Rutgers' Paul James runs drills at football practice

Can Paul James and the Scarlet Knights pull off the upset at Ohio State?

(Patti Sapone/The Star-Ledger)

This could be one of those articles Rutgers players stick on their lockers before their Oct. 18 game against Ohio State.

Cleveland.com's Doug Lesmerises -- who spoke to our own Dan Duggan a few days ago -- the Scarlet Knights a 2 percent chance of coming away with a victory in the game on the road. Here's his reasoning:

And how could Rutgers keep up with Ohio State? Greg Schiano -- the former Rutgers head coach -- is an X-factor, strangely enough.

"Urban Meyer has talked a couple times about how close he is with former Rutgers coach Greg Schiano," Lesmerises wrote. "He swung by Ohio State practice in the spring. What if that was a spy mission to gather intel for Rutgers and head coach Kyle Flood, who was an assistant under Schiano? The Scarlet Knights may know the plans. They may know the plans."

Finally, his projection is "a long day for Rutgers as the school tries to embrace a new day" with the Scarlet Knights lacking depth to keep up with Ohio State.

If Rutgers needs added motivation for this contest, the Scarlet Knights might have found it.