On the Banks: FanPosts

Rutgers-Providence: A tempo-free look

2012-02-02T17:15:01Z

What went wrong? Rutgers traveled to Providence fully aware they would get a battle, Ed Cooley’s teams play hard, but hopeful of exiting the ‘Dunk’ with a win. It all came unraveled as Providence built a 14 point halftime lead en route to a 78-67 victory.

The basic numbers, efficiency wise, tell the tale:

Possessions: 65 (a moderate tempo)

Offensive efficiency: Rutgers 103 Providence 120

The 103 is above average. Not great but enough to win games. Giving up 120 is another victory. You will not win many games, if any, allowing that metric.

What contributed? On Rutgers end they had a 20% turnover rate. High, but not awful PC enjoyed a 16.9% rate and an eFG mark of 59%. Simply, Mike Rice’s group did not pressure the Friars into turnover prone mistakes. Nor did they do any type of credible job defending shots. Providence shot 53% from two point range and 50% (7 of 14) beyond the arc. Again, that will not get you many W’s.

The best thing for Rutgers is, don’t dwell on this one. Learn from the mistakes but move ahead as a trip to Louisville is on tap this Saturday.

The Manley numbers:

Myles Mack led Rutgers in scoring with 16 points but the Manley Efficiency leader for Rutgers players logging ten or more minutes was five. That number epitomized the night Rutgers had.

Miller scored 6 points on 3 of 5 shooting from the floor. The junior swingman added 5 rebounds, a steal and a block.

Stay in Jersey

2012-01-18T17:25:31Z

I got fired up this morning reading this story about Yuri Wright's Tweets. It has nothing to do with his tweets. The tweets are immature however I trust the coaching staff to make the right call on Yuri Wright. They know him better than anyone could from twitter and if Schiano says he is a Rutgers kid then he is. His twitter is basically what goes on in my head everyday, the internet isn't meant to be politically correct or censored, it's real life. That being said, he needs to realize his twitter feed will be more scrutinized in the media than mine will ever be and this should be a learning experience. What got me fired up is what was said at the bottom of the page "stay classy jersey".

I have travelled all over the country and no matter where I go there is a common theme, when I tell people that I am from Jersey they feel compelled to make a joke. What gets me fired up is when people actually think they are better than me because I grew up in Jersey. They have no idea what we have here. If these kids go to schools out of state they will always be the Jersey kid and have jokes thrown their way. All my friends that went to out of state colleges are now back here because there is nowhere better. Here's to hoping these top Jersey recruits stay home and force everyone to know that what this state has is special. They won't be able to make jokes for much longer with what Schiano is building.

Rutgers mentioned in NCAA Bracket projections

2012-01-17T17:17:48Z

In SB Nation's NCAA Bracket projections, posted this morning, Rutgers doesn't make the field yet, but is at least on the bubble, listed under "Next Four Out". On Blogging The Bracket's S-Curve, RU is listed at #74, the highest Big East team that isn't actually in the field.

It's worth noting that on his rankings from 2 days ago, he had Notre Dame in that spot, so obviously last night's win was significant. And ESPN's rankings, which were published on Monday, also had Notre Dame in the "Next Four Out", so that might be different now as well.

Rutgers 65 Notre Dame 58: Numbers and a few Observations

2012-01-17T06:07:36Z

Piscataway, NJ- Using a strong defensive effort, Rutgers defeated Notre Dame 65-58 at the RAC on Monday. The possession and efficiency numbers:

As the possession numbers tell, it was as what both Mike Brey of Notre Dame and Rutgers' Mike Rice called a "grind it out game." Rutgers did give up a 51% eFG mark and only forced the Irish into a 19% turnover rate. Not great defensive numbers They did however, get enough stops during the games as well as those important ones down the stretch. Offensively the efficiency number was excellent. Eli Carter led the way with 13 points. There were many other contributors as Jerome Seagears and Austin Johnson with 10 plus Mike Poole added 9. Dane Miller only scored 5 points but did a little of everything else with 8 boards, 4 blocks and 3 steals.

