Rutgers defense dominates in 26-0 win over Howard

PISCATAWAY, New Jersey - Howard had one chance to put some pressure on Rutgers and threw it away. The Bison of the Howard (1-1) of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference dropped a 26-0 decision to their Big East Conference foe Saturday, but they left High Point Solutions Stadium wondering what might have been had they cashed in early on a Scarlet Knights' mistake.

Cornerback Julien David intercepted a Gary Nova pass on the opening series, giving Howard a first down at the Rutgers 30. A facemask penalty and a pass interference call eventually gave the Bison a first and goal at the 2.

That's when things went south. After William Parker carried for a yard, Justin Duncan was dropped for a 2-yard loss on a run and then Parker fumbled a third-down pitch and defensive tackle Scott Vallone recovered.

:"We got no points at all," Howard coach Gary Harrell said. "They get on the scoreboard first (the next series) and then they come back in the second quarter and scored on a blocked punt for a touchdown. We had some breakdowns in all phases of the game."

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Rutgers takes care of business with 26-0 win over Howard

PISCATAWAY, New Jersey - There was a lot more nit-picking to be done than there was praise to be handed out over Rutgers’ less-than-inspiring victory Saturday, but that was fine with Scott Vallone.

The way the senior defensive tackle figures it, why not play your best game when it matters most?

For now, that’s Thursday’s Big East opener at South Florida.

It wasn’t Saturday against Howard — clearly — when Rutgers (2-0) recorded a methodical and mistake-strewn 26-0 victory before a crowd of 50,855 at High Point Solutions Stadium.

“I don’t think we played our best football or close to what we’re capable of,” Vallone said. “So what better time to do that than Thursday night on ESPN against South Florida?”

That’s one way to look at what happened Saturday, when Rutgers’ defense dominated again, the offense struggled again and penalties continued to be an issue.

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