PISCATAWAY – Greg Schiano knows exactly what he wants Rutgers football’s defense to look like.
He’s seen it plenty of times throughout the years – just not enough lately.
“When we've had great defenses here, it looks like piranhas,” Schiano said following his team’s scrimmage on Saturday, Aug. 15 at SHI Stadium. “And that's what we need to have, a defense that looks like that.”
So there’s the mission for new defensive coordinator Travis Johansen, who’s leading a unit that underwent significant turnover in the offseason both with personnel and the coaching staff.
What Schiano’s referring to relates to what he called “connectivity,” one of three things he’s looking for from the defense at this point in training camp – just under three weeks until the team’s Sept. 3 opener against UMass – along with scheme and fundamentals.
Schiano is encouraged scheme-wise.
“They’re sound, people are really learning it well,” Schiano said.
The coach echoed several of his players who previously in camp have said they’re learning Johansen’s system well. They’ve spoken highly about the ability of both Johansen and his assistants to teach the scheme and convey each individual job.
And that goes back to connectivity.
“Playing defense is 11 as one,” Schiano said. “It’s 11 guys doing their job, then you’ve got to swarm the football.”
That can also mask any hiccups.
“And I always tell them when you throw the tape on, I want people to say, ‘ooh, that's different,’” Schiano said. “That's effort, right? That’s just going as hard as you can. Because a lot of times on defense if you know your job and you go as hard as you can, even if you’re not perfect it works itself out.”
His players are hearing the message.
“That’s very important,” linebacker Ty Morris said. “We always talk about how connected we have to be with each other. We’ve got to know each other in order for us to sacrifice on the field for each other, strain on the field for each other. I feel like that’s huge.”
Rutgers lacked that last season when its defense ranked among the worst the nation, prompting the firings of co-coordinators Robb Smith and Zach Sparber.
The Scarlet Knights also brought in more than a dozen defensive transfers, making camp even more important to develop that chemistry and connectivity.
As far as fundamentals go, there’s room for improvement.
The days ahead will be crucial for ironing them out as the start of the season rapidly approaches.
“When we watch this tape, there will be technique issues, especially with the 2nd and third team, that we’ve really got to get fixed this week,” Schiano said. “That's why I said this week will be a critical, critical week on both sides and on the kicking game.”
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Here's what Greg Schiano wants to see from Rutgers football's defense