The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1545685
THE WOLVERINE 2026 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 129 BY CLAYTON SAYFIE Rutgers broke through by making two straight bowl games in 2023-24, before taking a step back in 2025. Head coach Greg Schiano has the program on much more solid footing than he found it in 2020. Prior to Schiano taking over, the Scarlet Knights went two consecutive sea- sons without a Big Ten win. Back then, Schiano's objective was to fix everything. This offseason, it was to mend the defense, which was historically horrible in 2025. Co-coordinators Robb Smith and Zach Sparber were let go, after their unit — usu- ally the strength of Schiano's team — was as bad as it's been in this era, finishing near the bottom of the FBS in scoring de- fense (117th) and total defense (127th). Travis Johansen, formerly South Da- kota's head coach (2025) and defensive coordinator (2019-24), is the replacement, fresh off leading the Jackrabbits to the quarterfinals of the FCS playoffs. Speedy cornerback Mikey Munn, who clocked a 10.53-second 100-meter dash in high school, helped make Johansen's defense elite last season, and he followed him to Piscataway. The second-team FCS All-American posted 59 tackles and 5 interceptions a year ago. Still, there are questions as to how big of a jump the de- fense can make one year into a full reset. Offense had largely been the issue in Schiano's second stint at Rutgers from 2020 on, but it finished 44th in the coun- try with 407.1 yards per game in 2025, with a 3,000-yard passer (Athan Kaliakmanis), 1,000-yard rusher (Antwan Raymond) and 1,000-yard receiver (KJ Duff) for the second time in program history and first since 2007. Kaliakmanis is gone, a seventh-round pick to the Washington Commanders — the Scarlet Knights' first quarterback to be drafted since Mike Teel in 2009 — but juniors Raymond and Duff are back, pro- viding some firepower for the new start- ing signal-caller to work with. Raymond racked up 1,241 yards and 1 3 t o u c h d o w n s , while Duff hauled in 60 catches for 1,084 yards and 7 scores, both earning sec- ond-team All-Big Ten honors by the coaches and media. There's a battle ongoing between senior Dylan Lo- nergan and junior AJ Surace — and it was too close to call coming out of s p r i n g p ra c t i ce s. An Alabama (2023-24) and Boston Col- lege (2025) transfer, Lonergan started nine games at his previous stop, completing 66.9 percent of his passes for 2,025 yards and 12 touchdowns before being benched. He went 2-7 as the starter on a team that had a rough go. Surace, meanwhile, ap- peared in three contests as the backup last fall, with most of his playing time coming against Norfolk State, when he tossed 2 touchdowns. The winner of the com- petition will look to keep Rutgers trending in the right direction through the air. It finished tied for 25th in the country with 266.1 passing yards per game. The offensive line has some strong parts, especially on the right side, where there are two returning starters. Kobe Asamoah allowed only 11 pressures with 1 sack last season, while sixth-year se- nior Tyler Needham is mov- ing back from left to right tackle. Senior kicker Jai Patel is back after making 13 of his 18 field goal attempts with a 51-yard long, scoring honorable mention All-Big Ten recognition. He's 43-of-55 for his career, including 13-of-19 from 40-plus yards. Becoming bowl eligible for the third time in four years is more than a reason- able possibility for Schiano and Co. The Scarlet Knights avoid Ohio State and Or- egon, and don't have a West Coast road trip. But anything beyond seven wins would be a shock — Rutgers has lost 42 straight games against ranked opponents and hasn't beaten a top-25 team since 2009. ❑ Rutgers Is Attempting To Bounce Back From A Rough Season On Defense Junior wide receiver KJ Duff was on the Biletnikoff Award watch list in 2025 and finished the season as an honor- able mention All-American seclestion by Phil Steele. PHOTO BY DAKOTA MOYER/RUTGERS ATHLETICS 2026 SCHEDULE Date Opponent 2025 Result Sept. 3 UMASS — Sept. 11 at Boston College — Sept. 19 USC — Sept. 26 HOWARD — Oct. 3 INDIANA — Oct. 17 at Maryland W, 35-20 Oct. 24 at Northwestern — Oct. 31 MICHIGAN — Nov. 7 at Wisconsin — Nov. 14 NEBRASKA — Nov. 21 at Penn State L, 40-36 Nov. 28 MICHIGAN STATE — REASONS FOR OPTIMISM • Offense is on the rise • Firepower at skill positions • Changes on defense Coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca has as much to work with at the skill positions as he has had since arriving in 2023. REASONS FOR CONCERN • Quarterback questions • Defense was disastrous in 2025 • Are the QBs good enough? A lot needs to come together for Rutgers. Athan Kaliakmanis provided the program's best quarterback play in some time, and they still missed a bowl game. GAME 8 • RUTGERS SCARLET KNIGHTS • OCT. 31 QUICK FACTS All-Time Series: Michigan leads 9-1 First Meeting: Rutgers 26, U-M 24 (Oct. 4, 2013, in New Brunswick, N.J.) Last Meeting: U-M 31, Rutgers 7 (Sept. 23, 2023, in Ann Arbor) Head Coach: Greg Schiano, 31-41 in sec- ond tenure at Rutgers (seventh year), 99-108 overall (18th year) 2025 In Review: 5-7 overall, 2-7 Big Ten Final 2025 Ranking: Unranked Returning Starters: 9 (4 offense, 3 de- fense, 2 specialists) Last Bowl Appearance: 2024 (Rate Bowl vs. Kansas State, L 44-41) RETURNING LEADERS Passing: AJ Surace (58 yards, 2 TD) Rushing: Antwan Raymond (1,241 yards, 13 TD) Receiving: KJ Duff (1,084 yards, 7 TD) Tackles: Kaj Sanders (65) Sacks: None Interceptions: Farell Gnago (1)