Piscataway, NJ (Sports Network) - The Rutgers Scarlet Knights got back into
the national rankings after this past weekend and will look to say there when
the Army Black Knights invade High Point Solutions Stadium on Saturday for a
late-season non-conference matchup.
It has been a less than successful season for Army this year. The Black
Knights are coming into this game with just a 2-7 mark overall and playing on
the road won't help as Army is 0-3 away from West Point this season. Army is
fortunate enough to have the momentum of a win to build off of after posting a
41-21 triumph at home over Air Force last weekend. If Army hopes to surpass
its win total from last season though there is still a great deal of work to
do as the Knights need wins in two of their final three games.
Matching up with a 7-1 Rutgers team won't help in that regard. After starting
the season 7-0 the Scarlet Knights lost in a perplexing 35-23 defeat at home
to Kent State. Luckily the loss came out of conference play which keeps the
Scarlet Knights on pace with Louisville for the Big East's best conference
record (4-0).
There is also a bit more that Rutgers' will be forced to deal with beyond just
a football game as the Scarlet Knights play in their first home game since
Hurricane Sandy devastated their home state of New Jersey.
"I thought from a program standpoint the players and the coaches handled it
about as well as we could," head coach Kyle Flood said. "I said this to the
team last week, we were distracted as a program, but distracted for all the
right reasons. But I think when we came back yesterday, it was a very focused
group and a very good start to our game week."
Rutgers has dominated in the recent past against Army with wins in eight
straight meetings. Overall Rutgers is 20-18 against the Black Knights,
including an 11-5 mark at home. The two team's squared off in Yankee Stadium
last season and Rutgers came away with a 27-12 win.
Army isn't going to surprise anyone, least of all a devastatingly strong
defense like Rutgers, with its offensive gameplan. Army adheres to a run-
option attack that almost ignores the pass altogether. On the season Army is
the No. 1 rushing offense in the country piling up 3,370 yards on 609
attempts. The Black Knights run more than 65 run plays per game (67.7) which
is nearly twice as many attempts as the squad has completions (36) this
season.
With such little passing it's no wonder that there are a number of prolific
rushers on the roster. Quarterback Trent Steelman is largely that in just name
as he has rushed for a team-high 911 yards and 12 touchdowns this season.
Steelman has rushed for 100 yards five times this season, including in each
of the last three games. Maples Raymond is the team's primary running back
with 907 yards this season and may be even more relied on with Larry Dixon
(591 yards) listed as questionable this weekend.
Army will want to build off of what was its best defensive effort of the
season against Air Force. The Black Knights held what was the country's
second-best rushing attack to just 103 yards, while allowing a season-low 21
points. Performances like that have not been common for Army which has given
up 446 yards and 35.1 points per game.
In terms of individual performers Army has one of the best there is in terms
of tackling in Geoffery Bacon. The sophomore linebacker has recorded 100
tackles this season making him one of just seven players in the country to
have reached the century mark at this point. Nate Combs cannot boast such a
gaudy tackle total, but his 11.0 for loss and 6.0 sacks are both team-highs.
Turnovers were what doomed Rutgers in its loss to Kent State. Despite throwing
for more than 300 yards (313) for just the second time this season, Gary Nova
also threw six interceptions which constantly kept Rutgers from finishing
drives. It was a gigantic step backward for Nova who had thrown only three
interceptions on the season coming in. Overall, Nova has now completed 59.9
percent of his pass attempts for 1,816 yards, 17 touchdowns and nine
interceptions.
After leading the Big East in rushing for much of the season, Jawan Jamison
was unseated by Cincinnati's George Winn after he rushed for 84 yards and a
touchdown against Kent State. The interceptions had a detrimental effect on
Jamison's production as his 15 carries were the second-lowest of the season.
With that effort Jamison is now averaging 24 carries per game which is the
most in the Big East. Jamison is even a vital part of the passing game with 23
receptions for 299 yards and a pair of scores through the air.
Obviously with Jamison being relied on that much there hasn't been as much
opportunities for the receivers to really break out this season. Brandon
Coleman (31 receptions, 450 yards, 6 TDs) is a big target that has shown
flashes of big play ability. Mark Harrison (28 receptions, 282 yards, 4 TDs)
and Tim Wright (27 receptions, 337 yards) are also in the mix.
The kicking game doesn't often factor into as much in terms of gameplan, but
Rutgers may be without kicker Kyle Federico who is listed as questionable with
a hip injury.
Playing a one-dimensional offense like Army's must have Flood's defense
practically drooling. Rutgers has been sensational on defense this season
especially against the run. The Scarlet Knights are the fourth best team in
the country against the run (88.5 ypg) and the 14th best overall (306.).
Flood knows how good his defense can be and how important it will be to force
Army into passing situations.
"As long as they feel like they're within striking distance, they don't change
their personality," Flood said. "But if you're fortunate enough to get them in
a situation where they have to throw it, that's not something that they are
proficient at because it's not what they believe in."
The player to watch is Khaseem Greene, who has been as hard hitting as they
come this season. Aside from leading the team in tackles (74) and sacks (3.5)
Greene has also forced five fumbles this season, while also collecting a pair
of interceptions. Logan Ryan has 53 tackles and has three INTs, tying him with
Brandon Jones for the team lead.
The Sports Network