I Bleed Blue and White

As you all know I’ve been making an attempt to do some Q&A’s with the bloggers of our opponents over the course of this season. I’ve spent the last few days trying to find somebody from Rutgers to talk to, but I’ve come up short. Now, I don’t know what they’re up to exactly, whether it’s putting on a fresh layer of hair gel or hitting the tanning salons, but they’re officially M.I.A. It’s not summer yet, so they aren’t down the shore fist-pumping. My best guess is that they are pretending like they’re in The Sopranos at the moment.

The closest I came to a Rutgers blog was Protect R Turf, but at the moment they seem much more focused on football. After all, it’s like their 5th season of actually being competitive, so I understand the excitement. After that, who gets the most attention? Why, the women’s team of course. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but I figured with up and coming stars Mike Rosario and Greg Echenique they would get at least some press. I mean, there is nothing on our game with them. Just this.

Now, I know I probably shouldn’t be talking so much junk because Rutgers embarrassed us last year, but I can’t help it. I don’t like them very much. And it’s not a “I hate you, but respect you” relationship like I have with Syracuse, Pittsburgh or UConn. I don’t like their fans on the message boards I frequent. I don’t like the inferiority complex. And I especially didn’t like how some fans thought they were actually going to do well just because they brought in Rosario and Echenique. At least the lacrosse team got some revenge already.

I ventured up to The RAC for that game, and what I witnessed was horrifying. Rutgers couldn’t even fill the place up. The student section was half full (there were more Villanova students there I swear) and Villanova played one of the worst games that I can ever remember. I mean, the reputable place where top teams go to die was a ghosttown. And still ‘Nova couldn’t even compete. It was awful.

So now the Scarlet Knights take a road trip down to the Main Line for our ‘Senior Night.’ And it’s going to be an emotional night. It’s not the last home game at The Pavilion for these guys (Providence is, but that’s over spring break for the students). But it is the last time that the majority of the seniors will get to watch their classmates on the home floor. Combine this with the embarrassing loss to West Virginia, and the long layoff that I’m certain was used to whip the team into shape, and it doesn’t look like Rutgers has much of a prayer.

In the 12 point loss last year (it was only 12 because of Malcolm Grant), guards Mike Coburn and Anthony Farmer both had 23 for Rutgers, and both players return this season. The aforementioned freshman Echennique, and especially Rosario, can be very dangerous. Another lax defensive effort like the Wildcats have been displaying lately is not going to get it done.

Being realistic, this game shouldn’t be anything to be nervous about. Rutgers has just one Big East win (over DePaul) and sports a 10-15 record overall. They are very bad, and coach Fred Hill is on a very short leash. They’re desperate, and that is exactly what makes them dangerous.

As I said before though, I’m supremely confident that Villanova will win this game. I’ll be interested to see how they look though. Will they struggle again, or will they dominate like they should. On Senior Night, I have to imagine that Dante Cunningham, Shane Clark, and a hopefully-healthier Dwayne Anderson are going to bring this one home with authority.

We’ll be in The Pavilion tomorrow night for the pregame festivities as well as the game itself. Look for a rep0rt from hopefully all three of us (if you guys remember Mark and Jamie) late tomorrow night or early Friday.