Insider Game Balls Rutgers - Offense

The season opener was to be a very big deal for Rutgers, someone forgot to tell Brian Kelly and his team and the Bearcats roll the Knights for a giant opening week and Big East win. Bearcat Insider issues Game Balls after each game and here is this week’s honors list.

Brian Kelly: The Bearcats head coach had his team ready for a huge crowd against a team some felt was the Cinderella favorite to win the Big East. Well the clock struck midnight and Rutgers will have a lot of work to do if they are going to challenge this year.

Tony Pike: The Bearcats quarterback is no surprise as he enjoyed a great game with only one mistake. For the day Pike connected on 27-of-34 passes for 362-yards and 3 touchdowns.

Isaiah Pead: The sophomore had a great day and showed why many feel he’s a star in the making. Running the ball Pead picked up 47-yards on 8 carries and a touchdown but it was his big pass reception that showed his skills. For the day Pead also caught 2 balls for 52 yards and a touchdown.

Mardy Gilyard: It was another day at the office for the Bearcats big-play man. Mardy pulled down 8 balls for 89 yards and 1 touchdown.

D.J. Woods: Another young player looking to make a statement in the season opener. Woods pulled down 4 balls for 71 yards and showed why he has a chance to be a big-time target in the weeks to come.

Jacob Ramsey: The senior running back averaged 9.6 yards per carry on 8 carries for 77 yards. But it was his two pass receptions for 33 yards and a score that really pushed him into Game Ball status.

Travis Kelce: In his first game action the redshirt freshman was called upon to play quarterback in Brian Kelly’s first offensive wrinkle. Kelce carried the ball three times for 18 yards and two touchdowns. Keep an eye on this in the future as Kelce is a big body and a safe bet to have run the ball and not place Pike in harms way.

Offensive Line: Give this group each a game ball as they did a great job in a much needed big time performance. The team left Rutgers with a 4.9 yard per carry average on the day and gave Tony Pike time to work his magic.

Jeff Quinn: The Bearcats offensive coordinator and offensive line coach saw great performances all around. The offense was in high gear and his offensive linemen played a great game keeping mistakes to a minimum and giving Tony Pike time to make plays.