By Mark Pszonak
With action in the transfer portal slowing down, it is time to take a closer look at how each P4 school did during this cycle. Up now are the Rutgers Scarlet Knights
The skinny: Since his return to Piscataway, head coach Greg Schiano has gradually instilled his culture back into the program. One way of showcasing this is that the Scarlet Knights have only had 23 scholarship players enter the portal during the last two cycles combined. Because of that, Rutgers hasn’t had to be too aggressive with additions, but they did find their new quarterback, a potentially dynamic wide receiver and a starter for both their offensive and defensive line during this cycle.
Total # entries into portal: 20
Total # of scholarship players who entered portal: 12
Number of scholarship players who withdrew: 0
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Key losses: DL Rene Konga (Louisville), QB Gavin Wimsatt (Kentucky)
Key additions: QB Athan Kaliakmanis (Minnesota), WR Dymere Miller (Monmouth), DL Malcolm Ray (Florida State), OL Shedrick Rhodes (Ohio)
Final thoughts: Rutgers made noticeable progress last season, which concluded in a bowl victory over Miami-Florida. However, to see further progress, everyone knew that they had to improve on their passing game. That led to the addition of Athan Kaliakmanis and the resulting transfer of Gavin Wimsatt. Kaliakmanis isn’t going to throw for 300 yards per game, but with one of the top running backs in the Big Ten returning, Kyle Monangai, and a strong veteran defense, he will just be asked to provide some balance to the offense. To further help the process, Dymere Miller was added, who was one of the more dynamic and productive FCS receivers in the country last season. On defense, Malcolm Ray adds a strong, experienced body, to veteran unit. A return to a bowl game is a must for Rutgers this season, but if Kaliakmanis can do enough to stop every defense from focusing on Monangai, then the Scarlet Knights have an opportunity to move up the Big Ten ladder in 2024.
