Big Ten Daily: Rutgers Season Opener Against Temple Postponed Due to Flooding

Rutgers announces new game information for postponed matchup with Temple, Illinois coach Bret Bielema gives an injury update on quarterback Brandon Peters and Minnesota is expecting a sellout crowd for its game with Ohio State. Here's the latest from around the Big Ten.

Author:
D.J. Fezler
Publish date:
Sep 2, 2021 2:55 PM EDT

The Rutgers football program was originally scheduled to play its season-opening home game with Temple on Thursday, but do due to flooding at SHI Stadium in Piscataway, New Jersey, from the effects of Hurricane Ida, the team announced the game will be played Saturday instead.

According to NJ.com, Piscataway Township officials issued a statement Thursday morning calling for Rutgers to keep fans away from the stadium if the game was to be played.

“While Piscataway is a strong supporter of Rutgers University and fervent fans of Rutgers Football, if the Rutgers-Temple football game is still going to take place this evening, the Township is calling on the University to do so without fans,’’ the statement said. “Township infrastructure is overwhelmed by the damage of Hurricane Ida and evacuations are still taking place this morning. Most importantly, search and rescue operations are ongoing. Piscataway Public Works and our first responders worked through the night to help residents and significant work continues today. Roadways in the Township cannot handle an influx of tens of thousands of people coming to the football game especially with the closure of Landing Lane Bridge.’’

It was reported that the Scarlet Knights were expecting a sellout crowd of more than 50,000 fans for the their season opener. The game is now scheduled to be played at noon Saturday and will be televised on the Big Ten Network.

Illinois Coach Bret Bielema Updates Status of Brandon Peters

Illinois starting quarterback Brandon Peters injured his shoulder in the team's season opener against Nebraska on Saturday, leaving him to watch from the sidelines in a sling.

As the program prepares for its upcoming matchup with UTSA, coach Bret Bielema informer reporteres Thursday that Peters has been making progress in his rehabilitation and has thrown footballs during the last two days of practice.

Peters' status for this Saturday's game is still unclear, which would mean Rutgers transfer Art Sitkowski would get the start in his absence after leading Illinois to a victory in Week 0.

Peters, a Michigan transfer, completed three of his four passes for 35 yards before being injured against the Cornhuskers. Sitkowski filled in quite nicely, earning Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honors for completing 12 of his 15 for 124 yards and two touchdowns while leading Illinois to a 30-22 victory.

Minnesota to Have Sellout Crowd For Matchup With Ohio State

When Minnesota takes the field for its season opener against Ohio State on Thursday night at Huntington Bank Stadium, the team is expecting a sellout crowd.

This is the third-straight sellout for the Golden Gophers, dating back to 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic prevented fans to attend home games. The last time Minnesota played in front of a packed stadium was during a 38-17 loss to Wisconsin in 2019.

The game is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. ET on FOX. As of Thursday morning, Minnesota is a 13.5-point underdog, according to sports gambling website Fanduel.com. The over/under is 62.5 points.

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