Major injury, captains, watch lists: 3 biggest Rutgers football headlines before 2024 season opener
Training camp for the Rutgers football team officially came to a close as the Scarlet Knights look forward to one of their most anticipated seasons in recent memory.
Following a victory over Miami in the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl last December - the first bowl win for Rutgers since 2014 - expectations are sky high as the Knights face a lighter schedule and return much of the talent that contributed to a successful 2023 campaign.
Here are some of the biggest headlines surrounding Rutgers ahead of its season opener against Howard on August 29.
Mohamed Toure out for season
Head coach Greg Schiano rarely tells the media about injuries, and when he does, it usually is about a player who is out for the year. And he did just that when he announced that senior linebacker Mohamed Toure would miss the 2024 season with a torn ACL.
“We’re going to get that fixed up and get him back,” Schiano said. “It’s sad. You put so much work in to get ready for the year but that’s the game of football unfortunately. There’s things like that that happen.”
It’s a big blow for the Knights who, coming into the season, were looking forward to having Toure as a staple of their patented “Darkside Defense.” In 2023, Toure was a Comeback Player of the Year semifinalist and totaled 93 tackles, 9.5 tackles for losses, 4.5 sacks and three passes defended.
“I deeply appreciate everyone reaching out and praying for me, your support means the world to me,” Toure said in a statement released on Instagram. “I also ask that you pray for the first person I will face when I return - they will need it.”
2024 captains are selected
To be selected as a team captain in college football is a badge of honor that six Rutgers players will wear in the 2024 season. A team vote chose senior quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis, senior running back Kyle Monangai, senior defensive back Robert Longerbeam, senior linebacker Tyreem Powell, senior defensive back Joe Lusardi and Toure to wear the metaphorical “C” on their chest this season.
This won’t be Monangai, Lusardi or Toure’s first go-around as team captain as all three were chosen for the role last season.
Lusardi’s story of hard work began when he was a walk-on for the program in 2020. Like Lusardi, Monangai and Toure’s time with the Knights as well as their commitment to the team assisted heavily in the vote to name them captains for the second straight season.
Kaliakmanis, who transferred to Rutgers from Minnesota in the offseason and will lead the Knights under center, appears to have gained the favor of the locker room in a short span. Longerbeam and Powell, who have been assets on defense for multiple seasons, will now have a new opportunity to represent their team to a higher degree.
Preseason watch lists feature multiple Scarlet Knights
As expected, Monangai finds himself on multiple watchlists before the beginning of the 2024 season.
Monangai was named to both the Doak Award and Maxwell Award watch lists.
The Doak Award is presented to the best college football running back across the nation, while the Maxwell Award is given to the College Football Player of the Year.
In 2023, Monangai certainly impressed with a Big Ten-leading 1,262 yards on the ground. The Roseland, NJ, native coasted to seven 100-plus yard games with three of those games featuring him finishing with at least 150 yards. He found the endzone eight times and was the MVP of the Pinstripe Bowl. His efforts contributed to him being named to the Second Team All-Big Ten.
Pro Football Focus had Monangai rated as the best running back in the Big Ten, best in the Power 5 and No. 5 across the nation. Along with being in consideration for both the Doak and Maxwell Awards, Monangai finds himself on the Big Ten Preseason Honors List along with Ohio State running back TreVeyon Henderson
On the defensive side of the ball, Powell was selected as part of the 2024 Comeback Player of the Year watch list, an award that is given to college football student-athletes who have overcome hardships including injury, illness and other circumstances.
Up until the bowl-clinching win on the road over Indiana in 2023, Powell led the Knights with 53 tackles and dazzled with a career high 11 tackles in the week two victory over Virginia Tech. But after Rutgers enjoyed the high of becoming bowl-eligible for the first time in nine seasons, it was announced that Powell would miss the remainder of the season due to a hand injury. During this year’s training camp, Powell suffered another injury - this time a torn achilles. As of now, Powell’s status for the 2024 season opener is up in the air.
The Knights will have an all-unit trifecta on the preseason watch lists after it was announced that senior long snapper Austin Riggs will be featured on the Mannely Award watch list awarded to the best Football Bowl Subdivision long snapper. This will be Riggs’ first season at Rutgers after playing at BYU for four seasons.
The Knights will now look forward to their matchup with the Bison at SHI Stadium on Livingston campus this Thursday. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. with the game being broadcast on the Big Ten Network and 88.7 WRSU-FM.
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