NEWARK, N.J. (AP) - Rutgers coach Greg Schiano wants his players to have some fun, so he doesn't mind that they know what's at stake in Saturday's game at West Virginia.
There's only one opponent between the 13th-ranked Scarlet Knights and their first Big East title and Bowl Championship Series berth, and Schiano just wants his team to maintain its poise.
``It's part of the fun to know the stakes,'' Schiano said Sunday, a day after Rutgers shut down Syracuse 38-7 to improve to 10-1. ``But the minute you focus on the stakes is when you get screwed up. You can know the stakes and still focus on the process, and that's what our kids have to do.''
His players are sounding the same alarm.
``We have to tend to our business during the week and go out and practice like we are playing for the Big East championship and a BCS bowl game,'' leading rusher Ray Rice said.
Schiano and his players have been remarkably successful at bringing a workmanlike attitude to the stadium each week. The only glitch came in a 30-11 loss at Cincinnati on Nov. 18 that snapped the Scarlet Knights' nine-game winning streak and knocked them out of top 10.
There was no hangover against the Orangemen on Saturday, as Rutgers rolled up 363 yards and would have won by an even wider margin if Willie Foster's 99-yard kickoff return hadn't been nullified by an illegal block. Syracuse was held scoreless until midway through the fourth quarter.
ncaafootball.com
Rutgers hoping to add exclamation point to storybook season
Rutgers hoping to add exclamation point to storybook season
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