By Ryan Dunleavy | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Two days before season-opening kickoff, Rutgers offense took a hit, but its defense got a lift.

Coach Chris Ash announced after practice that wide receiver Jawuan Harris has been suspended for violation of team rules, while defensive end Kemoko Turay has been medically cleared to play against Washington.

Harris' suspension explains why he was not listed on the official two-deep released earlier this week.

Don't Edit

Harris, a two-sport athlete, was slowed during summer workouts because of an injury suffered late in baseball season. The team's leading receiver in 2016 took most of his training camp reps with the second-team offense.

Turay had a dominant offseason going all the way back to the spring before missing the final week-plus of training camp due to injury. He was out of a non-contact black jersey on Wednesday.

Washington has suspended two players, including an All-American linebacker, for the game against Rutgers.

Here is what Ash said about Harris, Turay and other topics:

Don't Edit

Andrew Mills | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Q: Jawuan Harris isn't on the two-deep. How come?

Don't Edit

“Right now for this game Jawuan Harris has got a one-game suspension for (violation of) team rules. But after that he’ll be fine.’’

Don't Edit

Hayden Rettig gets the shot he never had at Rutgers

'I don't know what I did to Kyle Flood'

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Q: What kind of training camp did he have before the suspension?

Don't Edit

“He’s done a nice job. He’s been limited a little bit. He was slowed in the summer from a back injury, carried over into camp a little bit. But he’s healthy now and doing some good stuff.’’

Don't Edit

Q: When your team is a big underdog, do you use that as a motivating factor or instill that in their minds?

Don't Edit

“Some guys do. We do sometimes, maybe based on a situation. Our motivating factor is going out and playing the best football that we can play to be honest with you. Being an underdog is someone else’s opinion, not ours. And we’re focused on going out and playing the best football that we can possibly play.

"I believe that type of stuff can only carry you so far anyway. When the foot hits the ball it’s about executing, it’s about playing hard, it’s about playing for each other, and doing it for four quarters.’’

Don't Edit

What are the 3 key games on Rutgers' schedule?

2 definitions of key games

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

John Munson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Q: Why did you move DT Kevin Wilkins to the edge?

Don't Edit

“Well, he does both. It just depends on the front. He does both. I think Kevin, for a 300-pounder, has really good feet and hips. He’s one of our more athletic defensive linemen. We’re blessed to have more big guys than we have speed guys off the edge right now. So he’s doing a little bit of both.’’

Don't Edit

Q: After naming Andrew Harte as your kicker, what's your confidence in the kicking game?

Don't Edit

“We’ll find out when we play. I like what (Andrew Harte) and David (Bonagura) did in practice. Andrew was probably a little bit more consistent here in the end of training camp. That’s why he beat David out.

"David’s still got a little issue with his back from the spring. He’s almost 100 percent but not quite. Andrew beat him out fair and square through competition through all of training camp. He’s earned the right to go out there. It doesn’t mean that David won’t at some point depending on how Andrew does.’’

Don't Edit

Rutgers game-by-game predictions

Sargeant

Politi

Dunleavy

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

John Munson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Q: Do you have a backup quarterback?

Don't Edit

“It’s two guys. It’s Gio (Rescigno) and Johnathan (Lewis) are both backup quarterbacks.’’

Don't Edit

Q: Who's the first guy in if something unfortuante happens to QB Kyle Bolin?

Don't Edit

“All based on the situation.’’

Don't Edit

Meet the surprise Rutgers starter who followed Jerry Kill, Wall Street

An unsung graduate transfer within the Big Ten wins the job

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

RVision

Q: What's the reason for the afternoon/evening practices this year?

Don't Edit

“When we went back and evaluated our season last year, No. 1, I go back to my experiences in 20-some years of coaching, they’ve all been in the afternoon. I look at our football team, I look at the class schedules here at Rutgers, and we’re getting the players up at 6 a.m. and the majority of them have night classes until 10 p.m. so there’s not a lot of sleep. So when you go through a week like that you are tired when Saturday comes.

