2024 NCAAF Cheat Sheet: Rutgers Stats Odds
The 2024 Rutgers Stats Could Surprise This Season
Head coach Greg Schiano never wanted to leave the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. But when he thought Rutgers had no legs to get into the Big Ten, he left when he was offered a head coaching job for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
A couple of years later, Schiano was fired and ultimately regretted leaving Rutgers. He aimed to coach Rutgers in the Big Ten and make them a powerhouse.
Ten years after leaving the program, he came back. Schiano is headed for his fifth season with Rutgers in this second stint.
In last year’s stint, he took the program to its first bowl game since 2013. Rutgers won that bowl game against the Miami Hurricanes at the Pinstripe Bowl.
With most NCAAF players returning from last year’s team, Rutgers is in better shape than most college football programs. Expectations are higher than they’ve been at Rutgers for quite some time.
Let’s check out the projected 2024 Rutgers stats and odds below.
Rutgers At A Glance
| Odds to Win | Opening Odds | Current Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Championship | +100000 | +100000 |
| Conference | +11000 | +11000 |
| Regular Season Win Total | 6.5 (o+128, u-158) | 6.5 (o+128, u-158) |
| To Make Playoffs | Yes +2000 | Yes +1800 |
Baby Steps For Rutgers
When Greg Schiano took over as Rutgers’s head coach, the Scarlet Knights were in shambles. They were losing to Michigan and Ohio State by 50+ points and practically uncompetitive in the Big Ten.
Fast forward to this year, the Scarlet Knights won the Pinstripe Bowl against the Miami Hurricanes and have returned almost all their starters from last season.
The entire Rutgers’ offense is made up of upperclassmen, including new transfer quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis.
Kaliakmanis was last year’s Minnesota starter, but he was recruited by former Minnesota coach Kirk Ciarrocca, who took the offensive coordinator job at Rutgers.
After last season, Rutgers asked him to visit once he went into the transfer portal. Rutgers landed Kaliakmanis and his brother, Dino.
Kaliakmanis competed against last year’s quarterback, Gavin Wimsett, for the starting job and won it almost instantly.
Championship Odds: Calm Down!
The Rutgers Scarlet Knights will be competitive this year. Teams won’t light up the college football scoreboard against them. Rutgers might even earn an upset or two during the regular season. But a potential championship is not in the cards.
Rutgers has more depth than ever before. But even last year, Rutgers looked weary and tired towards the end of the year. To win a championship, a NCAAF team will likely have to play 17 games and win almost all of them.
That won’t happen despite the projected improvements in the 2024 Rutgers stats.
Conference Odds: The Big Ten Got Bigger!
Again, Rutgers will be competitive in the conference. Maybe they’ll pull off a major upset. But they couldn’t come close to a conference championship over the last couple of seasons. Now, with USC, UCLA, Washington, and Oregon in the Big Ten, it’ll be even harder.
- Don’t consider backing Rutgers to win the Big Ten at +11000 odds.
Final Big Ten Stat Leaderboard (Rush Yards)
1. Kyle Monangai, Rutgers (1262)
2. Blake Corum, Michigan (1245)
3. Braelon Allen, Wisconsin (984)
4. TreVeyon Henderson, Ohio State (926)
5. Kaytron Allen, Penn State (902) pic.twitter.com/ShhkjMu1V4— CFB Home (@CFBHome) January 21, 2024
Regular Season Wins: Lucky Schedule!
The Rutgers Scarlet Knights should end up winning the season’s first two games. Rutgers will face Howard and Akron to start the year. They’ll be home and hefty favorites in both.
After those two games, Rutgers will have a bye week and prepare for a road game against Virginia Tech. Rutgers beat Virginia Tech last season, but the Hokies are also much better than last year’s team with Kyron Drones under center.
A road game against Virginia Tech won’t be easy. But a bye week and three regular-season weeks to prepare should give Rutgers an edge.
At 3-0, they’ll come home to play Washington. After last year’s success, Washington is a big mystery, but all signs point to a down year for the Huskies.
Still undefeated, Rutgers will face Nebraska on the road. That’s likely going to be the team’s first loss.
Next up, they’ll face Wisconsin at home. That’s another challenging game for Rutgers. At home, this game is more of a toss-up.
- But we’ll give them a loss for now. They’ll be 4-2 with UCLA headed to Rutgers. We like Rutgers to knock off UCLA to be 5-2.
A road game against USC would be next. That sounds like a loss. But at 5-3, Rutgers should get their sixth win against Minnesota at home. They’d be 6-3 with three more games left in the Big Ten.
Rutgers typically struggles against Maryland. On the road, we’ll drop a loss on Rutgers in that one. However, Rutgers will likely earn wins against Illinois and Michigan State to close out the season.
That would give the Scarlet Knights eight wins. Therefore, the Over 6.5 is one of our best college football bets.
To Make Playoffs: Would 10 Wins Cut It?
Eight wins won’t be enough to earn a playoff spot if we go off the analysis above. However, if Rutgers defeats Wisconsin and Maryland, they’d be at ten wins with losses to Nebraska and USC on the road.
Could that be enough to make the playoffs? We think so. Just remember, Rutgers’ strength of NCAAF schedule is weaker than most teams in the Power 4 conferences. At +1800 odds, it’s one of our exciting college football picks
NCAAF schedule
Side Bets
Kyle Monangai led the Big Ten in rushing yards last season. He had 242 carries and earned 1,262 yards with eight touchdowns.
Suppose he has another monster season to help push Rutgers into the College Football Playoff, who knows where Monangai would stand in the Heisman voting.
- It’s highly unlikely, but at +30000, a couple of bucks on this bet wouldn’t hurt. He’ll lead the 2024 Rutgers stats again this year.
For NCAAF betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
