Rutgers Football survives opening-night scare against Ohio
Rutgers Football got everything it could handle from Ohio as the Scarlet Knights outlasted the Bobcats 34-31 at SHI Stadium.
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AN OPENING-NIGHT SCARE
Rutgers was flirting with disaster.
After surrendering a 17-point lead late in the third quarter following a 13-yard touchdown pass from Ohio’s Parker Navarro to Jake Bruno to tie the game at 31, Rutgers needed someone to turn to to prevent an opening-night disaster at the hands of the Bobcats.
Well, that somebody turned out to be newly-acquired transfer wide receiver DT Sheffield as the former North Texas product came up with a 10-yard catch from Athan Kaliakmanis on 4th-and-7 to ice the game and cap off a final drive that ate up the final 6:41 of the game. It marked the fifth fourth-down conversion for Rutgers as it finished 5-for-5.
After an opening half that saw Rutgers compile 252 yards of total offense and go into the tunnel up 31-17, the Scarlet Knights struggled in the second as they were held to just three points, a 26-yard field goal from Jai Patel to take a 34-31 lead with 11:11 left in the fourth quarter.
On the flip side, Ohio finished the second half outgaining Rutgers 194-147, with Navarro going 21-for-31 for 239 yards and three touchdowns.
The Bobcats opened up the second half with a nine-play, 75-yard drive to cut it to a 31-24 game following a 17-yard scramble from Navarro.
FIRST HALF FIREPOWER
Rutgers came into the season with a lot of hype surrounding its offense and did not do anything to disprove that in the first half as it scored on its first four possessions, including three touchdowns, following a six-yard touchdown pass from Kaliakmanis to KJ Duff to take a 24-14 lead with 5:20 remaining in the second quarter.
The Scarlet Knights added to their offensive output when Kaj Sanders blocked a punt that was recovered in the end zone by Cam Miller to take a 17-point lead with 3:22 remaining in the first half.
Rutgers was led by Kaliakmanis, who went 10-for-14 for 154 yards and two touchdowns, while Antwan Raymond had six carries for 66 yards and one touchdown. Kaliakmanis also connected with DT Sheffield for a 54-yard touchdown pass to take a 17-7 lead with 13:52 left in the half.
It was a picturesque opening to the game for Rutgers as it started with a 12-play, 75-yard drive capped off by a 14-yard touchdown run from Raymond to take a 7-0 lead with 9:52 left in the first quarter. The Scarlet Knights converted two fourth downs on the drive.
Rutgers took a 10-7 lead with 14:52 remaining in the second quarter following a 23-yard field goal from Patel. It marked his 14th consecutive make to set a new program record.
DEFENSIVE WOES
Despite Rutgers’ strong start offensively, Ohio had an answer for just about every score and went into halftime trailing 31-17 following a 30-yard field goal from David Dellenbach.
Following the 54-yard completion from Kaliakmanis to Sheffield, Ohio responded with a 10-play, 75-yard drive capped off with a 14-yard touchdown pass from Navarro to Bruno to make it 17-14 with 8:34 remaining in the second quarter.
The Bobcats matched Rutgers’ opening drive touchdown with a score of its own after Navarro hit Mason Williams for a four-yard pass to tie the score at seven with 4:58 left in the first quarter. The completion finished off a 10-play, 65-yard drive.
Ohio racked up 246 yards of total offense in the first half, including 135 on the ground. Navarro went 12-for-19 for 111 yards and two touchdowns.
RFOOTBALL PLAY OF THE DAY
UP NEXT
Rutgers will host Miami (OH) next Saturday at 3:30 pm (ET) on Peacock.
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