Rutgers football head coach Greg Schiano called a timeout Saturday, seconds before a 58-yard field goal attempt by Illinois kicker Ethan Moczulski. Rutgers led 31-30, and it’s a score that would have held after Moczulski’s kick sailed wide left — if not for Schiano’s timeout.
The timeout voided the play, and Illinois head coach Bret Bielema was able to see how the wind affected the kick from the sideline. Bielema put his offense back on the field instead of trying the kick again, and his team scored the game-winning touchdown on a 40-yard catch by Pat Bryant. Illinois won 38-31.
Schiano had to answer for the timeout after being blamed by fans for one of the most shocking and avoidable losses of the college football season.
“Retrospectively, I wish hadn’t,” Schiano told reporters of the decision to call the timeout.
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Rutgers Scarlet Knights head coach Greg Schiano reacts during the first half against the Illinois Fighting Illini at SHI Stadium. (Vincent Carchietta)
Still, Schiano offered a defense of the decision.
“But you know, I’m not going to sit here and say I wish I hadn’t because it didn’t work out. If it worked out, I would sit here and say, ‘Yeah, I’m glad I did.’ I’ve said before. It was a good call because it worked. I’ve stood up here and said it’s a bad call because it didn’t work. That’s the way it goes. You have about 12 seconds to make decisions, and you make them,” Schiano said.
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At the time, Rutgers was preparing for a potential kick from a player whose career-long field goal was 59 yards, a yard longer than what he would have needed to beat Rutgers with his leg.
Still, the winds were so strong that nearby flags blew with ferocity, and the kick would have been going into the wind.
The 58-year-old coach also explained how and why the team came to the decision to call a timeout before the kick.
“We were going to call a timeout anyway. Maybe I should have done it before he kicked the ball,” Schiano said. “So, it wouldn’t have told, ‘Oh, gee, that wind is strong. We can’t make that kick.’ But we had to make sure we knew what we were doing. I said, ‘Hey, we have a timeout,’ there’s no more media timeouts. So, we got to go. I said, ‘That’s all right, we’re going to call a timeout.'”
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With the Illinois offense on the field for the next play, Schiano’s defense blitzed, leaving fewer players in coverage for a potential pass down the field. The pass to Bryant was on a crossing route and wasn’t to the end zone, but he outran Rutgers defenders for the score.
Schiano reiterated his intention was to win the game.
Rutgers Scarlet Knights head coach Greg Schiano during the first half against the Illinois Fighting Illini at SHI Stadium. ( Vincent Carchietta)
“You do it and win the game, it’s right call,” Schiano said.
“I don’t defend, nor do I pat myself on the back when they are good decisions. That’s your job is to make the decisions. You’re a decision-maker. I just feel, like I said, the biggest thing is I feel pain for is those guys. It was their last game in that stadium, and they couldn’t leave with a W. They accomplished a lot, but I really wanted that for them. But we don’t always get what we want in life.”
Rutgers fell to 6-5 and has already clinched a bowl game appearance. Illinois improved to 8-3, preserving its spot in the national rankings.
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