The 1978 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team represented

Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's ...

in the

1978 NCAA Division I-A football season The 1978 NCAA Division I-A football season was the first season of Division I-A college football; Division I-A was created in 1978 when Division I was subdivided into Division I-A and Division I-AA for football only. With the exception of seven ...

. In their sixth season under head coach

Frank R. Burns Frank Robert Burns (March 16, 1928 – July 14, 2012) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Johns Hopkins University from 1951 to 1952 and at Rutgers-New Brunswick, Rutgers University from 1973 to 1983, compili ...

, the Scarlet Knights compiled a 9–3 record while competing as an independent. The team outscored its opponents 284 to 165 and finished the season with a 34–18 loss to

Arizona State Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

in the

Garden State Bowl The Garden State Bowl was an annual post-season college football bowl game played at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, from 1978 until 1981.Foldesy, Jody. "Bowls burgeon as big business", ''The Washington Times''. December 21, 1997. ...

. The team's statistical leaders included Bob Hering with 1,193 passing yards, Glen Kehler with 883 rushing yards, and David Dorn with 535 receiving yards. It was the Scarlet Knights' first major bowl appearance.

Schedule

Sources for attendance: Source for times:

Coaching staff

Source: * Head coach:

*Offensive coordinator: Bill Speranza *Offensive line coach: James Taigia *Wide receivers coach:

Dick Curl Richard Curl (born May 4, 1940) is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Trenton State College in 1974, compiling a record of 5–4–1. Curl also was the head coach for the Frankfurt Galaxy of NF ...

*Defensive coordinator: Bob Naso *Defensive backs coach: Pete Savino *Defensive line coach:

Ted Cottrell Theodore John Cottrell (born June 13, 1947) is an American football coach and former player. He was formerly the defensive coordinator for the Buffalo Bills, New York Jets, Minnesota Vikings, and the San Diego Chargers in the National Football Le ...

References

Rutgers Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was a ...

Rutgers Scarlet Knights football seasons

Rutgers Scarlet Knights football The Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team represents Rutgers University in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA). Rutgers competes as a member of the East Division of the Big Ten Conference. ...

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