	Possessions	Offensive Efficiency
Rutgers	60	108
Notre Dame	58	100

A few added observations:

1. Rutgers led by as much as nine late in the first half. During the final twenty minutes there were times they threatened to pull away. Each time Notre Dame responded to make it a two possession game.
2. Rutgers never did let ND get a lead or draw even the second half. From a momentum standpoint that was huge.
3. Give the Scarlet Knights credit. Following an awful loss in Morgantown on Saturday, they bounced back and responded in a big way.
4. Interestingly, Rutgers shot better from three (46.7%) than from two point range (42.5%).
5. Covering the games at the RAC, the upper press box is the best. It gives you a great look and panorama of the entire court.
6. Give Mike Brey and ND a lot of credit for staying very competitive this season despite losing Tim Abromatis for the season due to an ACL injury.
7. Yours truly wrote a number of cheer articles for several sites a few years back and can comment...The Rutgers cheerleaders' all white uniforms are superlatively attractive. Just a great compliment to an excellent squad.

Tempo Free: Rutgers at Five Big East Games

2012-01-16T17:13:26Z

In my work at College Chalktalk and Hoopville (among others) often the use of tempo free analysis is employed. It is a part of the game I have studied for quite a few years. At any rate, a review of the Scarlet Knights is in order...

A look at Rutgers tempo free numbers with Notre Dame set to invade the RAC for a Monday night meeting. The last time out saw these numbers in the 84-60 debacle in Morgantown. The efficiency is points per possession multiplied by 100.

	Possessions	Offensive Efficiency
Rutgers	77	78
West Virginia	77	109

Rutgers got into a very fast paced game and struggled on both the offensive and defensive ends. Not a performance to savor following the impressive 62-39 road win in Pittsburgh.

	Possessions	Offensive Efficiency
Rutgers	62	100
Pitt	62	63

The 62 possessions is more the grind it out pace the Panthers get you involved in. Offense was good on the Rutgers side. Defense was superlative. Off the charts ! The type Jamie Dixon's teams historically have put on their opponents, not the other way around.

	Possessions	Offensive Efficiency
Rutgers	67	95
Opponents	67	100

The numbers through five conference games see the Scarlet Knights at 2-3 in conference play. The pace is moderate to brisk but not all out transition. The offensive efficiency, a little below average while the defensive side is average but could use improvement. The efficiency margin offense minus defense) is a -5. Teams on the minus side often wind up below .500 in their respective conferences. Obviously both ends of the floor could use a degree of improvement.

Bill Belichik on Schiano/Rutgers

2011-12-10T03:20:59Z

Q: I do have a question for you. With all the guys from Rutgers, Nate Jones being the most recent, and your history with guys like Greg Schiano and Urban Meyer, are there certain things you can rely on when you get these guys here or is it just more confidence that they come from these program?

BB: No, I think Coach Schiano, I have a good relationship with him and anytime he’s told me anything, it’s always been 100 percent accurate. I think a player that he’s familiar with, I would definitely want to take the opportunity to get his opinion and see what he thinks because of his experience and the amount of respect I have for him. He does a great job with that program and the kids that come out of there that play in the NFL, usually end up playing in the NFL. A lot of colleges get guys drafted or signed or whatever. I’d say that program, most of those kids when they’re on a team, they end up making a team. I think that’s a credit to what he puts them through for four or five years there in terms of preparation for the National Football League, assuming they have enough talent to be competitive. He does a good job of that. Yeah, absolutely, I would talk to him, sure. What he said about Nate is what I’ve seen in two weeks.

Q: Do you actually keep track of that - the number of players that succeed coming from a certain coach or a certain school? Does that help you judge future players?

