Which Rutgers football commits will have the biggest immediate impact?
For Rutgers football, the hope is that the 2022 recruiting class can be a gamechanger.
The 2022 recruiting class has the chance to be one of the top classes for Rutgers in the past decade and could well be the program’s best overall class since the Scarlet Knights joined the Big Ten in 2014. With needs at offensive line, wide receiver and at defensive back, several of these recruits could well see themselves pressed into service sooner rather than later for Rutgers.
Rutgers is 3-4 on the season, having lost their first four games of the Big Ten schedule (three losses coming against the top 10 teams in the nation in the latest USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll). The need for depth is apparent, as is the overall need to continue to upgrade the roster.
A look at what Rutgers recruits could be poised for a big role as freshmen:
5. Samuel Brown
The running back, one of the top players in Pennsylvania and a four-star according to Rivals.com, brings some much-needed explosiveness to the Rutgers running back room. The La Salle product is a talented ball carrier who can do some damage when he gets into the open field. He is also promising as a receiver out of the backfield.
4. Thomas Amankwaa
The latest addition to the recruiting class, Amankwaa very quietly exploded as a prospect his senior season at Hillsborough. With Rutgers struggling with depth at cornerback, Amankwaa can certainly make some noise in the backend as a freshman, including on special teams. He is certainly one to watch.
247Sports currently ranks him as the No. 20 player in New Jersey.
3. Demetrious Allen
Generating consistent pressure and setting the edge has been a challenge for Rutgers this year. Allen, with good length and a nice burst off the edge, is an oft-overlooked member of this class.
Rivals.com has Allen as the No. 17 player in Indiana and a three-star.
At 6-foot-7 and 230 pounds, Allen has the aforementioned length needed in the Big Ten. If he can put on some size, it will be interesting to see if he can make a play for seeing the field as a freshman.
2. Amarion Brown
Injuries to Bo Melton and Aron Cruickshank this year exposed the need for Rutgers to add more depth and talent at wide receiver. Brown, a four-star out of Florida, is explosive and a solid route runner. He could see the field very early for Rutgers.
Brown can certainly step in at wide receiver and offer some interesting dynamics as a deep threat but also over the middle. He’s a tremendous athlete who is effective in the open field.
1. Jacob Allen
Perhaps the most hand-wringing for Rutgers fans this year is about the offensive line, which has struggled this year. Allen, a four-star recruit out of Hun, has shown his senior season to be the most dominant player in the state. He could well factor into the two-deep along the offensive line and even the rotation of lineman his freshman year.
Allen has also shown himself to be a solid leader of this recruiting class.
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