After weeks of bad weather, injuries, and general pessimism towards this season's team, the sun finally shone on the Rutgers University Scarlet Knights Football team on Saturday.  With the temperature reaching the mid-70's and bright sunshine filling the stadium, almost 16,000 fans packed the stadium to watch the Scarlet Team defeat the White Team 31-3.  Coach Schiano went as far saying that the game itself had an "all-star game like mentality", the game did answer some burning questions for RU diehards.

Who will quarterback this team?  Well, Domenic Natale was basically named the man to beat by Schiano last week, and all he did in this game was complete 11 of 19 passes for 187 yards and a touchdown, and most importantly, zero turnovers.  Natale has proven so far in the team's scrimmages that he is content staying with-in himself, and not trying to do too much.  Without a doubt he is the man to beat come summer, and barring some strange turn of events, will almost certainly be the man under center on opening day against Cincinatti.

Who will run the ball?  Well, I'd say 3 touchdowns is a pretty good day.  How about 3 in one quarter?  Joe Martinek plunged into the endzone 3 times in the second quarter and ran for 79 yards on 19 carries, showing that he is the man to beat in the backfield this summer.  With such a strong stable of RB's to choose from (Brooks, Putnam, Young), Martinek may have just cemented himself a starting position come this fall.  His elusiveness and shiftiness is an asset, and he reminds me of Ray Rice in the way that he refuses to go down, and just drags defenders along.

Who will catch the ball?  Well, Tim Brown has spent his seasons at RU disappearing for long stretches, then showing up when it matters most (bowl games vs. KSU, BSU).  And Timmy decided to show up again yesterday.  Brown had 5 catches for 116 yards and looked sharp.  But even more exciting for RU fans should be the emergence of Mohamed Sanu, whose proving himself to be a jack-of-all-trades.  Last we saw of Sanu he was returning punts in last weeks scrimmage, but this week he was given a chance at WR, and he was impressive.  Sanu caught four passes for 43 yards and a touchdown (17 yards on a quick slant).  It's up in the air whether Sanu will remain on the offensive side of the ball, but it's good to see someone step up when given the opportunity. 

Also of note, San San Te kicked field goals of 29 and 20 yards, and seems to have recovered well from his back injury.

With all the question marks surrounding Rutgers football this Spring, it feels good to just sit back and exhale after this game, if only until summer practices begin.  It seems that Schiano has found his QB, his RB, and his main weapon at WR, and now has a nucleus to build around.  The defense will be stout (as it always is), and the O-line will be the strength of this team.  If RU can win the specials teams and defensive battles in their games, they should be in position for a great 2009 campaign.

Lots of other coverage from around the internet, so take a look and let us know what you think in the comments section:

• CentralJersey.com has a look at Greg Schiano's quotes from his postgame press conference.
• Here's NJO.com's take of the Scarlet-White game.
• The winners of this years Spring Awards were announced at Saturday's game.