Don't Edit

"I just think changing the schedule and changing the class routine hopefully we can allow our players to get more sleep throughout the course of the week and be better rested for Saturday. I know there were a lot of conversations about slow starts and things like that on Saturdays. We don’t ever play a game at 9 a.m., we play games in the afternoons and evenings. And I think it will serve our team better to practice and train at those times.’’

Don't Edit

Q: So the majority of players are done with classes before practice starts?

Don't Edit

"Yeah, the majority. There are some that are going to have night classes still. They won't all go until 10 o'clock. We have a lot less that are going to be in that situation. We'll do morning workouts in the spring, but here during fall we're going to switch and go back to traditional afternoon practices.

"You talk to 15 different coaches and they all have different opinions. I just go back to my experiences nad what I think is best for preparation for coaches and gives the players an opportunity to rest and recover and be at their best on Saturdays."

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Aristide Economopoulos | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Q: Has Kemoko Turay been cleared yet?

Don't Edit

"He's doing great. Kemoko has been cleared. He has missed some time during training camp, so we're trying to catch him up to speed on some stuff. He's been out here all this week practicing."

Don't Edit

Q: In recruiting, how valuable are the next couple weeks when kids can be on campus again?

Don't Edit

"Recruiting is valuable every day. We never stop recruiting. There was a dead period here in August, but we're on the phone with recruits all the time. That never stops. The guys in the 2018 class need to go out and have a great senior year. They don't need the distractions of being on campus at this time.

"They need to be out and focused on their team and being the best senior leader or captain or whatever it may be for their football team. The break is great. We're in conversations with recruits all the time. It's going to be good to get them on campus for games. But at this time of year I want to make sure they are taking care of their team and their senior year back home."

Don't Edit

5 new Rutgers players in 2017

Where they came from

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Q: Knowing you are focused on the game, can you appreciate everything that is happening around the game with the 'War Before the Shore' promotion?

Don't Edit

"Honestly, I don't know much about any of it. We're going to pull up and go through the Scarlet Walk and walk the field and go in the locker room and get ready for the game. Hopefully, a bunch of fans show up and have a great experience and have a great time.

"That's what college football is all about -- the fan experience. "Hopefully it's going to be a great environment for that, but honestly I'm not aware of everything that is going on."

Don't Edit

Andrew Mills | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Q: What improvements has the secondary made after last year?

Don't Edit

"I think our secondary played pretty good last year. I expect us to play even better because we've got the majority of it back. I really like that group back there. They are playing fast, they communicate well, they get their hands on the ball. In practice, we've been tackling at a very high level in the secondary.

"They've been doing it consistently from Day One. Our secondary, we weren't perfect, but we made huge improvements throughout the course of last year, and I would expect us to build on that this season."

Don't Edit

Why is parking at Johnson Park off limits to Rutgers fans?

An explanation from Pat Hobbs, Middlesex County

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Q: Washington had two returns for touchdowns last season. Are you better equiped to handle that this season?

Don't Edit

"I hope so. We weren't very good on special teams last year, but last year is last year. You look at our special teams right now. Our starting punt team is probably going to have -- if not all 11 -- at least 10 of the 11 guys are different than the guys who played in this game last year. What does that mean? I don't know. We'll find out.

"The true test will be what happens Friday night. I can sit here and tell you all these things about what we can do, what's going to happen. None of it matters until we get into the game. This is a very good football team we are going to play. They have a lot of players back. It's a going to be a huge challenge for us. We're excited about the challenge, but it's going to be a huge challenge. We're excited to go out and see where we're at."

Don't Edit

Rutgers sports talk with Ryan Dunleavy, Keith Sargeant, Steve Politi

Don't Edit

Ryan Dunleavy can be reached at rdunleavy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @rydunleavy.