Schiano ready for skill of WVU offense

Greg Schiano is in his 11th season as head coach of the Scarlet Knights.

Schiano has successfully built a Rutgers program since taking the helm in 2001.

Schiano and the Scarlet Knights will host No. 24 West Virginia Saturday afternoon at High Point Solutions Stadium in Piscataway, N.J.

The veteran head coach put it simply when he described the Mountaineers in his weekly press conference Tuesday.

"They've been one of the best teams in the league," Schiano said.

Rutgers is coming off a loss to Big East Conference foe Louisville last weekend. Coach Schiano understands his team must bounce back quickly and West Virginia will bring a high-powered offense to town this weekend.

"This is the by far the best skill we've faced," Schiano said. "They have four wide receivers that are as good as we've played. Geno (Smith) is playing at a very high level. This will be a big test."

Rutgers is currently 2-1 in Big East play and are also 4-0 at home this season. With first place in the Big East Conference reachable for both teams, expect Rutgers and West Virginia to put it all on the line.

"It's a big football game in the Big East Conference," Schiano said. "Every game is a championship game since we don't have one at the end of the year."

West Virginia was defeated by Syracuse Friday night, 49-23.

The Orange dominated the game on all three sides of the ball. Even though Rutgers played at the same time Friday night, coach Schiano and his staff were able to look at the tape and see why Syracuse was so successful.

"They effectively put pressure on (Geno) Smith," Schiano said. "They hit him a lot. The biggest thing they did was score 49 points."

West Virginia defeated Rutgers a season ago, 35-14. Mountaineer quarterback Geno Smith had an impressive game, while throwing for 352 yards and one touchdown. But, Schiano believes Smith has improved this year.

"He makes every throw with ease," Schiano said. "He's got guys that will go up and compete for it. They don't lack depth at the skills positions that's for sure."

Schiano feels one facet of the Mountaineer offense separates it from prior opponents.

"They're fast, so the challenge is there," Schiano said.