Chris Ash

A look at the scoreboard today inside SHI Stadium showed a Rutgers’ 30-16 loss to Boston College when the last second had ticked off the clock. Rutgers showed some signs of being able to pull off the upset at times, but it could not quite get over that proverbial hump.

But that has been part of the narrative of the Chris Ash era at Rutgers.

At times, the fourth-year head coach has given the fan base some semblance of hope by stringing together glimpses of decent play. But whether it is a penalty, a big play, or a turnover, something always seems to happen to favor the opponent. And Rutgers’ hopes then come crashing down, sending another pang of defeat through its players, alumni and fan base.

The same scenario has also applied to recruiting.

Ash has done a decent job of staying in the race for some top-level recruits. But when decision day arrives, the most common result is the prospect choosing a school other than Rutgers.

These aforementioned components are only part of the narrative and they are actually the good part.

Now for the bad.

One-sided defeats have become synonymous with the Ash era at Rutgers. His teams have been shut out seven times over the past 39 games. Ash has managed just eight wins in that time, three of which have come against power five opponents. Five of those eight wins have been commanded by different starting quarterbacks. All the while, the offense has been anemic.

Ash has also failed to piece together a recruiting class that has finished 12th, 9th 13th and 14th in the Big Ten. Keep in mind there are 14 teams in the Big Ten.

Add in the fact that a home sellout is more like a distant memory or some sort of fable told to the younger generation of Rutgers fans. Today, as Ash added another loss to his resume at the hands of Boston College, there was an announced crowd of 32,217. But that number was wishful thinking as there did not appear to be that many fans in the stands.

Down on the field, this was a must-win game for Ash. This was a Boston College team that had significant flaws on both sides of the football. It was a team that will not strike much fear into its future ACC opponents. It was a team that lost to Kansas 48-24 last week. And it was a team that handled Rutgers 30-16.

This is just the latest loss in a string of losses as Ash continues to prove he can’t get the job done at Rutgers.

The Scarlet Knights are 1-2 with nine games to go, but with a slate of opponents more formidable than Boston College, things do not look good.

Today was a day for Ash to change at least part of the narrative that has defined his career at Rutgers.

But he didn’t. Once again, he failed.

Next week, a ranked Michigan team awaits Rutgers as things will only get tougher. After today’s loss, Ash was asked about if he is concerned about his job security.

“No. I'm worried about our football team,” was the extent of his reply.

It’s difficult to fathom that statement being entirely true. Anyone who has followed Rutgers football over the past few years is privy to the fact that Ash’s teams continue to take steps backwards. And while more talk of Ash’s future at Rutgers will continue to resonate this week, the narrative was being written over the past four years.

The beginning of the end has already started for Chris Ash at Rutgers and it appears to be only a matter of time before the administration decides to find someone else who can start telling another story.