Rutgers beat Washington 4-0 for the first time since 2012

Rutgers fought back but failed to pull out a narrow 21-18 win Friday against Washington — last year’s national championship runner-up — to move to 4-0 for the first time since 2012.

Quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis and running back Kyle Monangai led the offense.

And when they needed it, several stupid penalties from the Huskies helped the Scarlet Knights.

The nationally televised game against Rutgers was the first Big Ten match of the year after facing Howard, Akron and Virginia Tech earlier in the season.

Kaliakmanis completed 14 of 24 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown.

Monangai posted his third consecutive 100-yard rushing game on a night in which he passed Isiah Pacheco and moved into seventh place on Rutgers’ all-time rushing list.

Monangai ran for 132 yards, including a confident rush in which he blocked several tackles and gained 42 yards in the third quarter.

The Huskies managed to make the game interesting with a drive in the final minute, trailing by just three.

Washington was able to get the ball into Rutgers territory with a series of passes before kicker Grady Gross missed a 55-yard field goal attempt wide left as time expired.

It was his third missed field goal of the game.

The Rutgers sideline spilled onto the field and the lights flickered in celebration as the final whistle blew.

The Blackout Game at SHI Stadium drew 54,079 fans, the second highest attendance in its history.

“You could feel it in this stadium tonight. That’s what Big Ten football is all about and that’s what I want for New Jersey,” said Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano. “This is what I have always wanted for New Jersey, to exist in our state. … Tonight was a good step, but that’s all. It’s a victory. It’s exciting; It is good.”

Monangai’s 1-yard rushing touchdown run with 11:16 left in the second quarter erased a 3-0 Scarlet Knights deficit.

Later in the second game, the Scarlet Knights took advantage of one of the Huskies’ biggest mistakes of the night.

Washington blocked a 38-yard field goal attempt by Rutgers, but it was nullified when Vince Holmes was called for an illegal substitution to breathe new life into Rutgers.

On the ensuing play, Kaliakmanis connected with receiver Ian Strong for a jump-ball touchdown, extending the Scarlet Knights’ lead to 14-3 with 30 seconds left before halftime.

Late in the third quarter, Washington finally found the end zone in a six-play drive that culminated in Huskies quarterback Will Rodgers finding Denzel Boston for a 51-yard touchdown pass.

While the touchdown late in the third quarter pulled the Huskies to within five, Rutgers responded with a touchdown of its own 4:03 into the final quarter as Samuel Brown V powered his way to a 37-yard scoring run to take the lead 21-21 expanded. 10.

The Huskies managed to cut the lead with a drive late in the game in the fourth quarter, cutting Rutgers’ lead to three on a drive that started at the Washington 24-yard line.

It culminated in the Huskies staying alive with a short rush on fourth-and-1 before Rodgers connected with Boston in the end zone.

The Huskies completed the two-point conversion, cutting the lead to 21-18 with 1:40 left.

Washington opened the scoring with a 22-yard field goal, marking the first time since November 25 that Rutgers allowed an opponent to score in the first quarter.

On Friday, the Huskies and Scarlet Knights faced off for the first time since 2017 and was Washington’s first road game against a Big Ten opponent as a member of the conference.

“Hats off to you, Greg [Schiano’s] have done. He immediately put the thing back together. I think the fans and the students are evolving and growing with him,” said Huskies coach Jedd Fisch.