Iowa Football Opponent Preview: Rutgers Scarlet Knights

Welcome to Big Ten play. For the Hawkeyes, it marks their 73rd season navigating through the storied conference slate, but they’ll open with an opponent that’s only been a member for the last 12 seasons. On Friday night, Iowa will travel to Piscataway for a matchup against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at SHI Stadium.

The Scarlet Knights enter this week with an undefeated 3-0 record, after navigating a soft non-conference schedule with relative ease. Since sneaking out with a 34-31 win over Ohio in the opener, they’ve taken care of business, outscoring Miami Oh and Norfolk State by a combined 78 points. Under sixth-year head coach Greg Schiano, Rutgers has made bowl appearances in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2013 and 2014.

Last Week: Rutgers 60 Norfolk State 10

This will be just the fifth all-time meeting between the Hawkeyes and Scarlet Knights, with Iowa winning the previous four matchups, including outscoring them 93-17. All four meetings have come within the last decade. Iowa is 2-0 in Piscataway, winning their last trip 27-10 back in 2022. A couple of other notable numbers, Iowa (currently -2.5) is 8-4 against the spread as a road favorite over the last four seasons, while Rutgers is 2-8-1 against the spread as a home underdog over that same time frame, including averaging just 14.6 points per game in those matchups.

SCARLET KNIGHTS OFFENSE

2025 Numbers: 46.3 PPG, 164.7 RUSH, 296.3 PASS, 461.0 TOTAL

Quarterback

The Rutgers offense is led by a familiar face that the Hawkeyes faced when he was at another Big Ten school. Senior quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis is in his second season as the starter for the Scarlet Knights, after completing 53.9% of passes for 2,696 yards and 18 touchdowns to seven interceptions last season. Through three games this year, Kaliakmanis has completed 72.9% of his passes for 820 yards and seven touchdowns to zero interceptions.

He hasn’t gone up against the toughest defenses, with Ohio and Miami Oh ranking 132nd and 133rd in pass coverage grade per Pro Football Focus. That being said, Athan is off to the best three-game start of his career, and it helps that he’s got the best trio of receivers that he’s ever had.

In two previous matchups against Iowa (’22, ’23), Kaliakmanis combined to complete 17-of-40 (42.5%) passes for 213 yards and one interception. Both of those were when he was at Minnesota.

Running Back

Expect to see Rutgers split their carries between three backs, with one lead back getting the majority of the carries. Their trio has run the ball well, totaling 481 yards and six touchdowns on 86 carries (5.6 ypc).

The lead back for the Scarlet Knights, Antwan Raymond, is averaging 15.3 touches per game, with his 43 rushes going for 248 yards (5.8 ypc) and five touchdowns. In two games against FBS opponents, Raymond has put up 169 yards and averaged 6.3 yards per carry. He has not been a factor in the passing game, with just six receptions over 13 career games.

Through two games, the backup carries have been split between FAU transfer CJ Campbell and sophomore Ja’Shon Benjamin, with each averaging 7.3 touches per game. Campbell was the go-to player at Florida Atlantic last season, rushing for 844 yards, while also tallying 40 catches for 466 yards and combining for 14 touchdowns. He has rushed for 121 yards on 22 carries (5.4 ypc), including rushing for 71 yards in the opener against Ohio. As for Benjamin, the former three-star has 21 rushes for 102 yards (4.9 ypc) and one touchdown.

Wide Receiver / Tight End

Despite losing their top pass catcher from last season, through three weeks, it appears that the Scarlet Knights still have a really strong trio of receivers. They’ve done of the opposite of spread the ball around, with 61 of their 92 targets (68.1%) going to that top three. Although their receiver room hasn’t shown a ton of depth so far, it will still be a tough test for the Iowa secondary.

The Scarlet Knights top returning receiver from last season, sophomore Ian Strong has caught 16 passes for 216 yards and two touchdowns, but missed the Norfolk State game for an undisclosed reason. He went over 100 yards against both Ohio and Miami Oh, while he caught 43 passes for 676 yards and five touchdowns last season. His status is one worth watching as the week goes by and it would be a huge blow for Rutgers if he was out on Friday.

Sophomore KJ Duff leads the way through three contests, with 17 catches for 244 yards and two touchdowns. In their win over Norfolk State, Duff caught six passes for 119 yards. He was third on the team in receiving last season, tallying 27 catches for 425 yards and one touchdown.

Rounding out their strong trio of pass catchers, North Texas transfer DT Sheffield came over in the portal and has taken over the slot receiver position. He has caught 12 passes for 201 yards and one touchdown, including four catches for 85 yards against Ohio in the opener. A year ago at UNT, Sheffield led the Mean Green, with 66 receptions, 822 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Another name to know is junior tight end Kenny Fletcher. He’s fourth on the team with five receptions for 35 yards, after finishing with 20 receptions for 137 yards and two touchdowns last season.

Offensive Line

The Rutgers offensive line will face their biggest test of the young season on Friday, facing an Iowa defensive front that is averaging 10.7 quarterback pressures per game. They brought back four starters from last season and entered the season ranked 26th in the country with 106 career starts.

