Rutgers football fell to No.24 Northwestern 42-14 in a game where a disastrous first quarter saw them fall behind 21-3 before the first 15 minutes of the game were up. The steep first-quarter deficit, inefficiency at quarterback, poor offensive line play, and the inability to stop the run ultimately doomed the Scarlet Knights against the Wildcats, leading to the blowout.
Northwestern started off the game with a bang, going 75 yards in 10 plays and scoring a touchdown on the game’s opening drive. Rutgers’ offense would respond on the next drive with a field goal; however, starting quarterback Dylan Lonergan would leave the game after suffering an injury on a five-yard run during the drive. AJ Surace would take over following Lonergan’s exit.
On the next Wildcat drive, they would again go 75 yards, this time in five plays to add another seven points. On the ensuing Rutgers possession, Northwestern DL Michael Kilbane would force a Surace fumble on the first play of the drive, which was recovered by the Wildcats. Two plays later, Northwestern would take a 21-3 lead. Northwestern would add a touchdown in the second quarter, with Rutgers getting their second field goal of the day right before the end of the half to make it 28-6.
The third quarter would see the Knights attempt to rally, as they decided to bench Surace for Sean Ashenfelder. A D. K. Gilley interception of Northwestern’s Aidan Chiles and ensuing 46-yard touchdown run from Antwan Raymond would see Rutgers cut the Wildcats’ lead to 16 before a converted two-point attempt shrunk it to 14. This would be as close as the Knights got, with Northwestern adding two fourth-quarter touchdowns to win by 28 points and cover the spread.
Rutgers normally potent passing attack was extremely poor this game. Lonergan did not attempt a pass before getting knocked out of the game, as Surace and Ashenfelder combined completed just nine out of 27 passes for 100 yards, with no touchdowns and two interceptions. This is partially due to the poor pass blocking from the Knights’ offensive line, which surrendered four sacks and numerous pressures on the day. The normally lethal KJ Duff was kept quiet throughout the game, catching just three passes for 33 yards.
The Knights were outmatched defensively, especially against the run, as Northwestern totaled 283 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 41 carries. To supplement the rushing attack, Chiles was effective in the passing game, completing 19 out of 25 passes for 219 yards and three touchdowns with one interception (his first of the year).
The one positive for Rutgers is that their own running game was effective, as Raymond ran for 150 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries, while Clay Thevenin had 116 yards on 14 carries.
Rutgers will hope to rebound from this performance quickly, as they will play host to Michigan next week, who lost in overtime to No.6 Indiana 13-6 on Saturday. That game will be next Saturday on Halloween at 12:30 p.m., with a live broadcast available on the Big Ten Network.