BB: That’s a good question. I think it’s something, it’s probably like a lot of things, you think about it and then you think about it a little bit more and then before you know it, it’s not coincidence anymore, it seems like there are enough numbers to back it up. With that program, and not everybody is Ray Rice, I’m not saying that, but they’ve had a lot of guys and being in the facility, most colleges you walk through and you see all the pro players are up on a board, their pictures, the team they’re with or whatever. You go down to Florida and there are like 2,000 players, it seems like. Every team has like 50 players that have played there over the last 10, 20 years, however long it is. In that case and some of those guys have had different lengths of careers, but I’m just saying when you walk through the Rutgers facility and they do that, you look at the names - there aren’t too many guys who have come out of there that have gotten cut. Once they get to a team, they usually end up sticking on a team. I guess it kind of just, one of those things you sort of notice and then you take a closer look at it and it’s pretty much what it is. Do we track it on every school? No, but I think we sort of have an awareness. There are a lot of guys again like BenJarvus [Green-Ellis], like Patrick Pass, like Randall Guy, like guys like that have come out of SEC schools that really have had not a lot of playing time or they were maybe one year starters or whatever it was and ended up being pretty good players in the National Football League. I think that’s something too. There are a lot of good players coming out of some of those programs, the Matt Cassels of the world that didn’t play much but were in a really good program where there was a lot of other competition. Maybe they were behind somebody or it just didn’t work out for them, but they have enough talent and given enough opportunity or a different situation, you get different results. I think there is something to be said for that too. Definitely tracking some of the undrafted players and the successes that some of those players have in this league and where they come from and kind of what are the circumstances around it, kind of like who is the next one?

Link to the whole transcript

2013 Big East Football Conference

2011-12-06T20:25:22Z

BIG EAST ATLANTIC

Rutgers, Navy, Cincinnati, Connecticut, South Florida, Central Florida

BIG EAST NATIONAL

Boise State, Louisville, San Diego State, Southern Methodist, Houston, Air Force So other then there being no chance Louisville would allow this to happen (meaning, they will likely do everything possible to avoid being in a football division like that), I can only see one problem with this new Big East in regards to scheduling. Each team could play round-robin for 11 games + 1 non-conference game or just Round-Robin in the division for 5 then randomly fill in the other 7 games with non-division conference for 3 & non-conference for 4. The second is more likely but will create scheduling headaches for some of the new teams.

I think that if TCU (or West Virginia) were the 12th team instead of Central Florida this could've been really awesome but at least we'll still be in a BCS conference until 2015 or whenever they do away with this horrendous system. Here's to Boise State, 2013, 2014 & 2015 Big East Champions!

OU President Boren wants Rutgers and Louisville in Big 12

2011-11-17T01:26:13Z

If you haven't seen this interview already, check it out. News 9 (Oklahoma) landed an exclusive interview with Oklahoma Sooners' president David Boren and he discussed a variety of things. The total interview is about one hour, but there's a few short clips. In the conversation, he talks about future members of the Big 12 and to my surprise, he mentioned Rutgers as one of those teams. Louisville is the other, but we've heard that one before. Considering the Big East is continuing expansion efforts and nobody is actually accepting invites, I'm convinced Tim Pernetti is still working on a plan to get out of the Big Fail...just didn't realize it would be the Big 12.

Here's the story and video.

Great Expectations, Great Times

2011-11-08T02:06:22Z

It seems like the consensus opinion is that the future looks bright for Rutgers athletics. Outside of the realignment issues, Rutgers boasts a top ten recruiting class, and a young, yet bowl eligible football team.

Often I have heard that Rutgers fans need to contain their expectations, as they will just be let down. Then, Rutgers came back against the University of South Florida. Now, Rutgers has a (small) chance to win the Big East, and a (large) chance of playing in the Pinstripe Bowl. All that with no true starting quarterback, a freshman running back that struggled throughout the year, and another running back that left the team early in the season. (Remember De'Antwan Williams?)

Already the football team is exceeding expectations, and there is nowhere to go but up. As for basketball, Mike Rice has infused an enthusiasm in the fans here that has not been seen before.

Eli Carter, Myles Mack, Jerome Seagears, etc, the freshman class is outstanding for Rutgers. Add that to Gildyvas Biruta, Dane Miller, and the others, and Rutgers basketball looks better than ever.

Rutgers basketball has ESPN (2:40 into the video) talking about them, and The Dagger predicting them to finish ahead of St. John's, among others.

In all likelihood we cannot look forward to an NCAA berth this season, (who knows, though?) but a bid into the NIT is not too crazy to think about.

The expectation here is that fans will storm the court more than once this season, and Rutgers basketball will open some eyes.

Finally, here are my predictions.

Rutgers football will finish 8-4, and will win the Pinstripe Bowl.

Rutgers basketball will finish 17-14, winning their last three games. Rutgers will win at least one game in the Big East Tournmanent.

