Rutgers football 2021 depth chart predictions: Quarterbacks
With the 2021 Rutgers football season just a few weeks away, beginning on Sept. 2 with a Thursday night matchup against Temple, fans are eager to learn more about this year's roster.
Under returning head football coach Greg Schiano and offensive coordinator Sean Gleeson, the Scarlet Knights offense looks to build on a 2020 team that made improvements across the board. Although Rutgers has yet to release its official depth chart, here are The Daily Targum's predictions for this season's quarterbacks:
Starter: Noah Vedral
The fifth-year senior has finally found a home on the Banks after spending his first three years looking for playing time at both Central Florida and Nebraska. In 2020, the veteran signal caller got a chance to lead the Knights' offense, and he took it.
He threw more touchdowns than every quarterback combined on the 2019 roster and finished top five in the Big Ten in completion percentage, completions per game and passing touchdowns. Vedral has also had historic games in his time as the starter, recording the eighth-highest passing yard total in program history, throwing for 381 yards in the triple-overtime thriller against Michigan.
Rutgers also added three conference wins with Vedral at the helm last season, which tied a program record for Big Ten wins in a season. At Media Day in Indianapolis last month, Schiano was more than complimentary of his quarterback, and it appears certain that he will be the starter barring unforeseen circumstances.
“He’s been everything that we were looking for,” Schiano said. “He's an unselfish guy who is a giving guy and puts the team first. So when you have those traits, success is going to come.”
With the Knights returning 92 percent of their production from last season and returning a quarterback and offensive coordinator combo for the first time in over a decade, Vedral has the keys to lead Rutgers to relevancy they haven’t seen in years.
Second String: Cole Snyder
With the transfer of Artur Sitkowski to Illinois, the depth chart becomes cloudy as no clear backup has emerged through training camp. The spring football game was a chance for Snyder to show out to the coaching staff, and he had a nearly perfect performance.
The sophomore finished 13 of 16 with 148 yards, two passing touchdowns and a rushing touchdown. Snyder is entering his third year with the program, and has very limited game time on the Banks, appearing in the 2019 game against Penn State where he completed all three passes he threw.
Third String/Utility: Johnny Langan
In terms of game time, Langan would qualify to back up Vedral, having appeared in all nine games of the 2020 season. However, in the current offensive scheme, Langan is much more valuable with his feet than with his arm. He threw 13 passes during the season and had 56 rushing attempts.
The junior had a much larger role in 2019, generating over 1,200 yards of total offense and starting the last eight games of the season. Langan should still factor into the offense in 2021, but the degree that he features will have to be seen throughout the year.
As Vedral and the other quarterbacks practice their throws in the preseason, be sure to stay tuned for the Targum's continued depth chart predictions and coverage of Rutgers football.
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