Shortly after Greg Schiano was hired in 2001, he met with several dozen New Jersey high school coaches and made a simple plea to help him find the best talent in New Jersey. What he hoped for was to transform a down-and-out program into a symbol of state pride. What he wanted was to form what he called ‘The State of Rutgers.’

By the end of the meeting, Schiano had compiled a list of the top local recruits and the next day he sent invitations for those players to attend a similar gathering. He told those 40 players that if they stayed and played together, they could win a championship. All they had to do was believe.

Though it’s been four years and Schiano’s first recruiting class has moved on, the homegrown New Jersey coach has slowly turned the perennial doormat of the Big East into a respected program.

Rutgers will face Syracuse on Saturday at noon at the Carrier Dome. Several SU players said they believed a loss to the Scarlet Knights is no longer an embarrassment.

‘(Schiano) gave them a sense of state pride and he got some guys to de-commit (from big time college football programs),’ senior defensive end Ryan LaCasse said. ‘We can’t look down our noses at them anymore. They’ve turned around as a program and they’ve got to be respected.’

During each of Schiano’s first three years, the Scarlet Knights earned a top 50 recruiting class, something they had never done previously. In 2004, they beat Syracuse for only the second time since joining the Big East and in 2005, RU upset Michigan State in its home opener.

The 2005 Scarlet Knights (3-2, 1-1 Big East) have beaten Pittsburgh and lost to West Virginia this season. While a loss on Saturday wouldn’t completely derail RU’s shot at a Big East championship, it would most likely do that to Syracuse (1-4, 0-2 Big East).

SU head coach Greg Robinson said the goal for his first season was a conference championship. With a 0-2 Big East record thus far, a loss to the Scarlet Knights would all but assure Syracuse of a sub-.500 record.

‘I would never say we’re scared of anything, but we know we have to go out there and redeem ourselves,’ LaCasse said. ‘It’s not even looking forward to championships or a bowl game, it’s about getting back on track and knowing what it feels like to win again.’

LaCasse said he realizes SU’s performance this season has probably alienated some optimistic Orange fans. Now, SU must win them back.

Junior linebacker Kelvin Smith said Rutgers has never been a pushover since he came to Syracuse. He said SU was robbed in a freaky loss to the Scarlet Knights in 2004 on what he called ‘the coldest game’ he’s ever played in, but that RU has earned its respect.

‘They’re no doormats anymore,’ Smith said. ‘They’re competing with a lot of good teams and they’ve got a lot of good players.’

Schiano continued his theme of creating New Jersey pride this week by promoting sophomore Mike Teel to starting quarterback. Teel and Schiano are both from Wyckoff, N.J.

Whether or not New Jersey talent is good enough to beat Syracuse this season remains to be seen.

‘(The Scarlet Knights) definitely were considered the weak team in the Big East, but they’ve worked their way to being respected as a program,’ cornerback Steve Gregory said. ‘They’re definitely moving up in the ranks.’

Published on October 13, 2005 at 12:00 pm