Thoughts?

For what it's worth, how RU can still win the Big East

2011-11-07T15:14:47Z

I'm not saying that I think this is especially likely to happen. But I figured people might want to know. The nickel version is this: To have a chance at winning the Big East, Rutgers would first need to beat Cincinnati and UConn. They would also need at least one more loss by Cincinnati, Louisville and West Virginia. Or to put it another way, by Louisville and whoever wins the Cincy-WVa game. That doesn't guarantee anything, but it's the first step.

Here's the more detailed explanation. First of all, while there are scenarios where there's a giant tie at 4-3 (including the fun 7-way tie, with USF at 0-7), that's way too complicated to deal with at this point. I'm only dealing with 5-2 ties.

Second, while there are 6 teams with 2 or fewer Big East losses right now, UConn is automatically out because a 5-2 Rutgers means that they have another loss. Similarly, there can't be a tie with both West Virginia and Pitt, because they still have to play each other.

Third, obviously, Rutgers needs Cincinnati to lose to someone besides Rutgers, and Louisville to lose a game, to get to 2 conference losses.

So, if Rutgers gets to 5-2, here are:

A) Ties they would win: Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati/Pittsburgh

B) Ties they would lose: Louisville, West Virginia, Louisville/West Virginia (Louisville would have beaten both), Cincinnati/West Virginia (WVa would have beaten both), Cincinnati/Louisville/West Virginia (Louisville & West Virginia are 2-1 among the tied teams). They lose any tie that involves West Virginia.

C) Ties that come down to BCS standings: Louisville/Pittsburgh, Louisville/Cincinnati, Louisville/Pittsburgh/Cincinnati (Rutgers and Cincinnati are 2-1 among the tied teams, so it comes to BCS standings between those 2.)

If it comes to the BCS standings, Rutgers would be 9-3 or 8-4, Cincinnati would be 9-3, Louisville and Pitt would be 7-5.

2011 Football Attendance Figures and Thoughts

2011-10-17T16:35:06Z

Post-expansion, attendance averaged 48,542 in 2009 and 46,195 last season.

Attendance at High Point Solutions Stadium through four games this season has averaged 43,667. The Pitt and Navy games had the highest figures to date at 46,079 and 47,138, respectively, and I suspect the remaining games against West Virginia, South Florida and Cincinnati will be well-attended. Statistically speaking, 2011 cannot match 2009's average at this point, but it could top 2010's average if each of the remaining three games hits 50,000.

Stadium Financing

This is generally good news as far as the debt issued to cover the stadium expansion goes. If I remember correctly, the stadium financing debt-service projections had built in assumptions of attendance between 45,500 and 40,500 per game. Essentially, the financial analysts projected that the expansion project would pay for itself if attendance could meet that capacity over the term of the loan. So far, Rutgers has exceeded the high-end mark each of the first two seasons, and will likely do so again this season (attendance against West Virginia, South Florida and Cincinnati just needs to meet the Navy game).

I would love to read an actual plain-English article about this topic after the season, a "where things are three years later" kind of thing. Considering scandal-loving nature of the Star Ledger and their relative silence on this topic since all the sturm und drang at its inception, I gather things must be going well. The more good light brought to the successes of the stadium expansion financing project, the better positioned RU will be to do something with the RAC.

Room for Improvement

Obviously, when capacity is 52,454 and actual average is 48,000 or below, there is room for improvement. The highest correlation with attendance is probably wins, and a sustained improvement on the field will yield better numbers than those to date. I think last year was an abberation, and Rutgers will return to being a winning program. Moving closer to 50,000 on average, however, will likely require 9+ regular-season win years as opposed to the 7+ regular-season win years we saw in 2007 through 2009.

Another attendance factor is the opponent, and future games scheduled against Penn State, Miami and UCLA will give the numbers a big boost. This factor is almost entirely in Rutgers' hands (not completely since it takes two to tango), and hopefully Tim P. keeps more games like these coming.

Let's Be Real

2011-10-08T01:24:36Z

Will Gary Nova actually start tomorrow?

It's not a knock to the Don Bosco Prep native, but the coaching duo of Frank Cignetti and Greg Schiano would be really stupid to start the freshman over the official, experienced QB Chas Dodd.