Through three games, the Scarlet Knights rank 4th in the country in run blocking and 9th in pass blocking per Pro Football Focus, but they have given up seven sacks. Amongst 65 Big Ten offensive lineman that have played at least 150 snaps, center Gus Zilinskas (11th), right guard Kwabena Asamoah (13th) and right tackle Taj White (14th) rank in the top 15.

SCARLET KNIGHTS DEFENSE

2025 Numbers: 19.3 PPG, 148.7 RUSH, 194.0 PASS, 342.7 TOTAL

Defensive Line

Last season, the Rutgers defensive line averaged 11.3 pressures per game, while they ranked 89th in the country in sacks per game (1.69). So far this year, they are averaging 11.7 pressures per game, but have gotten to the opposing quarterback for just four sacks.

The strength of the group is on the edge, led by James Madison transfer Eric O’Neill who came over in the portal after earning First Team All-SBC honors for the Dukes last season. He’s got ten tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks and a team-high eight pressures. He has primarily lined up a left defensive end, which would match him up with left tackle Trevor Lauck. The other edge rusher on the left side has been Ohio transfer Bradley Weaver who was a First Team All-MAC selection for the Bobcats last season. He’s played 78 snaps, tallying nine tackles and six pressures.

At the right defensive end spot, junior Jordan Walker has been the starter after tallying 19 tackles and four sacks as a rotational piece last season. Over 98 snaps, Walker has ten tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss and five quarterback pressures. The other name to know is senior Jordan Thompson. As a starter last season, Thompson finished with 26 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss, but has come off the bench to start this year. Over 74 snaps, he has five tackles, one sack and three quarterback pressures.

The interior of the defense line hasn’t been as productive in the early going, but senior Keshon Griffin and Kent State transfer Oliver Billotte are the two that will garner the most snaps. They’ve combined for five tackles and six pressures.

Linebackers

Under defensive coordinator Robb Smith, the Scarlet Knights are running a 4-2-5 defense, with two linebackers that are going to be on the field for the majority of the snaps.

Middle linebacker Dariel Djabome was a Third Team All-Big Ten selection a year ago, leading the Rutgers defense with 105 tackles, four tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks. He’s third on the team in snaps played with 141 but has tallied just ten tackles thus far. Alongside of Djabome is junior Moses Walker. A former four-star recruit, Walker made three starts last season, totaling 31 tackles. He’s played 113 snaps and is second on the team in both tackles (15) and tackles for loss (2.0).

Defensive Backs

The Rutgers secondary, through three games, has allowed opponents to complete just 57.1% of passes, allowing three touchdowns and grabbing two interceptions. They’re 64.2 coverage grade ranks 107th in the country.

Their starting outside corner play has been solid so far, with Marshall transfer Jacobie Henderson (115 snaps) and sophomore Bo Mascoe (97 snaps) allowing opposing quarterbacks to complete just 4-of-15 targets for only 28 yards (1.86 ypt). The G5 transfer Henderson has yet to face a P4 offense, but has been impressive in coverage, allowing just one completion on seven targets for -4 yards. The other corner to know is junior Al-Shadee Salaam (89 snaps). He has allowed five catches on seven targets for 47 yards (6.71 ypt).

Penn State transfer Cam Miller has been the slot corner for Rutgers, after totaling 56 tackles over three years with the Nittany Lions. Opposing quarterbacks have really picked on him, with Miller facing eight more targets than any other defensive back on the roster. He has allowed 13 catches on 18 targets for 156 yards (8.66 ypt). He will most likely be matched up on Jacob Gill who has been the slot receiver for the Hawkeyes.

When put in coverage, the Scarlet Knight starting safeties have struggled, with Fourth Team All-Big Ten Kaj Sanders (131 snaps) and UNLV transfer Jett Elad (148 snaps) combining to allow opponents complete 15-of-19 passes for 277 yards (14.58 ypt). It’s still early, but it’s been a sharp drop off between the two, as they combined to allow 359 yards on 63 targets (5.69 ypt) last season. That’s a 156% increase in yards allowed per target so far this season.

SCARLET KNIGHTS SPECIAL TEAMS

Kicker Jai Patel: 5/5 FG, 14/16 PAT, LNG 44 (15/19, 41/42 PAT in ’24)

Punter Jakob Anderson: 2 punts, 86 yards, 43.0 AVG (50 punts, 42.6 AVG)

Kick Returner Ja’Shon Benjamin: 3 returns, 64 yards, 21.3 AVG, LNG 27

Punt Returner Kaj Sanders: 2 returns, 63 yards, 31.5 AVG

FINAL THOUGHT

This will be a good test for the Hawkeyes, going on the road into what should be a pretty raucous environment with Rutgers hosting their blackout game. Last time they were in this spot, they handled the atmosphere well and used three forced turnovers, including a Cooper DeJean pick six to roll to a 27-10 victory. They may have to find a different way to win this time around, as the defense has yet to force a turnover.

Rutgers has started 3-0 in each of the last four seasons and finally broke through to 4-0 with a Friday win over Washington last year but followed it up with four straight losses. Circling back to the Iowa -2.5 betting line, Rutgers is 5-9 straight up over the last two years as an underdog, but they’ve won three of their last four. The Hawkeyes will need a good offensive performance to win this game, unless the defense is going to force some turnovers.