Rutgers Football Team Qualifies for Bowl With Win Over South Florida

It came down to the very last game of the season, but the Rutgers University football team qualified for a bowl game for the eighth consecutive season with a 31-6 win over South Florida at home Saturday night.

According to scarletknights.com and espn.com, Rutgers will likely play Notre Dame in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium on Dec. 28. Bowl matchups will be announced on Sunday.

Rutgers (6-6 overall, 3-5 in the conference) had two first quarter touchdowns and never looked back. Senior quarterback Chas Dodd made his second consecutive start and tossed two touchdown passes in the win.

Dodd was 19-of-24 passing for 179 yards. He threw a 12-yard scoring pass to freshman wide receiver Andre Patton and a 2-yard score to junior fullback Michael Burton, of Long Valley. He now has 23 career touchdowns, according to the University.

Sophomore running back Paul James, of Glassboro, carried the ball 26 times for 113 yards and two touchdowns, on runs of 5 yards and 1 yard. It was his fourth 100-yard rushing game this season, according to the University.

Senior kicker and West Windsor-Plainsboro North product Joe Behnke added a 20-yard field goal in the fourth quarter.

It was the second time this season the Rutgers defense didn't surrender a touchdown, with the other time coming in a 38-0 win over Norfolk State in September.

South Florida finished the season with a 2-10 overall record. The Bulls were 2-6 in the American Athletic Conference this season.