Despite a respectable 8-5 opening season in the Big Ten Conference notched by the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, coach Mike Flood and his squad feel disrespected by the other conference teams, and look to prove their excellence with a 10-win season in 2015.

"We trained hard enough so we can win 10 games," said senior left tackle Keith Lumpkin, among others, at Big Ten Football Media Days. Returning star wideout Leonte Carroo added that after Rutgers' win over North Carolina in the Quick Lane Bowl, running back Paul James stated he is "not accepting anything less than [a 10-win season]."

It's certainly a lofty goal, considering the Scarlet Knights have won 10 games in just two of the football program's 145 years in action (1976, 2006). Coach Flood and his offense will shortly figure out how much harder it gets when your four-year quarterback graduates.

Quarterback Battle: Rettig or Laviano?

Gary Nova has been the Rutgers quarterback since 2011, and in 2014 he threw for career highs of 2,851 yards, 22 touchdowns, and a quarterback rating of 145.3. Now that he is gone, training camp will focus on the QB showdown between LSU transfer Hayden Rettig and sophomore Chris Laviano.

Rettig is the younger brother of San Diego Chargers backup Chase Rettig, and as a former four-star prospect decided to leave the Tigers, with whom he was buried under a loaded depth chart. He is the biggest QB "commit" Rutgers has had in years, and his time may have just come with this opening at the top of the rotation.

Laviano, however, appears to be the favorite at the start of camp. He backed up Nova in 2014, and while he did not have great accuracy or success with his 28 attempts, he has shown great strides of progress and potential this offseason in Rutgers' three Scarlet-White intrasquad scrimmages. Laviano gained some separation in this QB battle by completing 30 of 42 passes for 412 yards and four scores in the three games without throwing an interception.

Running Back Toss-Up: Finding a Role for All Candidates

Another interesting position battle with be at running back, where five different Scarlet Knights posted over 300 yards on the ground in 2014. While coach Flood will be focused on choosing his quarterback the first 7-10 days of camp, offensive coordinator Ben McDaniels has the decision to make of which players will be the primary rushing options in his 2015 offense.

"I think Coach McDaniels is going to find a role for all those guys within the offense,'' Flood said, "because everyone of them with the ball in their hands is a really talented football player.''

Fifth-year senior Paul James may be the front-runner (pun intended) for the first-string job. The 6'0" bruiser totaled 1,244 yards and 14 TDs the last two injury-plagued seasons, almost making that a would-be one-year stat line. James won't have all the carries, that is certain, and he has quite the field of competition.

Desmon Peoples, a fourth-year junior, led the team with 447 rushing yards in 2014, and also put up 132 receiving yards coming out of the backfield. His leverage may be compromised due to the late-season emergence of sophomores Josh Hicks and Robert Martin.

Hicks ran for 416 yards in his last four games, scoring two TDs. He most notably ran for 202 yards in the Quick Lane Bowl to win MVP honors. Martin ran for 434 total yards last season, scoring a team-high 7 touchdowns.

Justin Goodwin, McDaniels' other option, rushed for 328 yards last season after a 521-yard, 5-TD season for the Scarlet Knights in 2013.

"I don't think there's any doubt that we're going to have a really talented running back to put on the field,'' Flood said, "no matter who we decide.''

Fullback Michael Burton was drafted as a Detroit Lions fifth-rounder in the 2015 NFL Draft, so his role may be filled by one of these runners as well. A sturdy offensive line led by Keith Lumpkin will be ready to block for whoever needs a path to the endzone.

No Wideout Surprises: Carroo Leads Sturdy WR Core

Leonte Carroo had a stellar year catching passes from Gary Nova last season, reaching 1086 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns on 55 catches. His stability on the field will be needed for whoever starts at quarterback for the Scarlet Knights.

He even went so far to say he is the best at his spot in the Big Ten. "I'm the best receiver in the Big Ten," said the 6'1" Biletnikoff and Maxwell Award watch listed pass-catcher. "I say that confidently. I say that proudly."

Andrew Turzilli (347 yards, 4 TDs in 2014) and Tyler Kroft (269 yards) have moved on to the NFL after being solid parts of the Rutgers receiving core. Kroft was taken by the Cincinnati Bengals in the third round of the 2015 Draft, while Turzilli has signed with the Tennessee Titans as an undrafted free agent. He will be on the same roster as former-Knight cornerback Jason McCourty.

