Ryan earns conference recognition
Sophomore Logan Ryan earned Big East Defensive Player of the Week honors yesterday, marking the third consecutive week a Rutgers football player earned conference recognition.
The cornerback recorded his first career interception against Pittsburgh on Saturday and followed it up with a 45-yard touchdown return on his second.
“What he’s done is work very, very hard in practice, and [it] built up,” said head coach Greg Schiano. “When you earn that confidence, then you deserve to have it. You deserve to play with it, and he’s playing with confidence right now.”
Ryan also broke up a pass and made four tackles in the Scarlet Knights’ 34-10 win.
He recorded four pass breakups the week before against Syracuse, prompting Schiano to call it Ryan’s best game of his career.
But he topped the effort against the Panthers, registering half of the Knights’ four takeaways.
“I just think I’m getting better every game and literally every play,” Ryan said.
Ryan and the Knights secondary last allowed a touchdown through the air Sept. 24 against Ohio. The Eastern High School product was the victim the week before on a 66-yard touchdown reception by North Carolina’s Dwight Jones on the Tar Heels’ first drive.
Ryan since moved on from the incident, which Schiano termed “a critical time for him in his career.”
“He’s worked very hard to thicken his skin,” the 11th-year head coach said.
The former four-star recruit arrived at Rutgers as a corner in 2009 along with Abdul Smith and Darrell Givens. Only Ryan emerged after Smith transferred to Temple and Givens has yet to earn significant playing time.
“It’s just reps in practice building on top of each other,” Ryan said. “It’s trying to be great every play and not settle for anything less.”
Sophomore defensive end Michael Larrow had successful ankle surgery Sunday, Schiano said.
Larrow went down on the first play from scrimmage Saturday and did not return.
Sophomore Marcus Thompson replaced Larrow on the depth chart as the Knights’ first-team end, although Schiano cautioned against reading too much into the move.
“We will, by the end of the week, figure out who has practiced best, who has looked the best, and we’ll rotate them in that way,” Schiano said. “We’ll continue to play as many guys who have earned the right to play.”
Thompson assisted on three tackles against the Panthers, including one for a loss.
He moved to defensive end during training camp after practicing at fullback during the spring. Thompson arrived at Rutgers in 2010 as the No. 77 outside linebacker in the nation, according to Scout.com.
He played sparingly at linebacker last season as a true freshman and earned his first significant playing time this season as a member of a 10-man rotation.
