1981 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team

The 1981 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team represented Rutgers University in the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their ninth season under head coach Frank R. Burns, the Scarlet Knights compiled a 5–6 record while competing as an independent and were outscored by their opponents 208 to 139.^[1][2] The team's statistical leaders included Ralph Leek with 926 passing yards, Albert Ray with 679 rushing yards, and Andrew Baker with 356 receiving yards.^[3]

1981 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football
Conference	Independent
Record	5–6
Head coach	Frank R. Burns (9th season)
Home stadium	Rutgers Stadium Giants Stadium
Seasons ← 1980 1982 →

1981 Major eastern college football independents records

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 3 Penn State $	5	–	0	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
No. 4 Pittsburgh	5	–	1	–	0			11	–	1	–	0
No. 17 West Virginia	3	–	3	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
Temple	2	–	3	–	0			5	–	5	–	0
Syracuse	2	–	4	–	0			4	–	6	–	1
Boston College	1	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Rutgers	1	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
$ – Lambert Trophy Winner Rankings from AP Poll

1981 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 4 Pittsburgh		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
No. 3 Penn State		–		–				10	–	2	–	0
No. 8 Miami (FL)		–		–				9	–	2	–	0
Southern Miss		–		–				9	–	2	–	1
No. 17 West Virginia		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
Colgate		–		–				7	–	3	–	0
Virginia Tech		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Navy		–		–				7	–	4	–	1
Cincinnati		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Florida State		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Holy Cross		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Tulane		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
UNLV		–		–				6	–	6	–	0
South Carolina		–		–				6	–	6	–	0
Temple		–		–				5	–	5	–	0
Boston College		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
East Carolina		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Northeast Louisiana		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Louisville		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Notre Dame		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Rutgers		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
William & Mary		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Syracuse		–		–				4	–	6	–	1
Richmond		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Army		–		–				3	–	7	–	1
North Texas State		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Georgia Tech		–		–				1	–	10	–	0
Memphis State		–		–				1	–	10	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 5	at Syracuse	Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY	W 29–27	38,715	[4]
September 12	Colgate	Rutgers Stadium Piscataway, NJ	W 13–5	18,655	[5]
September 18	Virginia	Rutgers Stadium Piscataway, NJ	W 3–0	22,816	[6]
September 26	at Cincinnati	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH	L 0–10	13,657	[7]
October 3	Cornell	Rutgers Stadium Piscataway, NJ	W 31–17	10,125	[8]
October 10	at Army	Michie Stadium West Point, NY	W 17–0	40,567	[9]
October 17	Temple	Rutgers Stadium Piscataway, NJ	L 12–24	22,189	[10]
October 24	at No. 11 Alabama	Bryant–Denny Stadium Tuscaloosa, AL	L 7–31	60,210	[11]
November 7	No. 1 Pittsburgh	Giants Stadium East Rutherford, NJ	L 3–47	34,636	[12]
November 14	at West Virginia	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	L 3–20	44,395	[13]
November 21	at Boston College	Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA	L 21–27	16,500	[14]
Rankings from Coaches' Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1981 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class RB 31 Joe Burke Jr C 61 Mike Flynn Jr WR 84 Jed Karpinski Jr QB Jacque LaPrarie Fr QB 7 Ralph Leek Jr C 59 Frank Naylor Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class CB 4 Carl Howard Jr DT 62 Bill Pickel Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Frank R. Burns Coordinators/assistant coaches Greg Gigantino (Defensive line coach) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "1981 Rutgers Scarlet Knights Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
2. "Rutgers Yearly Results (1980-1984)". College Football Data Warehouse. David DeLassus. Archived from the original on March 27, 2016. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
3. "1981 Rutgers Scarlet Knights Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
4. "Rutgers edges Orange, 29–17". The Buffalo News. September 6, 1981. Retrieved October 31, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Rutgers Needs 2 FGs, 1 Bomb to Edge Colgate". The Sunday Press. Binghamton, N.Y. September 13, 1981. p. 5B – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Kickers give undefeated Rutgers needed lift". The Sunday Record. September 19, 1981. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Rutgers jolted, 10–0". The Star-Ledger. September 27, 1981. Retrieved October 31, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
8. Newman, Chuck (October 4, 1981). "Defense Gets Rutgers Attack Rolling for Win". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia, Pa. pp. 9-F, 10-F – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Rutgers wins one it needed". The Record. October 11, 1981. Retrieved October 31, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Murphy-passes Owls over Rutgers, 24–12". The Daily Register. October 18, 1981. Retrieved October 31, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Bama varies attack, and buries Rutgers". The Anniston Star. October 25, 1981. Retrieved February 19, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "Pittsburgh proves too much for Rutgers". Asbury Park Press. November 8, 1981. Retrieved October 31, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "West Virginia rips sputtering Scarlet". The Home News. November 15, 1981. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
14. "Boston Coll. 27, Rutgers 21". The Hartford Courant. November 22, 1981. p. C13 – via Newspapers.com.