A devoted Rutgers football fan has declared he is “done” with the Scarlet Knights after the team’s unexpected 37-21 loss to UMass on Thursday night. The caller, who has held season tickets for 20 years, expressed his frustration during an appearance on "The Zach Gelb Show," stating he was canceling all his planned activities for the remainder of the season.
The fan had significant plans, including travel to away games and attending a Chicago Bears game to watch Rutgers alum Kyle Monangai. The UMass loss, to a program that finished 0-12 the previous year and was ranked low nationally, was the breaking point.
"I'm done. I'm canceling everything. It's done," the caller said. He criticized the team's defensive performance, noting UMass accumulated nearly 400 yards of offense, including 200 rushing yards. "What I saw tonight was the most deplorable, despicable, horrible adjustments on defense," he stated.
Rutgers entered the game as a significant favorite against UMass, which had never defeated a Big Ten program and had not beaten an FBS team from a Power Four conference since 2012. The loss has intensified scrutiny on head coach Greg Schiano and his staff. Schiano’s record since returning to Rutgers in 2020 is 31-42.
The caller indicated his next call would be to Rutgers athletic director Keli Zinn. He expressed a desire to support a local team but stated his current satisfaction was impossible. He went on to suggest that the coaching staff should be fired immediately, concluding with a sharp critique: "Forget fireworks. We need a firing squad."
Rutgers athletic director Keli Zinn recently stated the program is investing between $20 million and $30 million in Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) initiatives for football and believes the team is making financial progress. However, Thursday's result is expected to fuel further debate regarding the direction of Schiano's program amidst evolving college athletics landscape.