Ron Girault is a Kansas City Chief, Sosa a Viking, Renkart a Jet, and Ito a Saint (though we all knew that)

Click here for a short article on the latest free agent signings of this year's Scarlet Knight seniors.

Rutgers vs. Pittsburgh (the 2005 version) was a turning point

Click Here for a great recap by Aditi Kinkhabwala of the last meeting between the Panthers and the Scarlet Knights at R House on Friday, September 30, 2005.

The win marked the first time Rutgers (3-1, 1-0) won its league opener in 11 years. It was the first time the Scarlet Knights took out Pitt (1-4, 0-1) in seven years, the first time they've won three games in a row in 13 years and the first time they refused to allow the old trappings of Rutgers football to wholly trap them.

For those of us who were there that night, it certainly seemed, along with the Michigan State game the year before, like a turning point for our Knights. And as with the Michigan State game the year before, we saw the lucky banner unfurled in the stands:

The biggest fan-made sign across from Pitt's bench read "Beat Visitor" . . .

Her article also reminds us how many young players who are still on the team made important contributions in that pivotal victory. Tiquan Underwood played quarterback for a number of snaps, switching places with Ryan Hart at the last minute (Ryan took Tiquan's place at wide receiver) and running a Jabu Lovelace-type shotgun offense that caught the Pitt defense (and many of us in the stands) totally off guard. Glen Lee made a memorable fumble-inducing hit on an early kickoff. Jeremy Ito kicked three field goals. "Mike Teel of Oakland" moved the team from the RU 9 to the Pitt 46 on one series. And, it isn't mentioned in her article but a kid named Ray Rice carried 15 times for 114 yards, his first hundred-yard game of many.

Jeremy Ito & Ray Rice are 2007 Playboy All-Americans

As we speak, the star running back and the star kicker of the Scarlet Knights are in Phoenix for the taping of Playboy's 2007 "College Football Preview" and they're joining a group of Playboy All-Americans that has included most of America's great college football players since 1957.

"Really Mom, I'm just buying it because there are Rutgers football players featured inside!" wasn't an excuse that we got to use too often when we were younger.

The Scarlet defeated the White 16-10 this afternoon

Click on this picture, or any other picture on BeatVisitor.com, to enlarge

Though the score wasn't really the point of course. White scored all 10 of its points in the first half with Jabu Lovelace leading the team, and Scarlet scored 10 of its 16 points in the second half with Jabu Lovelace leading that team (and he wasn't the only one changing jerseys). His 54-yard run for a touchdown in the first half was the offensive play of the game, and Jeremy Ito was impressive not only with perfect field goal records for both teams, but also taking over the punting duties from the graduating Hoboken Joe Radigan.

The important points, of course, are that no one was injured (though Kenny Britt took a scary hit right after his first reception of the game), that the weather (after a cold wet spring in New Jersey) was absolutely perfect, and that 11,079 spectators (a record for this scrimmage) had a great time in the Birthplace of College Football watching the game and hanging out with the players taking pictures and getting autographs after the game.

Don't miss it next year.