Nova has been very inconsistent this season, but ultimately peaking last week in leading Rutgers to a come-from-behind victory at the Carrier Dome against rival Syracuse. Aside from his willingness to throw the ball long, Nova's aggression has been rather typical. He is a freshman, dealing with his freshman growing pains. He has seen time in three of the four games, coming in throwing under fifty percent. But last game, against the Orange, after Dodd had struggled to find a rhythm all game, Nova came in and took over. He led the team to ten unanswered points to force overtime, before pulling it out in double overtime.

It wasn't as if Nova was perfect, though. He took a handful of delayed game penalties and forced the team to use two early timeouts. He fumbled, but was bailed out by a clutch interception, and took a bad penalty for intentional grounding. But nobody likes to remember the negative. He connected with Mohamed Sanu for a late touchdown to tie the game in the fourth quarter, but stalled unremarkably in overtime.

Nova is a big, athletic quarterback with a spectacular arm. But for now, his campaign should be put on hold...

Because Nova backs up Dodd, a very mature quarterback with a good arm. Dodd is a sophomore and is almost done with the growing pains. He has big game experience -- he led the team to a few comeback wins a year ago -- and knows the offense like the back of his hand. He is mobile and smart.

Dodd is the guy to start against Pitt. He understands the importance and he can get it done. He is living his future, whereas Nova's future is in waiting.

Poll

Who do you think will start?

Dodd

6 votes

Nova

5 votes

11 votes | Poll has closed

Outcome of Big East football meeting tonight

2011-09-21T03:36:10Z

The Big East is scrambling faster the Austro-Hungarians after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. We saw how well that ended for everyone involved. As you know the Big East football schools met tonight at the Grand Hyatt in NYC for a meeting about what the future looks like for the conference and to determine if there even is one. From Rutgers point of view, that future looks “very good, certainly from our standpoint,” said President McCormick as he exited the hotel. Tim Pernietti asserted that “It was a positive meeting. Everybody’s committed to going out and recruiting top level institutions.” For more on what I took out of the meeting, click hereOutcome of Big East football meeting.

TV Schedule?

2011-08-26T05:42:32Z

Is this;

http://www.scarletknights.com/football/schedule/schedule.asp

the final TV schedule? Or is it possibe that the games could be picked up inbetween now and then? I really hope it isn't final, my crappy internet can't handle watching two games on ESPN 3, and I can't afford going to 7 home games.

So yeah, is there any president for this kind of thing? I want to watch (read watch, not listen) these games, but it's starting to look pretty difficult :(

The Best Scarlet Knight Twitter Feeds

2011-08-02T23:41:33Z

With the NFL finally negotiating a deal to finally get things going, I can finally stop reading the same articles about whether it was the owners or players being greedy and start worrying about college football.

College is nice because it gives players opportunities to young, inexperienced athletes to play on a level where they

will encounter some of the pressures and trials that come with being in the NFL. The first thing they will get used to is that being an athlete isn't just sport. Today's athlete needs to worry about more than just what they do on the field. Fans like sport, but they love spectacle, and being able to talk on your twitter can get you onto a top ten list even with a career of mediocrity.

That said, I took the time to boil down the vast array of Rutgers Scarlet Knight feeds in order to get you to the best of the best.

Best Scarlet Knight Media

On the Banks

If you didn't already know, sbnation is the place to go to find all your sports blogs. That said, On the Banks is the Rutgers Scarlet Knights blog there, and it doesn't disappoint as either a standalone blog, or a twitter feed. Instead of being a place for crossposting links like some other media outlets that cover RU, OtB uses their feed as a supplement for conversation, questions, and feedback. Outside of the main blog administration, there are also a group of dedicated fans, that makes OtB the most comprehensive and complete way to follow the team over in Piscataway, wherever and however you want.

Why Doesn't He Have One?

Brian Leonard (link leads to his Facebook page, fyi)

Leonard, or as I call him starting now Bouncing BriBri, is conspicuously absent from the internet. His Facebook seems to be a glorified photo album, and (as far as my search turned up) he has no Twitter at all. Do us a favor Bouncing, hook it up and let us know how it's going from time to time. We miss your ability to run and block, but we still care. Check in and let us know how things are from time to time.

