Greg Schiano isn’t talking like a coach trying to sneak Rutgers into the bowl picture anymore. He’s talking like someone who believes the Scarlet Knights can aim all the way at the top.
In a wide-ranging interview with Yogi Roth, Schiano said his endgame at Rutgers is bigger than being respectable in the Big Ten or stacking up bowl appearances.
“My goal is to win the national championship at Rutgers,” Schiano said. “Can it be done?
I don’t know. We’re going to find out.
I believe it can.”
That’s one goal. Schiano drew a sharp line between that and what he called his coaching mission: helping young men at Rutgers grow into “great husbands, fathers, and leaders.”
On the football side, he said the program is moving into a different phase than the one he knew during his first run in charge. The biggest reason, in his view, is something Rutgers has never truly had before: full alignment from the top.
“We’ve never had vertical alignment from the president down through the athletic director to the football coach,” Schiano said. “And for the first time, we do.”
That includes Rutgers University President William F. Tate IV and Rutgers Athletics Director Keli Zinn, who was hired in July of 2025 after serving as the Executive Deputy Athletic Director and Chief Operating Officer for LSU’s athletics department. Since arriving, Zinn has worked to reshape Rutgers’ NIL operation and modernize its approach to revenue generation, according to her official Rutgers biography.
Schiano said Tate’s SEC background and Zinn’s experience in successful Power Four athletic departments have changed the way Rutgers is positioned. In his words, the rest of the league has been operating at a higher level for a while.
“The other teams have been operating, in our league at least, at full capacity,” Schiano said. “But we’re now in the game.”
He also made clear that Rutgers doesn’t have to lead the Big Ten financially to be competitive. What matters, he said, is getting into the middle of that financial range and using it wisely.
“As long as we can be in there in the middle of the financial area, we’re going to figure out ways to make it work,” Schiano said. “And that’s what we’re starting to do.”
That support has already shown up in roster retention. Schiano pointed to wide receiver KJ Duff, running back Antwan Raymond and offensive lineman Kwabena “Kobe” Asamoah as players Rutgers simply had to keep.
“Those three guys were musts. Had to retain them, and we were able to do that. So, that’s a clear sign of where we’re headed.”
For Schiano, keeping the players already in the building is the foundation. He said Rutgers is spending its biggest dollars on its own best players, because those are the guys the staff knows best.
“I believe that you spend the biggest portion of your money retaining your best players because you know them best,” Schiano said. “You’re making a bet on a guy that’s not really a bet because you know them. They’re family.”
That added support has also given Rutgers more flexibility in recruiting high school players who are further along, instead of leaning almost entirely on long-term development projects.
On the coaching staff, Schiano praised new defensive coordinator Travis Johansen, who comes to Rutgers after guiding South Dakota to a 2025 FCS quarterfinal run in his first year as head coach. Johansen had previously coordinated six top-10 defenses and brings 14 years of defensive coordinator experience to Piscataway, according to Rutgers Athletics.
Schiano described Johansen as an “organized” football person and a fundamentally “disciplined” person, and said he has brought a “great” defensive unit together.
With a better roster, more support staff and more backing from the university, Schiano said he believes Rutgers is finally set up to keep climbing.
“I do believe the best is yet to come,” Schiano said. “I think that this school, this program, is finally in a position where we’re in the league. I believe that.”
Schiano recently turned 60, but he told Roth he feels closer to 30 and still has plenty of energy for what comes next.
“We’ve done some really neat things here that haven’t been done,” Schiano said, “but nothing compared to what we’re going to do.”
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