While Turzilli and Kroft were the second and fourth highest yard-totalers for the Knights in 2014, junior Janarion Grant is returning as a junior alongside Carroo. Grant caught 25 passes for 312 yards last season, and his athleticism and speed will bring trouble to nearly any conference corner.

John Tsimis and possibly some of the lower depth chart halfbacks are some key returnees that could make a difference in the slots and on third down.

Unproven Defense: Hamilton, Longa Return for Improved Season on D

Points allowed was not a strong area in the least for Rutgers in 2015 Big Ten play, as the team surrendered a combined 180 points to Ohio State, Wisconsin, Nebraska, and Michigan State.

The lone bright spots were defensive end Darius Hamilton and linebacker Steve Longa. Hamilton recorded 6.0 sacks and a team-high 11.5 tackles for a loss, anchoring a solid defensive line with his 45 total tackles. Longa led the Knights with 102 tackles on the year, 4.5 tackles for a loss, and 2.0 sacks. Add a forced fumble to each of these guys' stat lines.

Quentin Gause helped improve the linebacking core as well in 2014, recording 72 tackles and 7.0 for a loss. He, Hamilton, and Longa will be key pieces to solidify the Scarlet Knights' front 7, which allowed 211.8 rushing yards per game to opponents, good for 106th in FBS.

Rutgers' linebackers seem to be a core of energetic studs like Longa, Gause, and Kevin Snyder, who defended five passes in 2014. Yet they never seem to be able to stop opposing run games.

The secondary is, was, and will be where Rutgers gets burned as well, and with the exits of DBs Lorenzo Waters and Gareef Glashen, it will only get harder to stop big-time conference quarterbacks like the Ohio State Buckeyes' trio (now duo) as well as the likes of Connor Cook (Michigan State) and Christian Hackenberg (Penn State).

62nd in allowed FBS passing yards from 2014 is not nearly as bad as the rush defense, but unless consistency and stability comes from a new source in the secondary this season, it could get ugly for the Scarlet Knights defensive backfield that once saw the McCourty brothers, Logan Ryan, Duron Harmon, and multiple other NFL defensive backs.

Now starting to get attention for his incredible athleticism, defensive lineman Kemoko Turay was a freak to guard for opposing O-linemen, as he recorded 8.5 tackles for a loss, a team-high 7.5 sacks, and was recently named to NFL.com's list of NCAA Football's 15 most freakish athletes (at number 8).

The front 7 of these Scarlet Knights will hope to be a strong point after a dismal 2014, and the secondary will need to hold up especially in key matchups in order for Rutgers to get close to winning those coveted 10 games.

Special Teams: The Kick-Blockers Live On

Rutgers is known for their excellence at kick-blocking, and with athletes like Turay at the defensive side of special teams, the team should notch a few more in 2015. The Knights lead all FBS teams in recent history with over 30 blocked field goals in multiple years under a decade. They were tied atop the NCAA last season with 6, 3 contributed by Turay.

Kicker Kyle Federico will be returning after his 16-21 season in 2014. Since the NCAA extra point rules did not change with the NFL's, he should be money on Rutgers PATs.

Schedule: Conference Games Crucial as Always

A pretty weak out-of-conference slate of games should help Rutgers in 2015, but again, if the Knights want to get those ten wins, they must perform at a stellar level in all key games, featuring the opponents that trounced them in 2014 (Ohio State, Michigan State, etc.).

Holding the #1 ranked Buckeyes offense may be a task destined for failure, but teams like Nebraska and Michigan State may be beatable in high-form games for Rutgers. The team must also win crucial disputed matchups against Penn State, Maryland, and Michigan, among others.

Gaining bowl-eligibility will be a baseline goal for the Scarlet Knights, who have reached 10 bowl games since 2005.

Leonte Carroo says he is aiming for a Rose Bowl as well in 2015, but that is just a bit of a stretch. Maybe it would have been possible with Greg Schiano still at the coaching helm in Piscataway.

VAVEL Logo
About the author
Zach Drapkin
Philadelphia-based journalist with expertise in basketball, football, and soccer/fútbol.