Who Locks These Things?

Mohamed Sanu

Sanu had the best rookie season as a wide receiver that Rutgers has ever seen, and the two-syllable nature of his name (last, not first) led to "Sa-Nuuuuuuu" being one of the most chanted phrases at Rutgers Stadium (I refuse to use the new name). That said, I actually had class with him, and he's a genuinely nice guy. Why then, is his Twitter on Alcatraz lockdown? That's not what these things are for, and the fact that anyone locks it down raises suspicion as to whether or not they are using their feed to run an illicit organ trading marketplace. Open it up and prove you aren't doing that sir! It's a rookie mistake during your sophomore year, and the scouts definitely won't miss it.

Absolute Must Follow

Eric LeGrand

On the Internet, anonymous posting means that some people have said cruel things about what happened to #52, and although I usually link for proof, I don't think that it is really appropriate here. I don't care whether he led with his helmet, no one deserves to be paralyzed over a game. When most would lament, Eric has taken this negative and spun it as best as he can. His fight back to health (he stood up for 40 minutes today!) has brought a community that is usually arguing over one thing or another and shown us to be humble for the gifts we have. He is a tremendous human being, and that is more important than any athletic accomplishment.

Best Coaching Staff

Greg Schiano

This was pretty much guaranteed. Schiano has embraced social media as a way to reach out to fans. Despite his age, he keeps it cool with the kids, and posts nearly every day. He only started it recently, but this is a definite must add for team info and news from the sidelines. Greg... can I call you Greg? Think of all the opportunities to improve on our recruiting classes. You are already one of the best, and if you incorporate Twitter as a tool, you'll be beating away premiere recruits. Also, please consult with the fans on some of these play-calls, especially on offense. We would have talked you down off the Wild Knight formation pedestal after two games.

Best Current Player

Chas Dodd

Listen Brandon, you're Chas, get that extra stuff off the front of your name. Either way, this is the best current Scarlet Knight to follow. His posts are... unusual... and range from general laziness to arguments on breast feeding in public. The impression is gives off now is that the not definite starting quarterback is still an average guy, and that makes him seem like a person, not a persona. Plus, if there is anyone who is going to have a major impact on the team, it's going to be Dodd. It'd be nice to see him mature on the field, and to have that reflect in the every day.

Best Professional Former Scarlet Knight

Devin and Jason McCourty (joint account for the twins)

Remember, best twitter feeds. Individually, both Devin and Jason are on track for exceptional careers in the NFL. They're online presence sets them apart because they are freaking hilarious. Prior to the NFL lock-out, each brother maintained their own account (as of now, only Jason's is still up), but not being with their individual teams let them come together for practices. They merged their accounts, and now consistently update with "lolworthy" statements. They also give away autographed swag and converse with fans. Besides being nice guys who both play well, they have proven they truly care about the fans that support them.

Who missed the cut?

It wasn't easy to pick the ones I did, but I felt those were the must-haves. That said, there are a lot of good ones that didn't make the cut. I recommend all of them, so get onto checking them out.

Joe Martinek - Jersey Joe. How can you not respect the work horse on the ground, or natural alliteration?
Ray Rice - Future hall of fame. He put Rutgers on the map, and still talks to fans individually.
Mike Teel - Love or hate, he's a survivor. It's good if only to know where he is now.
Kevin Brock - Heavily underrated player. And he's a quote machine.
Darnell Stapleton - Injuries are unfair. He posts meet-ups frequently.
NJ.com/Star-Ledger - Headlines from the local papers, all in one place.

That wraps up the list. There are a lot of great players who aren't here, but were pretty good. No single location could contain all that is the Scarlet Knight universe, because you'll find them everywhere doing everything. It's a solid program with a rich history that is finally starting to get the recognition it deserves.That said, I think the outreach from the team to the fans is remarkable, and contributes to the feeling that once you are a Knight, its until death.

That said, anyone I missed?

Original posted on my personal blog here. Hope it made you smile.

Poll

Celebrity athlete, or athlete celebrity?

Celebrity athlete

4 votes

Athlete celebrity

1 votes

5 votes | Poll has closed