12 Hours Later.....The Birth of a REAL "Savage Nation" in Piscataway

The View From Section 104 in Rutgers Stadium

When pre-season prognosticators were penciling Rutgers to win the the Big East and go to the Orange or Sugar Bowls a mere ten or more days ago, I wasn't so sure....but I held my tongue (and my TWITTER page) lest I be accused of heresy by The Loyal Sons of Rutgers and burned in effigy at a town hall meeting somewhere in Central Jersey. My reasoning was though RU has a deep and experienced offensive line, the losses to to graduation or the NFL of qb Mike Teel, wr's Kenny Britt and Tiquan Underwood, and TE Kevin Brock was immeasurable. And an ongoing "running back by committee" situation by the Scarlet Knights was a way of saying that there still was no clearcut heir to the thrones of the great Ray Rice and "Mr.Intangible" Brian Leonard. In short, the skill positions were to be a work in progress. Most of the components of the great 2006 Rutgers team that thrilled the New York metropolitan area, and much of the nation, had departed.

For the first time since 2005 there were more questions than answers....so I hedged my bet, and felt that this team could win nine games, but might win as few as six and finish at .500. There was too much uncertainty at the skill positions.

After the debacle against a pretty good (and now ranked) Cincinnati team on Labor Day, we started to see the 2009 campaign for what it is going to be. This will probably not be the year Rutgers wins the Big East and goes to that elusive BCS bowl game. What it will be is a re-tooling and reloading of an offense that has every chance to be as good and dynamic as the Teel/Britt/Rice/Leonard Era. But its infancy began on Monday, and its adolescence arrived in the second game against Howard University. How quickly this New Breed grows up will determine RU's fate for 2009.

And I'm a lot more optimistic about the future than I was even before the first game of the season- the unknowns are out of the way, and the vision of what this team is (and isn't) is much clearer.

I'll steal and modify the title given to the the followers of a certain right wing radio talk show host (He Who Shall Not Be Named) and christen 2009 as the birth of the REAL Savage Nation, after the 19 year old true freshman quarterback who has shown himself to be the real deal in a game and a half of play.

In a rainy Rutgers Stadium yesterday the Scarlet Knights took on Howard University, no powerhouse by any stretch. Rutgers would win this game, the only uncertainties dealt with the final score, and at what point would Rutgers insert second and third teamers into the game. But what we saw yesterday gave RU fans reason to hope, to attend games in the future, and get ready for the "Next Big Event", whenever that will be. Because a new generation of stars will be growing up before our eyes.

Start with young Mr.Savage. The true freshman qb was at the helm of a team that won 45-7, with 42 of those points coming in the first half. He only threw the ball 13 times and completed eight, but those eight completions accounted for 223 yards and 2 touchdowns, and no interceptions. Savage aired it out to Tim Brown for a 49 yard gain in the first quarter (which led to a San San Te field goal). At 10-0 Rutgers leading, Savage connected with a converted QB, TE DC Jefferson, for a 46 yard gain. Then Savage hit FB Jack Corcoran for a 21 yard TD. The drive took two plays.

There was more. After RB Jourdan scored the second of his three TD's to make the score 25-0, Savage hit Brown for a 68 yard TD, making the score 32-0. In all, in the second quarter Rutgers scored four touchdowns on only six plays, spanning 198 yards.

Among the young rising offensive stars Mohamed Sanu had 2 catches for 22 yards, following his 101 yard 10 catch debut against Cincinnati, the aforementioned Jefferson made his first (and only) catch for 46 yards, sophomore RB Brooks rushed for 124 yards and three touchdowns (with a long TD run of 57 yards), and the 4th quarter saw the debut of heralded running back De’Antwan Williams, who ran for 89 yards on 14 carries, with a long of 44 yards.

And "old man" senior Tim Brown had a spectacular day with three catches for 122 yards and a touchdown.

Granted, this was against an overmatched Howard team that kept shooting itself in the foot with 14 penalties for 121 yards, and critical turnovers that led to Rutgers scores. But consider this a preview of coming attractions. There's going to be a lot of great moments in the future with this young group of new stars. What we are witnessing is the birth of a new era in Rutgers football, led by Tom Savage.

And the REAL capital of the REAL "Savage Nation" will be on The Banks of The Old Raritan, in Piscataway, NJ.

Right it down....and remember the names.