Rutgers football has not been the best in the last few years with its last winning season being in 2014. However, Greg Schiano has returned to coaching the Scarlet Knights after taking some time to coach in the N.F.L. When Schiano coached for Rutgers from 2001-2011, he produced loads of talented players and led Rutgers to many wins, despite some adversity early on in his time at Rutgers. However, Rutgers fans are eager and excited that another era of Schiano has kicked off with a 38-27 win over the Michigan State Spartans.

After the astonishing victory over the Spartans, Rutgers fans are starting to believe that Rutgers football might field a good team this year. Without a winning season since 2014, it is no surprise after one game, fans are hoping that Rutgers can continue the trend of winning throughout the season. However, Michigan State being a less than impressive squad in the years’ past raises speculation if Rutgers actually has a good team this year or if they just played a bad team in Michigan State and are being overhyped.

Schiano is not a strange to winning. Schiano is 69-67 in his time with Rutgers, including a 5-1 record in bowl games. He has also shown success working in the N.F.L. with the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He has led Rutgers to a few AP top 25 rankings appearances with his highest ranking coming at seven. Essentially, coaching can take a program far but not recruiting good football players can cause a team to fall short of greatness.

Rutgers’ defense turned up a notch and forced the Spartans to turn the ball over seven times, including two interceptions and five fumbles recovered. The Scarlet Knights are looking dominant also on the offensive side of the ball. The offense hauled in a passing touchdown and dominated on the ground, rushing for four touchdowns. Overall, Rutgers is looking like a legitimate team to beat and not a team that is expected to lose by 30 no more. If the Knights keep the momentum going throughout their season, they could be a contender to win the Big Ten.

Rutgers has a tough schedule for the next two weeks as they are taking on No. 17 Indiana and No. 3 Ohio State. The next two weeks, win or lose, will show the bigger picture for Rutgers and let fans know if RU has a legitimate football team again.