Pinstripe Bowl: Notre Dame - Rutgers Discussion
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Pinstripe Bowl: Matchup with Notre Dame provides unique opportunity for Rutgers to turn the tide
Beating Notre Dame in the Pinstripe Bowl would help Rutgers coach Kyle Flood get his program headed in the right direction. (William Perlman/The Star-Ledger)
By Dan Duggan/NJ.com
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on December 28, 2013 at 8:30 AM
NEW YORK — As you prepare to head to what should be a full Yankees Stadium this afternoon, just think: You would be going to watch Rutgers face TCU if the Horned Frogs had won two more games to earn the Big 12 Conference's spot in the Pinstripe Bowl. Or, if bowl executives determined they'd rather the 8-4 Houston team that crushed Rutgers two months ago, the Scarlet Knights would be preparing for a matchup with Vanderbilt in the BBVA Compass Bowl in Birmingham, Ala., on Jan. 4.
But no, for the first time in what seems like forever, things broke Rutgers' way. By beating a frostbitten South Florida team in the regular season finale, Rutgers secured a marquee matchup with a Notre Dame squad that played in the National Championship Game last year. The Irish will drive viewers to ESPN simply by donning their glistening gold helmets.
It's exactly the stage Rutgers needs. But getting to the bowl by winning six games against weak opponents isn't going to turn any heads. The way for Rutgers to erase the avalanche of negativity that has buried the program is to win the game.
"That would be a huge win," sophomore defensive tackle Darius Hamilton said. "Just to jump-start next year and jump-start where Rutgers is going and how hard we've been training. It would just open the eyes of not just these younger guys, but recruits and everything around the country."
Ahh, the recruits. Everything always comes back to recruiting. The black cloud that has hovered over the program for the past two months has probably had the biggest impact on the (potential) future Scarlet Knights.
A number of Rutgers commits told NJ.com's Todderick Hunt this week that they'll be paying close attention to the team's performance in the Pinstripe Bowl. The recruiting class of 2014 already has lost eight commitments, so it's unnerving to think what will happen if Rutgers gets blown out. But a strong performance against Notre Dame would go a long way to stemming the tide.
"I think winning always helps recruiting," coach Kyle Flood said. "I think once you turn the page on the season, you've turned the page. The team will be different and the offseason will be different because the team is different. Winning, whether it's in the regular season or the bowl season, winning never hurts your program and winning always helps recruiting."
Flood has tried to downplay the carryover effect from this game to the team's move to the Big Ten next season, but it's impossible to ignore. Notre Dame plays like a Big Ten team. And it's a national program, just like Michigan, Ohio State and the other powerhouses that will be on the schedule going forward.
"I've never seen winning hurt your opportunities and chances, particularly against a team that definitely plays on Broadway," offensive coordinator Ron Prince said of Notre Dame. "That's obviously the kind of team that we aspire to be – a national brand. I think these kinds of games give you an opportunity to do that. I think it's obvious that being in the Big Ten and going forward, most people, including ourselves, will try to see this as an opportunity to show what we can do."
It's an opportunity that wouldn't have been provided by the seventh-best team from the Big 12 or the ninth-best team from the SEC. But Notre Dame is different. With a win today, things will be different for Rutgers, too.
Pinstripe Bowl: Matchup with Notre Dame provides unique opportunity for Rutgers to turn the tide
Beating Notre Dame in the Pinstripe Bowl would help Rutgers coach Kyle Flood get his program headed in the right direction. (William Perlman/The Star-Ledger)
By Dan Duggan/NJ.com
Email the author | Follow on Twitter
on December 28, 2013 at 8:30 AM
NEW YORK — As you prepare to head to what should be a full Yankees Stadium this afternoon, just think: You would be going to watch Rutgers face TCU if the Horned Frogs had won two more games to earn the Big 12 Conference's spot in the Pinstripe Bowl. Or, if bowl executives determined they'd rather the 8-4 Houston team that crushed Rutgers two months ago, the Scarlet Knights would be preparing for a matchup with Vanderbilt in the BBVA Compass Bowl in Birmingham, Ala., on Jan. 4.
But no, for the first time in what seems like forever, things broke Rutgers' way. By beating a frostbitten South Florida team in the regular season finale, Rutgers secured a marquee matchup with a Notre Dame squad that played in the National Championship Game last year. The Irish will drive viewers to ESPN simply by donning their glistening gold helmets.
It's exactly the stage Rutgers needs. But getting to the bowl by winning six games against weak opponents isn't going to turn any heads. The way for Rutgers to erase the avalanche of negativity that has buried the program is to win the game.
"That would be a huge win," sophomore defensive tackle Darius Hamilton said. "Just to jump-start next year and jump-start where Rutgers is going and how hard we've been training. It would just open the eyes of not just these younger guys, but recruits and everything around the country."
Ahh, the recruits. Everything always comes back to recruiting. The black cloud that has hovered over the program for the past two months has probably had the biggest impact on the (potential) future Scarlet Knights.
A number of Rutgers commits told NJ.com's Todderick Hunt this week that they'll be paying close attention to the team's performance in the Pinstripe Bowl. The recruiting class of 2014 already has lost eight commitments, so it's unnerving to think what will happen if Rutgers gets blown out. But a strong performance against Notre Dame would go a long way to stemming the tide.
"I think winning always helps recruiting," coach Kyle Flood said. "I think once you turn the page on the season, you've turned the page. The team will be different and the offseason will be different because the team is different. Winning, whether it's in the regular season or the bowl season, winning never hurts your program and winning always helps recruiting."
Flood has tried to downplay the carryover effect from this game to the team's move to the Big Ten next season, but it's impossible to ignore. Notre Dame plays like a Big Ten team. And it's a national program, just like Michigan, Ohio State and the other powerhouses that will be on the schedule going forward.
"I've never seen winning hurt your opportunities and chances, particularly against a team that definitely plays on Broadway," offensive coordinator Ron Prince said of Notre Dame. "That's obviously the kind of team that we aspire to be – a national brand. I think these kinds of games give you an opportunity to do that. I think it's obvious that being in the Big Ten and going forward, most people, including ourselves, will try to see this as an opportunity to show what we can do."
It's an opportunity that wouldn't have been provided by the seventh-best team from the Big 12 or the ninth-best team from the SEC. But Notre Dame is different. With a win today, things will be different for Rutgers, too.
Gorgolon Lives
The Reverend of CTG
Rutgers quit around midseason...hate them
madshooter
Nascar Connoisseur
not surprisingly , it is a sea of green at Pinstripe bowl today......guess the "HOME FIELD" advantage for Rutgers isn't quite so.
RetroVK
This claim is disputed
between suspensions and injuries, I am surprised ndame can field 11 men on defense. Atkinson3 suspended too.
Gorgolon Lives
The Reverend of CTG
This is hilarious
GoIrish!
Pretty much a regular
dline will be a little suspect...but other than that..backers/secondary should be more than healthy
