Rutgers’ defensive line took a hit this week with the dismissal of second-year edge rusher Wydeek-Collier Johnson for a violation of team rules, a person with knowledge of the situation told NJ.com on Tuesday.
Collier-Johnson, a former four-star recruit from Philadelphia, appeared in three games last fall and logged 10 snaps in what became his only season on the field for the Scarlet Knights. He came to Rutgers last summer after reclassifying into the 2025 class, arriving as a 6-foot-7 pass rusher out of Neumann Goretti High School.
The path to Rutgers had plenty of recruiting drama attached to it. Running back coach Damiere Shaw, who is also from Philadelphia, was the primary recruiter and helped land Collier-Johnson over Penn State and Florida State. Shaw then played a major role in bringing him to Rutgers a year early as bigger programs kept pushing for him.
That early arrival had set up a bigger opportunity this season. Collier-Johnson was expected to take on a larger role in 2026, especially on third downs, and his exit trims into a defensive line group trying to rebound after a disappointing fall.
Greg Schiano had been openly bullish on his potential in the spring.
“I do (see a role for him this fall,” head coach Greg Schiano said in the spring. “I think he’s a tremendous athlete.
He’s a big athlete. Certainly two years from now, he’s going to be a much bigger athlete, but even now, he’s put on probably 25, 30 pounds and is a really physical, violent player.
He’s really strong hands and can knock things back, and then as he just gets more (pounds) behind him, that knockback will even get more significant. But he’s an incredible athlete for a man his size, and, yeah, he can help us.”
In Other News...
Rutgers Suddenly Has A New Defensive Question To Answer
Rutgers has lost a promising piece of its defensive front after dismissing edge rusher Wydeek Collier-Johnson from the football team. The 6-foot-7 defensive lineman from Philadelphia arrived early to get a head start on his college career, and he already had a small taste of game action last season, appearing in three games without showing up in the stat sheet.
The move leaves the Scarlet Knights with another depth question as they continue sorting out the edge of their defense. Collier-Johnson was part of the group Rutgers hoped to develop for the future, so his exit creates an opening the staff now has to address while the roster takes shape for the season ahead. [Read more 🡒]
Rutgers QB Battle Is Reaching A Decision Point Fast
Rutgers quarterback competition has reached the point where the coaching staff can no longer keep kicking the can down the road. Greg Schiano and offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarroca have said the battle remains very close, with AJ Surace and Dylan Lonergan still pushing each other and no clear leader emerging yet as camp moves toward a key evaluation stretch.
The next checkpoint is an upcoming scrimmage, after which Schiano and Ciarroca intend to settle the question based on the full picture, from leadership and decision-making to overall improvement. While that offense race stays unsettled, there is at least some optimism around the other side of the ball, where former player Jake Butt and others have pointed to encouraging signs for the defense under new coordinator Travis Johansen. [Read more 🡒]