Piscataway – One is a promising young coach and the other is a veteran defensive coordinator who is now in his third different passage with The Rutgers football team.
Together, Zach Sparber and Robb Smith will direct the Scarlet knights“ Defense after coach Greg Schiano hired them this offseason to replace Joe Harasymiak, now head coach of the University of Massachusetts.
It is an interesting configuration, which is used in several other programs across the country, but Schiano thought it was the right approach after crossing the hiring process and identified the candidates.
He was very familiar with Smith, who was one of his staff with the Scarlet Knights during the first visit of Schiano to Piscataway, then joined him with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers As seconds coach. Smith was then the defensive coordinator of Rutgers in 2020-2021 before going to Duke in the same position.
It was there that Smith met Sparber, a Catholic graduate of Bergen who at the time was a defensive graduate assistant among the Blue Devils.
“I really took my time in this process and there have been a lot of twists and turns,” said Schiano at a press conference on Monday at Hale Center. “I think we have finished exactly where we needed it. I think these two guys, they have already worked together in Duke. They were really complementary to everyone either, and I said that we have them both and that’s what we did. ”
Schiano clearly indicated that Smith will call the defensive games for the Scarlet Knights, who open spring training on Friday before the team’s annual team of the team on April 26 at the Shi stadium.
“Rob has more experience by calling it, and that’s how we will,” said Schiano.
Smith has spent the last two seasons as an analyst in Penn State.
A particular area prospered during the previous Smith’s passage as a defensive coordinator to take away – the Scarlet Knights obtained 19 to remember in 2020, the most since 2012, when he was also the defensive coordinator.
This is a region that Rutgers was not good in last season – Schiano Monday said that the Scarlet Knights were `horrible ” in this category – with 13 take -out dishes.
Sparber, from Norwood, was the coach of the seconds at James Madison last season. The dukes were third nationally with 29 acquired reversals.
“I had spoken to Zach probably five years ago when we came here, and he was to Virginia Tech at the time,” said Schiano. “I remember being very impressed. This guy is a young pointed child, and he had a huge experience since working with large defensive football coaches. I kept an eye on him. Rob brought him to me and I said:” Yes, I know who he is. “Talking to him, I had a few conversations where I was impressed and I could feel his energy.
Together, Smith and Sparber will lead a defense that Rutgers has reorganized in recent months by providing seven transfers.
“I think it will work well,” said Schiano. “As I have noted, Rob will call it, but Zach is a huge hammer of the implementation of the defense, management, the implementation of the match plan, and I’m sure there will be a lot of discussions even with the two on the day of the match.”
This article originally appeared on Northjersey.com: Rutgers Football: why Greg Schiano hired two defensive coordinators
