sean Ashenfelder, who took the final offensive drive) had gotten some more action.
“The plan, when you have an opportunity like this, you hope that you can get it to a situation where you can get subs in,” he said. “Not just for Sean and AJ, but for everybody. Didn’t happen quite as quickly as I would have liked it to.”
Surace, on the other hand, treated this game the same way he does each week.
“I think it’s really important to prepare like you’re going to get your name called,” he added. “Like you’re going to be the starter, and I’m so big into preparation, just being as ready as I can to go out there. And obviously, sometimes, it could be tough when you don’t actually go in, and you put in all that hard work. But for me, I don’t really look at it that way, because I know building my routine, building that preparation, will pay off.”
Eventually, his moment came.
When the second-team defense entered the game following an 11-yard touchdown rush by Ja’shon Benjamin late in the third quarter, much of the dwindling crowd left at SHI Stadium knew what would follow. After the unit forced a punt one minute into the final frame, it was Surace’s time.
It just took a little bit for the first highlight to pop.
His first play was a handoff to redshirt freshman running back Edd Guerrier, but the signal-caller reared back and fired his first pass on the very next play, an incompletion on an in-breaker to true freshman Vernon Allen III that was nullified by a defensive pass interference. The next play, Surace navigated the pocket but was sacked for a four-yard loss.
From there, however, he and the offense got moving.
Surace’s first completion came after climbing the pocket once again, and he fired an athletic off-balance throw to tight end Logan Blake for a six-yard gain.
He then found Allen for a first down on the very next play, and three Guerrier runs and an incompletion later, Surace got his first score.
He stood tall in the pocket on a third down and fired a bullet to the back of the end zone, right into the outstretched hands of wide receiver Dino Kaliakmanis. The senior special teams ace stuck his hands in the air with the ball in between, and clung to it with everything he had to ensure the quarterback got his first touchdown, and Kaliakmanis got not only his first career score, but also his first collegiate reception.
“It felt really good for sure,” said a beaming Surace. “Especially with Dino, who’s a guy who works really hard every day, all summer, really since we’ve been here. To be able to get one with him, and that whole offensive line, guys that I’ve been playing with, like I said, all training camp, all spring, just to be out there with them, I thought that was a really fun experience.”
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The second-team defense made another highlight on the ensuing drive – an error on the Spartans’ quarterback-to-running back exchange resulting in a fumble that defensive lineman Henry Hughes Jr. fell on top of – Surace got another opportunity with a shorter field.
Even deeper in opposing territory on the 34-yard line, the second drive did not come as easily as the first. True freshman running back Terrell Mitchell took two carries for a first down at the doorstep of the red zone, but the drive stalled after two incompletions to freshman Sah’nye Degraffenreidt and a one-yard loss on a heavy Norfolk State blitz that resulted in a sack.
Facing a fourth-and-11 from the Spartans’ 25-yard line, Schiano opted to give his young quarterback a chance and sent the offense back on the field. Surace scanned quickly and fired towards the back corner of the end zone to another true freshman receiver, Michael Thomas III. Thomas climbed the ladder and hauled in the pass for Surace’s second score, and the second of which to record the receiver’s first catch and score.
The redshirt freshman quarterback replayed his thought process.
“It was a great job by him getting over top,” Surace said. “I knew if I kept it outside he’d have a chance to make a play, and he did a great job hauling it in, getting his hand in bounds. Mike’s another guy who I’ve been with a lot all spring, summer, and training camp, and [it was] really fun to get one with him.”
It is no wonder Surace came fully ready to go for his debut, considering his background.
The 6-foot-2 quarterback grew up in a coaching family. AJ’s father, Bob, is set to enter his 16th season as the head coach at Princeton, known for his offensive acumen and work with quarterbacks. Bob’s father – and AJ’s grandfather – Tony became beloved in South Jersey as a longtime football and baseball coach at Millville High School, Bob’s alma mater. His brother, Brian, has coached all over the Tri-State area, including serving as the head coach at FDU-Florham, the offensive coordinator at RPI, and even a graduate assistant stint with the Scarlet Knights in 1996 and 1997 under then-head coach Terry Shea.
With the Tigers’ season a full week away from kicking off, Bob attended Saturday’s game at SHI Stadium, which the youngest Surace described as “really, really cool,” though they had yet to dive deep into what happened on the field.
“I didn’t see him too much yet, so we didn’t really get into it,” Surace said with a laugh. “But I’m sure him [and] my grandpa – my uncle already texted me – I’m sure we’ll be able to get a good conversation and follow up with the whole family.”
With starter Athan Kaliakmanis in the midst of his final year of eligibility, the reins are expected to be passed to Surace starting in 2026 and beyond. After missing much of his true freshman season due to injury, Surace has had a full offseason – and part of an actual season – working as the second-team quarterback. He showed solid poise, maneuverability in the pocket, and was able to put a little extra velocity behind his throws when they needed it. While it came in the fourth quarter of a big win over an FCS team, any game experience, as Schiano consistently echoes, is invaluable.
“When you play a game like this, if you can get it to where you want it to, then you can really get guys in the game,” he said. “So eventually, when they play a bigger role, they have been there and they have been in the arena and actually played.”
Surace’s abilities, first showcased in April’s Spring Game, and then again on Saturday, gave Rutgers fans plenty of optimism that the offensive momentum of the current iteration of the Scarlet Knights can continue in the future, not just with the quarterback but the young receiving options, as well.
But as is a constant for every Rutgers player, the second-year signal-caller is focused on the here and now.
“I really just tried to have a great routine out there, and just focus on my job and executing the play.”
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