Rutgers Future Odds

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights finished the 2022 season 4-8 SU and 1-8 SU as a member of the Big 10. This season will be the 10th for the Scarlet Knights in the Big 10 after moving from the American Athletic Conference in 2013. Last season, Rutgers lost their last five games after a 4-3 start. It was the eighth straight season the Scarlet Knights failed to hit the .500 mark inside the conference.

Head Coach Greg Schiano made his way back to New Jersey in 2020 after spending two seasons in the NFL with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2012-13 and three years as the assistant head coach and defensive coordinator at Ohio State (2016-18). Overall it will be Schiano’s 15th season at the helm. We take a look at the Rutgers future odds starting with the program’s National Championship chances.

Rutgers Scarlet Knights At A Glance

Expect Progress Under Shiano In Year Four

Rutgers Head Coach Greg Schiano is a highly regarded College Football coach, which is why the Tampa Bay Buccaneers hired him in 2012, followed by the Ohio State Buckeyes in 2016 where the 57-year-old would be an assistant head coach to Urban Meyer until Meyer left for his NFL opportunity. What bettors want to know is can the Scarlet Knights be a reliable wager under Schiano who is 57-55 ATS (-57 units) since 2005 and just 80-89 straight-up since 2001.

To be successful, the New Jersey native will have to deal with familiar turnover on his staff with Kirk Ciarrocca taking over, again, as the offensive coordinator after Sean Gleeson was fired in October of 2022 before taking the role of Senior Offensive Analyst for the Northwestern Wildcats to start this season. Ciarrocca was the offensive coordinator and quarterback coach for the Minnesota Golden Gophers in 2022. Like Schiano who coached at Rutgers from 2001-2011 before his recent run, this is Ciarrocca’s send stint at Rutgers after being let go by Schiano in 2010 after his offense ranked 114th out of 120 College Football teams.

The bright spot for the Scarlet Knights will be their defense which is returning seven starters, but they’ll have to improve as a unit after allowing 29.3 points per game, 93rd in the country. That doesn’t seem like a great number but overall Rutgers was 38th in total defense after allowing just 350.3 yards per game and 37th against the pass (206.8). That’s a defense good enough to get Schiano to a bowl game if Quarterback Gavin Wimsatt can find some consistency under Ciarrocca. That won’t be easy will question marks along the offensive line and at wideout.

Until we know those answers we won’t be able to get an accurate gauge on just how reliable a wager the Knights will be. Win or lose, Rutgers NCAAF scores will be fun to watch this season. We continue our Rutgers future odds preview with a look at their national championship odds.

National Championship Odds: At Least A Decade Away

At least the Scarlet Knights made a move in the right direction of a championship by moving into the Big 10 in 2014, the problem is life has been filled with growing pains since. 13-66 inside their new conference isn’t exactly what the program has hoped for but now that Schiano is back, it appears the school won’t find itself winless in the Big 10 as it has in three of their last six years under then Head Coach Chris Ash. before a championship can be discussed a winning culture must be established.

It appears the Scarlet Knights will take a small step backward in 2023 to leap forward in 2024. Rutgers is +200000 to win the National Championships at various sites in the desert after being +50000 last year, mostly due to a College Football schedule that is the nation’s 88th most difficult, but filled with big-name programs starting with Northwestern, September 3rd. Let’s continue our Rutgers future odds preview with a peak at their conference odds.

Conference Odds: Knights Owns Worst Conference Odds

Most college football predictions are difficult, to say the Rutgers Scarlet Knights will not cash a +30000 Big 10 championship ticket is not. At +10000 to win the conference last year, it’s clear that the oddsmakers don’t think much of the Knights’ chances at being competitive.

Last season, Rutgers was ranked 128th nationally in offense, scoring just 13 points per game. They finished 130th in the nation in total offense against FCS opponents with 254.5 per contest. The message is clear from the bookmakers, we’re not going to push a team whose quarterback needs to prove he can complete just 50% of his passes after completing 45% in his final five games last season.

We stand with the oddsmakers, there is no need to put your money on this prop. To conclude our, Rutgers future odds preview let’s look at the team’s projected win total.

Regular Season Wins: No Bowl Game to Be Found

For the second straight season, the Scarlet Knights pushed on their projected season win total of four. Let’s see if we can get a winner in 2023 after the oddsmakers projected another season of four wins. We think they’re better than that, but not good enough to hit the six-win mark that would push them into a bowl game. This looks like a wager that will push or cash, because three or fewer wins would be a massive disappointment. Of the opponents on this year’s schedule, Rutgers has beaten three of them in 2022 (Indiana 16-14, Wagner 66-7, and Temple 16-14).

We think Wagner and Temple will result in wins again, with Indiana getting revenge in week eight. So how do we get over four? Week one at home is a revenge spot against Northwestern after losing 21-7 as a small favorite, let’s give that one to the Knights as they pull the mild surprise at home. We’re also willing to give them a difficult match-up at home against Virginia Tech, giving Schiano’s team to be 3-0 to start before reality hits at Michigan.

Wagner is next making Rutgers 4-1 before a two-week collapse at Wisconsin and at home against Michigan State. That fifth win must be against Indiana or we’re looking at another push before the rest of the schedule should result in a four-game losing streak to Ohio State, Iowa, Penn State, and Maryland to close out the 2023 campaign. Get the four wins early and cross your fingers late. That does it for our Rutgers Future odds preview, we wish you the best with all your wagers this season.

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