Anonymous Big Ten Coach Questions The State Of Rutgers Football Under Greg Schiano

The dog days of college football are in full swing, which leads us to the heart of "talking season." And one of the best traditions of "talking season" comes with the release of Athlon Sports' college football magazine.

Within the pages of the fabled magazine is a section in which coaches speak anonymously about other conference programs. It never fails to provide some juicy drama.

Although there have been spicier comments in the past, the 2023 edition is no exception. Especially when it comes to Rutgers and head coach Greg Schiano.

COLUMBUS, OHIO - OCTOBER 01: Head Coach Greg Schiano of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights reacts following a play during the first quarter of a game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Ohio Stadium on October 01, 2022 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Ben Jackson/Getty Images)

Schiano, 57, is in his fourth year of his second stint with the Scarlet Knights after a failed tenure with the Bucaneers and three years as the defensive coordinator at Ohio State. He found a lot of success in the latter-half of his first stint at Rutgers and made a bowl game in six of his last seven years before heading to the NFL.

It hasn't been the same in round two.

Schiano and the Scarlet Knights have won just 12 of 34 games and only reached a bowl game in 2021 after another team dropped out due to COVID-19 issues. They lost.

Most recently, Rutgers went 4-8 in 2022 and won only one game in the Big Ten. Not great.

There is no denying that it is hard to win in Piscataway, especially in the NIL era. However, 12-22 in three years with no hope for a turnaround any time soon just won't cut it.

One anonymous Big Ten coach did not hold back on the current state of the Scarlet Knights program. He touched on the on-field results, and also went after the Rutgers culture under Schiano.

Whatever buzz Greg (Schiano) had by going back, it's pretty much gone. He's turned over a significant amount of staff, and word is out that it's a highly stressful environment. They had two quarterbacks play poorly last year, and they changed the coaches but didn't portal any new QBs. That tells you something. There's building pressure for them to get it right and back, but that's not possible. The guys who hired him back think they can have those Big East seasons again.

Yikes. It doesn't get much more grim than that.

To be frank, there isn't a lot of hope for success in the near future regardless of who is the head coach. Rutgers doesn't have enough NIL backing to compete in one of the best conferences in the sport.

However, failure to reach a bowl game this season could be the final nail in Schiano's coffin.