1-10 Knights visit Michigan State for finale
The question had to be asked Monday.
Does Chris Ash think he’s on the hot seat in Piscataway?
“I’ll be honest with you, I respect the question,” Ash told his regular Monday media conference, “but we’re going to focus on Michigan State today.”
Ash has four years left on his contract. NJ.com reported the school would owe Ash almost $10 million if it fired him. He is 7-28 in three years, this year’s team winning its opening game and then dropping 10 straight — by a combined count of 356-117. They didn’t get killed by No. 14 Penn State on Senior Day last week, losing 20-7, but they didn’t truly hang in the game, either.
There has been no vote of confidence from above.
“I’m not going to worry about or talk about the future a whole lot here — I’m worried about Michigan State,” Ash said, “but there are so many improvements on the inside that people don’t see day-to-day that I am very excited about our future. The culture that we’ve established, the character of the individuals that we have in this program, the chemistry that we have in this program, the true brotherhood that we have here — those are all the things internally that you have to have before the external results come.
“And I get it. Everyone wants wins. I want wins, too. I get it. But I came here trying to build it from the inside-out and that’s what we’re doing. I think that’s where we’re at. Do we need to make a big jump up? Absolutely we do.”
The Scarlet Knights are 27 1/2-point underdogs to make it 11 straight losses to end the season.
Three Rutgers quarterbacks combined to throw for 46 yards last week — the offensive highlight being Raheem Blackshear’s 102 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
