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We need Everyone's assistance

Most, if not all, of the Rutgers graduates and students would not like to see the name of our institution changed. We can let our voice be heard.
Please contact your state legislator and let her or she know on no uncertain terms that you disagree with this action and it will effect your vote come election time. Below you will find a link on how to find out your legislator contact information. Please let them know today.
State Legislator by District

(Sing to the tune of Rutgers Alma Mater)
Greg Tufaro My father sent me to Ol' Rutgers
Long before McGreevey changed her name
Now they call us UNJ
He threw our moniker away
On the Banks of the Ol' Raritan.
I met Stan Slobodien, a Rutgers football, men's and women's basketball season-ticket holder, a year ago.
At that time, he and I, both Rutgers graduates, got into a debate over his proposal to change the 177-year-old name of our beloved alma mater to the University of New Jersey.
Will name of Rutgers remain 'On the Banks of the Ol' Raritan'

New Jersey's flagship public research institution took it on the chin hard last week when Gov. James E. McGreevey endorsed a proposal to merge Rutgers, the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey and the New Jersey Institute of Technology into something that eventually might be called the University of New Jersey.
It was a bitter blow. No one was quite sure what would happen to the Rutgers name. The jewel of public higher education in New Jersey — somewhat tarnished after the lackluster 12-year administration of Francis L. Lawrence — was getting its come-uppance.
Poor Rutgers University

Football

The flashes of potential are there, locked in memories of Markis Facyson running for a true freshman-record 129 yards against Army, and sophomore Clarence Pittman breaking loose for 104 yards against Tennessee.
But as Rutgers prepares to face Syracuse at the Carrier Dome this weekend, the recent realities are in stark contrast -- 20 yards rushing against West Virginia two weeks ago and minus-7 yards against Virginia Tech -- and a rushing game that once held promise has crashed along with the rest of the team's struggling offense.
Knights' ground attack at the bottom of Div. I

With what appears to be far and away to be the most winnable game on the remaining portion of the Scarlet Knights 2002 schedule, Rutgers will run into a foe in strikingly equal and dire straits this weekend, when its goes head-to-head with the Syracuse Orangemen in an uncharacteristic rebuilding year.
Although Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano and Syracuse coach Paul Pasqualoni both face a week in and week out quarterback controversy, although the pair would most likely refrain from using such a label. For RU, both sophomore Ryan Cubit and senior Ted Trump have shown flashes of good and bad in varying appearances as starters and reserves, but it is Cubit who will get the nod against the Orange.
'Cuse game winnable

Quarterback Ryan Cubit uses "jacked." Left guard Rich McManis, "juiced."
Whatever the adverb, playing away from home definitely gets Rutgers up. Three times this season they've left the not-so-friendly confines of Piscataway for much-less-friendly stadiums. Each time, with two-ranked teams and one vote-getter cast as the opponent, the Scarlet Knights turned in surprisingly competitive performances.
Meanwhile back at home, against four mediocre teams, Rutgers lost three times and overpowered Army, which is winless.
'Cuse in same boat as Rutgers

If it was simply a case of Rutgers' offense being incapable of moving the ball or scoring or functioning at all, then the unit's latest national rankings would make perfect sense.
Last in the country in total offense. Next to last in rushing. Third from the bottom -- 115th out of 117 Division 1-A schools -- in passing efficiency and scoring.
There's no figuring stats

Better. The dictionary tells us it's a comparative word. Better. Better than what?
No one knows better - there's that word again - than Greg Schiano how far Rutgers still must travel to reach football respectability. But it was the word he chose to use yesterday. Compared to this time last year, there's not an area in which his team hasn't gotten markedly better, the second-year coach said.
"The team meter is going up," the driver of the Scarlet Knights taxi told his weekly media audience.
Rutgers' Schiano says Knights are `better'

Off to its worst start in 20 years, Syracuse takes a 1-6 record and four-game losing streak into Saturday's Big East game against Rutgers at the Carrier Dome, with sole possession of last place in the league the booby prize for the loser.
Head coach Paul Pasqualoni, facing the prospect of his first losing season in 12 years with the Orangemen, took time out yesterday to discuss his team's surprising struggles.
Pasqualoni stays upbeat despite 1-6

