LIBERTY, AT LAST
it slowed down for him a little bit and he played with confidence and he played like he was having fun. It was great to see him do that and I’m really happy for him and really proud of him.”
Campanile said he was proud of all of his players, not just for the win itself, but for doing so in the face of adversity with so much negativity surrounding the program as of late.
It’s been a tough few weeks and they have gotten a lot of criticism and they have heard a lot of really negative things from people outside the program and they stayed together,” Campanile said. “They believed in each other. They went out and played really hard for each other…every day, you know, I’m sure, if you have a phone, which everyone does, all you hear is how bad we are and worst team and this and that. It’s not true. It’s a young team with really good kids that are fighting really hard for each other.
“What I think you saw there today, in a couple years, you’ll see guys playing offense like that every week. There’s like seven or eight freshmen and sophomores out there playing, and when those guys are juniors and seniors they are going to be really good players. I’m really proud of them. They believed in themselves when other people didn’t believe in them. I’m not saying we are going to go out and put up 500 yards every week, but they showed themselves that they are capable of performing at the level they came here expecting. I think that at least they know that there’s a bright future there where those guys can come out and do it every week.”
It certainly was the case on Saturday, where the Scarlet Knights (2-6) and Flames (53) were seemingly locked into a first half that was mostly devoid of any defense being played; each team found the end zone in their first three possessions before Rutgers finally forced a Liberty punt with the score tied 21-21 with under two minutes remaining in the second quarter.
Carrying the momentum that came with both that late defensive stop and an Isiah Pacheco scoring run as well as Langan’s two first half scores — one each on the ground and through the air — the Scarlet Knights found themselves pulling away in the second half. Langan’s second touchdown pass on the day, a 51-yard strike to Isaiah Washington, gave Rutgers a lead they ultimately would never relinquish; Pacheco added another touchdown run, and three Justin Davidovicz field goals accounted for the final margin of victory.
“It’s a great feeling,” Langan said. “Not many better feelings than winning a football game so I’m really happy right now.”
Making it all the more sweet was that they did it when seemingly everyone said they couldn’t.
“It’s hard, because people always have things to say about you whether you’re up or you’re down,” said sophomore defensive lineman Mike Tverdov. “You just have to be a man about things and just ignore it, because those people aren’t in your position. It’s extremely hard nowadays to be a college football player, so just doing the right things and making sure that you’re doing everything in your power to be the best player and person you can be, I think you’ll be fine.”
He was then asked if anything specific that had been said had maybe gotten to him. His answer spoke to the celebratory mood the players were in after a hard-earned and difficult-to-come-by victory.
“Jersey is Jersey,” Tverdov said through a smile. “Jersey people are always going to have something to say, but we love them.”