The Knights Watchman

I haven't commented on the Rutgers/SNY deal, but from where I sit I can't see anything but positives coming from that. I don't know about you, but before the past two seasons it was difficult to catch an RU game on television. That always drove me nuts because I felt that even if the team wasn't good, as the State University they should have had at least some sort of regional exposure from all of the cable companies operating in the state. The SNY deal is huge because win or lose kids from all over the area will grow up watching Rutgers football. Gone are the days of having to watch the game 4 hours after it was played or straining to view it on the Internet. It seems one of Rutgers 2009 recruits, Mark Brazinski, has de-committed. I was sorry to see that, but almost immediately Rutgers added two more offensive line recruits. I'm going to comment less on the recruiting efforts from now on. It just seems to me that recruits give their verbals too early in the year to ...

I was away from home and without a computer for over a week, so I'm catching up on my Rutgers football news and hoping to update you in the process. I'm going to follow up this post with a series of quick posts until I catch up. Rutgers picked up three verbals between June 21 and June 25. They are three New Jersey boys: Linebacker Gerald Hodges, Cornerback Logan Ryan, and Wide Receiver Shawney Kersey . Hodges in particular is very highly rated, scout.com ranking him the third best player at his position. But if the measurements are correct I'm also very impressed with the speed of Ryan and Kersey . Three great additions to what is shaping up to be a stellar class.

It’s been a hectic week for me, and a fairly busy week in the news for Rutgers football. Watch lists, camps, recruiting commitments, and in some cases, recruits choosing to go elsewhere. Why mention the recruits going elsewhere? Well, the guys getting away are going to school that Rutgers would’ve had no business competing with just a few years back. Some recent examples include Auburn and Notre Dame. Of course, more exciting are the commits the Scarlet Knights have continued to bring in. Mark Brazinski, a center from Immaculata High right here in Jersey chose RU over Boston College. It’s always a nice plus to take one away from BC. Rutgers then got a verbal from Steven Beauharnais, a highly-touted linebacker from Saddle Brook. You can learn more about both commits at stateofrutgers.com . New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine and State Senator Raymond Lesniak are combining their efforts and reaching into their own pockets to gather the funds to support the Rutgers Stadium expansion project. ...

Congrats to RU Athletic Director Bob Mulcahy on being named Northeast AD of the Year by the National Association of Collegiate Athletic Directors. Read the article from scarletknights .com HERE. Yesterday, New Jersey won the showdown between the best high school football players from New York and New Jersey. Formerly known as the Governor's Bowl, it is now the NY-NJ All-Star Classic. Eight RU recruits were on the team that manhandled NY, 33-22. More details can be found in this article from the Newark Star-Ledger. I saw the highlight of RU-bound Quarterback Mohamed Sanu connecting on a 55-yard touchdown bomb, and I was impressed with his arm strength on that throw. (Although it is believed that his future on the banks will be at safety.) Only other thing I have to add is now that New Jersey has a commanding lead in the series, can we please change the name to the NJ-NY Classic? Former RU offensive line coach Mark Deal, who served during the Graber administration, has joined the...

Although it's the off season, there seems to be plenty of Rutgers football action going on in Piscataway. About a month ago, us season ticket holders received a packet in the mail trumping the new additions to the stadium, along with the opportunity to get in on the premium seating. Unfortunately, I am not yet in the income bracket that would allow me to watch the game in those kinds of luxuries, but I'll have to say that if I did have that kind of bank it would be very tempting. A big time college football program should have big time amenities. The money the premium seats will bring in will only help to improve the program and the school in general. For the past few weeks, it seems I've been getting daily e-mails from Scout.com listing yet another stellar recruit that Schiano has waiting in the wings for 2009. Much has been made about the verbals from Tom Savage and Desmond Scott. but there isn't a player on the list so far that isn't either highly rated or has e...