1978 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team

1978 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football
Garden State Bowl, L 18–34 vs. Arizona State
Conference	Independent
1978 record	9–3
Head coach	Frank R. Burns (6th season)
Offensive coordinator	Bill Speranza (2nd at OC; 14th overall season)
Defensive coordinator	Bob Naso (11th at DC; 18th overall season)
Home stadium	Rutgers Stadium
Seasons

1978 Division I-A independents football records
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 4 Penn State		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
North Texas State		–		–				9	–	2	–	0
East Carolina		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
Navy		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
No. 7 Notre Dame		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
Rutgers		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
Florida State		–		–				8	–	3	–	0
Temple		–		–				7	–	3	–	1
Pittsburgh		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Holy Cross		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Louisville		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
UNLV		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Southern Miss		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Northeast Louisiana		–		–				6	–	4	–	1
Georgia Tech		–		–				7	–	5	–	0
Hawaii		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Miami		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
South Carolina		–		–				5	–	5	–	1
William & Mary		–		–				5	–	5	–	1
Cincinnati		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Villanova		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Army		–		–				4	–	6	–	1
Memphis State		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Tulane		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Virginia Tech		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Air Force		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Colgate		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Richmond		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Syracuse		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Illinois State		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
West Virginia		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Boston College		–		–				0	–	11	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1978 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team represented Rutgers University in the 1978 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their sixth season under head coach Frank R. Burns, 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 in the Garden State Bowl. 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.

Roster

1978 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class	Defense Pos. # Name Class S 18 Cherry, DeronDeron Cherry	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Frank R. Burns Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

Coaching staff

Source:

• Head coach: Frank R. Burns
• Offensive coordinator: Bill Speranza
• Offensive line coach: James Taigia
• Wide receivers coach: Dick Curl
• Defensive coordinator: Bob Naso
• Defensive backs coach: Pete Savino
• Defensive line coach: Ted Cottrell

Schedule

Sources for attendance:

Source for times:

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance
September 9	1:30 p.m.	at No. 3 Penn State	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA	L 17–20	77,154
September 23	1:30 p.m.	at Bucknell	Memorial Stadium Lewisburg, PA	W 27–13	9,500
September 30	1:30 p.m.	Princeton	Giants Stadium East Rutherford, NJ (Rivalry)	W 24–0	25,307
October 7	1:30 p.m.	at Yale	Yale Bowl West Haven, CT	W 28–27	21,000
October 14	1:30 p.m.	Connecticut	Rutgers Stadium Piscataway, NJ	W 10–0	13,500
October 21	1:30 p.m.	Villanova	Rutgers Stadium Piscataway, NJ	W 24–9	18,500
October 28	1:30 p.m.	Columbia	Giants Stadium East Rutherford, NJ	W 69–0	7,665
November 4	1:00 p.m.	at UMass	Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium Amherst, MA	W 21–11	9,800
November 11	1:00 p.m.	Temple	Rutgers Stadium Piscataway, NJ	W 13–10	22,000
November 18	1:30 p.m.	at Holy Cross	Fitton Field Worcester, MA	W 31–21	14,829
November 25	1:00 p.m.	Colgate	Rutgers Stadium Piscataway, NJ	L 9–14	17,300
December 16		vs. Arizona State	Giants Stadium East Rutherford, NJ (Garden State Bowl)	L 18–34	33,402
Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time