Rutgers’ Greg Schiano notes ‘strongest team yet,’ more takeaways from day 1 of training camp

NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
Rutgers coach Greg Schiano hopes the numbers don’t lie.
On the first day of training camp, Schiano said his team tested the highest it ever has when it comes to strength and conditioning — a byproduct of the offseason work and time spent training in coach Jay Butler’s program.
“It’s the strongest team we’ve ever had here going forward,” Schiano said following the team’s first summer session Thursday at the Marco Battaglia Training Complex. “They worked really hard this summer, and it showed.”
The true test, of course, comes when the Scarlet Knights kick off their season Sept. 3 against Northwestern at SHI Stadium in Piscataway. But with 24 practices until kickoff, Schiano continued to describe the developmental steps his team has taken, how his group has grown from a leadership perspective and how a veteran coaching staff hopes to help Rutgers turn the corner in Schiano’s fourth season of his second stint.
“The reality is now we have a player-led team,” Schiano said. “We had a situation last night. They immediately called me. I love that. We’ve never had that. That to me is what you need — a player-led team. If there’s something or if they have a question, they come to me with it otherwise they run the team. That allows me to do my job. It allows our assistant coaches to do their job. It reminds me a little bit of the first go around when (Brian) Leonard and those guys started to take over the team. I’ve never been part of a winning team that wasn’t player-led.”
While the defensive coaching staff remained intact from last season, Schiano brought in a new offensive coordinator (Kirk Ciarrocca), offensive line coach (Pat Flaherty) and wide receivers coach (Dave Brock) to revamp an offense that finished as one of the nation’s worst units last season.
“I’ve really seen that since spring,” Schiano said when asked if he saw the coaching experience on the field today. “I love the chemistry that the defensive staff has amongst themselves and the players. They all stayed intact. We got a great administration here, great board, great president and an AD who supports us. So we were able to retain that defensive staff and then go out and hire an offensive staff that I’m really pleased with.”
On the field, all eyes focused on sophomore quarterback Gavin Wimsatt. The Owensboro, Kentucky native was named the team’s starter ahead of camp after winning the job over junior Evan Simon. When asked about what his quarterback, Schiano said he wants to see him take the next step in several areas.
“Being a leader, No. 1,” Schiano said. “Taking command of the offense – making it his offense, knowing it inside and out, being able to problem solve. I remember Kirk saying at the beginning, ‘When we go to play a game, I want him to be the coach on the field.’ So learning that level of expertise and what he’s doing, and then obviously the physical skills then take over.”
Here are four more takeaways from day one.
Developing competition at wide receiver
After losing its three top receivers to graduation, Rutgers needs to figure out who will be on the receiving end of Wimsatt’s passes. This offseason, Schiano signed JaQuae Jackson and Naseim Brantley, two veterans from the transfer portal. Both hope to prove they belong at the highest level of college football after previous stints at the Division 2 and FCS levels. In addition to Jackson (California University of Pennsylvania) and Brantley (Western Illinois), Rutgers returns senior senior Isaiah Washington and junior Chris Long as potential starters in addition to a slew of underclassmen hoping to carve out roles.
When asked how he’ll evaluate the position, Schiano said, “it’s a great battle right now,”
“I think we have a combination of youth and experience, with the two fellows we brought in from the transfer portal, Naseim and JaQuae,” Schiano said. “They’re working well. I think Isaiah Washington, a sixth-year senior, I think he’s hitting his stride. Chris Long. And then there’s a whole slew of others who are really good young players who just need to play. We need to make sure we provide enough repetitions. We two-spot a lot of drills, which you’ll see, so everybody’s getting reps. And then we’ve got a lot of tape to watch between now and meetings this afternoon. That’s really a push, but it’s worth it. Players learn by doing. The more they can do it, the better they’re going to be.”
Finding a starting offensive line
Schiano wants to find the five best offensive linemen and keep the unit together for as long as possible. He returns three starters from last season — junior Hollin Pierce at left tackle, senior Ireland Brown at center and senior Curtis Dunlap at right guard.
“I’m confident, that we’re going to have a starting five that are going to play better,” Schiano said. “That’s the way it appears now. I don’t know exactly who those five are going to be. But I think we’ve made improvement there, we’ve just got to continue this camp.”
Playing 5 defensive backs
The defense will ultimately look like it did a season ago from a formational standpoint, according to Schiano. Despite losing three starters from the secondary, Schiano thinks the unit should be one of his team’s strengths.
Schiano noted Minnesota transfer Flip Dixon as a replacement at safety as a replacement for Avery Young, who appeared in 57 games during his career.
“We have (Minnesota transfer) Flip Dixon, and he has really shown me that he’s a Big Ten safety,” Schiano said. “You know our deal is we’re a five defensive back scheme as long as people are playing with three of four wideouts. You can call it 4-2-5 or whatever you want to call it. I just call it five defensive backs on the field.”
Rutgers trains local coaches
As part of Chop4Change, Rutgers hosted CPR and AED training this past weekend. The course, run by Rutgers Public Safety and Emergency Services, was attended by nearly 100 youth football coaches from New Jersey and New York.
All achieved certification and the knowledge to apply the training if needed. Rutgers will look to provide the course again in the spring of 2024.