This season is falling in to a depressingly familiar pattern for the Scarlet Knights:
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — From the banks of the Raritan River to the foot of the Allegheny Mountains, the gloom of unmet expectations has linked Rutgers and West Virginia as both teams struggle to find their footing.
For the Scarlet Knights, Saturday was an opportunity to take a step forward in their Big East opener against a Mountaineers program that has dominated them for years.
But Rutgers could not take advantage of slouching West Virginia and lost, 24-17, before 59,122 at Milan Puskar Stadium. The Scarlet Knights (1-4) now have 14 consecutive losses against West Virginia and 16 defeats in 16 games in Morgantown. They are off to their worst start since 2002, when they finished 1-11.
Coach Greg Schiano had a positive take on the outcome, saying: “We’re getting better. We had to replace some guys that were very good players. I thought we could replace them more quickly than we did. Obviously, I was incorrect.”
Neither team played particularly well, but the Scarlet Knights did have an opportunity to win at the end.
After West Virginia (3-2) failed to convert on fourth-and-1 with 1 minute 54 seconds remaining, Rutgers took over on the West Virginia 45-yard line. But the offense stagnated.
“It’s the game of football; things happen,” said quarterback Mike Teel, who was 14 of 32 for 170 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for a touchdown. “I make some bad throws, an offensive linemen is going to miss a block, a receiver’s going to drop a football. We’re just trying to be the best we can be, and today wasn’t good enough.”
That, it seems, has been Rutgers’ story all season.
