1987 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team

The 1987 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team represented Rutgers University in the 1987 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their fourth season under head coach Dick Anderson, the Scarlet Knights compiled a 6–5 record while competing as an independent and were outscored by their opponents 213 to 168.^[1][2] The team's statistical leaders included Scott Erney with 1,369 passing yards, Henry Henderson with 846 rushing yards, and Eric Young with 364 receiving yards.^[3]

1987 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football
Conference	Independent
Record	6–5
Head coach	Dick Anderson (4th season)
Offensive coordinator	Dick Curl (5th season)
Defensive coordinator	Otto Kneidinger (4th season)
Home stadium	Rutgers Stadium Giants Stadium
Seasons ← 1986 1988 →

1987 Major eastern college football independents records

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 4 Syracuse $	5	–	0	–	0			11	–	0	–	1
Penn State	4	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
Pittsburgh	3	–	3	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
West Virginia	2	–	3	–	0			6	–	6	–	0
Rutgers	2	–	4	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Boston College	2	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Temple	1	–	3	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
$ – Lambert Trophy Winner Rankings from AP Poll

1987 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Miami (FL)		–		–				12	–	0	–	0
No. 4 Syracuse		–		–				11	–	0	–	1
No. 2 Florida State		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
No. 15 South Carolina		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Pittsburgh		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Penn State		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
No. 17 Notre Dame		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Southern Miss		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Rutgers		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Southwestern Louisiana		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Memphis State		–		–				5	–	5	–	1
Northern Illinois		–		–				5	–	5	–	1
West Virginia		–		–				6	–	6	–	0
Tulane		–		–				6	–	6	–	0
Army		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Boston College		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
East Carolina		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Akron		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Cincinnati		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Louisville		–		–				3	–	7	–	1
Temple		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Tulsa		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Virginia Tech		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Navy		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 5	at Cincinnati	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH	W 10–7
September 12	Syracuse	Rutgers Stadium Piscataway, NJ	L 3–20	23,726
September 26	Kentucky	Giants Stadium East Rutherford, NJ	W 19–18	21,232	^[4]
October 3	Duke	Rutgers Stadium Piscataway, NJ	W 7–0	13,247	^[5]
October 10	at No. 14 Penn State	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA	L 21–35	85,376
October 17	Boston College	Rutgers Stadium Piscataway, NJ	W 38–24	30,253
October 24	at Army	Michie Stadium West Point, NY	W 27–14
October 31	at Vanderbilt	Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN	L 13–27	35,347	^[6]
November 7	Pittsburgh	Giants Stadium East Rutherford, NJ	L 0–17	25,444
November 14	at West Virginia	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	L 13–37	44,717	^[7]
November 21	at Temple	Veterans Stadium Philadelphia, PA	W 17–14
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1987 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class TE 89 Bruce Campbell Sr WR 20 Brian Cobb Sr G 56 Dan Cykewick So TE 82 James Jenkins So QB 11 Matt Johnson So WR 80 Doug Johnson So	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB 26 Jean Austin Sr DB 9 Eric Deering So DE 46 Tom Duffy Sr LB 45 Chris Evans Jr LB Russ Nelson Sr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class P 9 Matt O'Connell Jr	Head coach Dick Anderson Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible   Injured   Redshirt

References

1. "1987 Rutgers Scarlet Knights Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
2. . College Football Data Warehouse. David DeLassus. Archived from the original on March 27, 2016. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
3. "1987 Rutgers Scarlet Knights Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
4. "Knight offense comes to life, tops Kentucky". The Central New Jersey Home News. September 27, 1987. Retrieved November 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Rutgers splashes past Duke, 7–0". The Philadelphia Inquirer. October 4, 1987. Retrieved February 2, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Vandy shocks Rutgers". Asbury Park Press. November 1, 1987. Retrieved November 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "W. Virginia rips Rutgers, 37–13". The Philadelphia Inquirer. November 15, 1987. Retrieved February 1, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.