Rutgers and Syracuse meet for the 33rd time with the Orangemen holding a 26-5-1 in the series. The last three meetings have all been exciting affairs. In 1999, Rutgers posted a 24-21 overtime win at Rutgers Stadium. In 2000, Syracuse overcame a 14-7 halftime deficit and pulled away late for a 49-21 win at the Carrier Dome. In last year’s meeting, the Orangemen earned a hard-fought 24-17 victory at Rutgers Stadium. Since the beginning of BIG EAST play in 1991, Syracuse holds a 10-1 lead in the series. Rutgers’ last win at the Carrier Dome was in 1986 when the Scarlet Knights came away with a 16-10 victory. Last Saturday, Rutgers battled No. 3 Virginia Tech on the road into the fourth quarter and trailed just 28-14 before the Knights failed to capitalize on a 4th down at the Tech 13 following a 17-play drive. The Hokies then added a late TD. Syracuse is coming off a 34-7 loss at West Virginia.
RUTGERS (1-6, 0-3 BIG EAST) at SYRACUSE (1-6, 0-3 BIG EAST)

High school Prospects

Before yesterday's game, Charles Timbers had a talk with his father. The short version was the elder Timbers didn't feel his son was playing like he used to, and he needed to step up his game.
And as Timbers proved during Long Branch's 35-0 nondivisional win against Marlboro, father knows best.
The senior transfer from Ocean Township rushed, passed, caught and returned his way to 275 all-purpose yards, scoring twice and setting the tone on the first play of the game.
Long Branch's Timbers delivers

Site Information

We have been bringing a lot of articles on-line over the last month. For those who are having problems accessing the archives, please click this link: Story Archive.

Please visit our Message Board. We will provide updates and information. We also like to start some interesting discussion.
Message Board

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Mike and the Big Dog LLC
P.O. Box 431
Plainsboro, New Jersey 08536

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE TAPE WILL NOT BE RETURNED. Please send HIGHLIGHTS or your best game. WE WILL SELECT THE CLIPS TO BRING ON-LINE.
NOT ALL TAPES WILL BE BROUGHT ON-LINE.

Around the Big East

HERE'S a frightening thought: Had quarterback Michael Vick stayed at Virginia Tech for 4 years, he'd be playing in the same backfield with Lee Suggs and Kevin Jones. Think about those possibilities for a moment. Jones surely has.
"That would have been crazy," Jones said with a laugh. "He told me he was going to stay. Then he changed his mind at the last minute. Can you imagine that? You know he's going to make a lot of plays. And the two of us will take turns at making something happen, too. So I don't know. But it would have been crazy, man."
Hokies packing a powerful 1-2 punch

The nation's leading "rusher" is out of the Heisman race.
SportsLine.com confirmed that fact with a phone call to the Downtown Athletic Club on Monday morning.
Virginia Tech's Lee Suggs and Kevin Jones are so talented that coach Frank Beamer can't sit one down for very long. They share the duties so well that combined, their numbers makes Suggs and Jones the best "running back" in the country, averaging 202 yards per game.
Heisman Watch: Virginia Tech pair untouchable

So there was Anthony Smith, the only Syracuse University football player standing between Auburn tailback Carnell "Cadillac" Williams and the end zone. It was overtime. A national television audience and nearly 84,000 fans in attendance watched the showdown.
Williams headed for the sideline, with Smith shadowing him. Suddenly the tailback paused and faked an inside cut, freezing Smith for an instant, then sprinted for the corner of the end zone. His touchdown gave Auburn a 31-24 lead in a game the Tigers eventually won 37-34 in triple overtime.
Accelerated Program

Interesting Articles

The Black Coaches Association called on colleges to fill at least one of every five head football coaching vacancies with a minority over the next three years. After a decade and a half of frustration over the scarcity of African-American coaches, the association is prepared to inform leading recruits of progress — or the lack of it — at specific schools, and, if warranted, steer them away from offending programs.
BCA seeks 20% rate for minority hiring

Donald "Big Dog" Forbes:
Mike and the Big Dog LLC