Rutgers' planned celebration turned into reality check for Greg Schiano

Rutgers’ planned celebration turned into reality check for Greg Schiano originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Rutgers was supposed to open its season with a celebration. The Scarlet Knights had the right opponent, home-field advantage, and, apparently, the fireworks were already lined up. However, UMass had other plans.

Instead, the Minutemen walked into SHI Stadium and turned Rutgers’ season opener into one of the most embarrassing nights of Greg Schiano’s tenure. They stunned Rutgers, 37-21, overcoming an early one-possession deficit. Later, the Minutemen went on to score 30 unanswered points, ultimately controlling the game for nearly three quarters.

UMass recorded 397 rushing total yards, including 200 on the ground, while forcing four Rutgers turnovers. The Rutgers program that entered the night as a heavy favorite. The loss was difficult enough to process, then came the fireworks.

The fireworks were ready, but Rutgers wasn’t

Initially, Rutgers advertised a post-game fireworks show as part of its season-opening festivities. The problem was that the celebration was planned for a victory that never came. After the final whistle, fireworks still erupted over an increasingly empty SHI Stadium.

The visual was abysmal, UMass ending a 16-game losing streak, secured its first win since October 2024 and walked away from the Scarlet Knights with the biggest upset of the opening night. Meanwhile, Rutgers’ celebration continued without the team having anything to celebrate.

Unfortunately, the irony grows deeper. It’s mentioned the Scarlet Knights reportedly paid $1.55 million to travel to Piscataway for what was understood to be a tune-up game. Rutgers was favored by 30 points entering the contest. Instead, the Minutemen left with the victory and Rutgers was forced to answer uncomfortable questions regarding the future of the program.

For Schiano, the answer was fairly simple: “Never saw it coming.”

Aftermath of disappointing upset

Schiano didn’t hide from the result afterward. In fact, he embraced it.

“I didn’t have them ready to play,” Schiano stated, acknowledging that the responsibility ultimately falls on him, despite believing he had a strong training camp.

This is what made Thursday night particularly concerning. The Scarlet Knights didn’t just lose; they were outplayed in the areas where a Big Ten program should expect to have an advantage over a team coming off a 0-12 season.

The Minutemen ran the football, protected the football, and created turnovers. Quarterback “Pop” Watson III looked completely comfortable, completing 19 of 22 passes for 197 yards and three touchdowns in his debut.

“Pregame. I seen a look in our guys’ eyes versus their guys. And I could tell he was taking this lightly,” Watson III stated. “… And I knew what type of team we had. As soon as they came out on that first drive, we responded. So I knew it was going to be a 4party game once again.”

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Now that the fireworks are over, the question remains: Was Thursday night an embarrassing fluke, or a sign that this program is nowhere near where Schiano believed it was?

What’s Next?

The Scarlet Knights have Boston College next, followed by USC. A season that was supposed to begin with fireworks instead began with Rutgers being forced to look in the mirror and reevaluate things.

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