Stephen Edelson

@steveedelsonAPP

It's always the case when a new coach with a different formula and seemingly boundless energy comes to town.

So while everything is different, from the playbook and the way practices are structured, to the way players eat and train, everyone clad in scarlet in the vicinity of the Hale Center is on board with the changes taking place within the Rutgers football program.

Of course, that's before anyone’s had a helmet driven up into their chin or gotten beaten on a long touchdown pass.

Positive reinforcement is the cornerstone of any paradigm shift within an organization.

And with second- and third-string teammates about to be replaced by No. 14 Washington on Saturday, faith figures to be tough to come by on the other side of the continent in Husky Stadium.

But even if the Scarlet Knight’s don’t win – as 26-point underdogs, it would be an historic upset if they did – enough good things need to happen, in what will be an incredibly hostile setting, so that when they board the charter flight home Saturday night there’s a feeling that what they’re doing still makes sense.

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Because coming home with a stronger belief than ever in what coach Chris Ash is preaching might be the biggest takeaway of all from a monumentally tough season opener.

"That culture building never stops,’’ said Ash on his establishing the changes within the program. ``It's a constant, consistent message that always has to be talked about. And that never goes away. and whenever myself or the coaches have an opportunity to continue to build the culture that we want here, we have to do that, whether it's in meetings, whether it's on the practice field, whether it's in games. Just the way we behave and perform and respond to events that come up. So that's a never-ending process.’’

On one side of the ball you have a new scheme and different mentality trying to put three straight seasons of really, really bad defense in the rearview mirror. And they’ll try to accomplish that against a Washington offense featuring two young stars in quarterback Jake Browning and running back Myles Gaskin, both sophomores.

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Come out aggressive. Make some stops. Build a little confidence. Don’t get steamrolled.

It’s easy to say, but it won’t be that none of it will be easy to do for a group that gave up 656 yards against Maryland in the final game last season.

``Everything is different now, but we really like this defense and what we’re doing,’’ safety Anthony Cioffi said.

Offensively, making plays will be a challenge in the post-Leonte Carroo era, with quarterback Chris Laviano now plugged in to a spread offense better suited for the Cam Newton’s of the football world. But nothing you can do in practice will raise a unit’s confidence like finding ways to create positive yardage and moving the chains against a committed opponent.

The challenges are great, but so are the rewards if Rutgers can produce moments that provide glimpses of a brighter future.

There have been plenty of rewards and reinforcements so far. From players getting ``Knighted,’’ showing the coaching staff they’re ready for game action, to the Iron Knight award for work in the weight room.

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Now the accolades have to be earned in live action. That means something has to happen on the field for the process of establishing a new cultural to continue unabated.

And if that happens enough, regardless of the final score, then the new foundation for Rutgers football will continue to build.

Staff Writer Stephen Edelson is an Asbury Park Press columnist:sedelson@gannettnj.com