Back to Bowlin': Rutgers football's offense dominates Maryland in bowl-clinching victory
The Rutgers football team has earned bowl eligibility for the second straight season after defeating Maryland 31-17 in College Park, Maryland Saturday night. The Scarlet Knights (6-4, 3-4) terrorized the Terrapins (4-6, 1-6) all night on offense, putting their defense inside a nightmare they could not wake up from.
Here are three takeaways from the bowl-clinching win.
Ian Strong continues to spark the offense
Time and time again this season, sophomore wide receiver Ian Strong has been one of senior quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis’ most reliable pass catchers.
That was no different against Maryland.
In the first half alone, Strong was targeted on eight of Kaliakmanis’ 17 throws. The Coram, New York, native hauled in five receptions for 46 yards in the first 30 minutes of action.
On a pivotal 17-play, 75-yard drive that took up 8:45 of the first-half clock, Strong brought in four passes. Three of those receptions resulted in first downs, while the final fourth was caught in the endzone for six to give Rutgers a 7-3 lead at the 8:21 mark of the second quarter.
On the Knights’ ensuing offensive drive, they were able to spot themselves at the Terrapins' 13-yard line after pushing the ball down the field. A go ball to Strong on first down fell incomplete, but a pass interference call on Kevis Thomas put Rutgers at the 2-yard line, setting up a touchdown run from senior running back Kyle Monangai. At this point in the game, the Knights led 14-10, which would be a score they would take into the half.
Strong’s big frame and catch radius immediately put Thomas at a disadvantage on that flag, resulting in the defensive back feeling the need to tug on Strong and impede the throw. Guarding a 6-foot-3 wide receiver will do that, giving Rutgers an advantage in red zone situations.
Strong finished with 86 yards on seven receptions and was a great complement to senior wide receiver Dymere Miller who hauled in eight passes for a team-leading 106 receiving yards
A-plus night for Athan Kaliakmanis
This season, Kaliakmanis has exceeded expectations. For many seasons, Knights’ fans have been used to poor quarterback play, but they cannot say that for the Minnesota transfer.
Kalikamanis threw for just 99 yards in the first half. Despite the low-yard total, he was efficient and orchestrated the Rutgers offense to a lead at the half.
He did even better in the second half, throwing for 139 yards on 9 of 13 completions. After the Terrapins opened up the second half with a touchdown that gave them a 17-14 lead, Kaliakmanis and the Knights punched back with a score from Monangai. Once again, Kaliakmanis found open receivers in big spots. On 4th and 2 at the Maryland 12-yard line, the quarterback darted a pass to Miller for a crucial first down. The following play, Monangai’s six-yard touchdown rush gave Rutgers a 21-17 lead.
The scoring - and Kaliakmanis - would not stop there on the next offensive drive for the Knights. With time in the pocket on 1st and 10 at the Terrapins’ 32-yard line, Kaliakmanis delivered a dot to Miller on the right sideline. Miller was able to sneak across the pylon for the score in one of Kaliakmanis’ best throws of the season. Rutgers led Maryland 31-17 at the beginning of the fourth quarter
Kaliakmanis would later throw a 30-yard strike to Strong on the following possession, which led to a 46-yard field goal from junior placekicker Jai Patel.
It was clear that Athan was on his A-game. He finished with 238 passing yards and a pristine 155.3 passer rating. And he made the opposing defense look like Swiss cheese.
Kyle Monangai keeps making history
It’s no secret that the Knights’ offensive attack is better with Monangai as the tailback.
His 97-yard, two-touchdown day is impressive enough. To add the cherry on top of a bowl-clinching win and a dominant return from an injury that kept him out against Minnesota last week, Monangai etched his name into more stone.
For the second straight season, Monangai eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark. He is the first to reach such an accolade since Ray Rice and is just the fourth to ever have back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing seasons in Rutgers history. It was fitting, too, as Rice was in the building to watch his former collegiate team and be an eyewitness to one of the most talented Knights’ running backs in recent memory.
Rutgers will now look to secure seven regular season wins for the first time since 2014 when it takes on Illinois next week.
One thing is for sure: as the season reaches its final two games, the Knights will play another game this December.
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