In adding two former players to his Rutgers football staff, Greg Schiano likes the mentality and synergy: ‘They understand our culture’
PISCATAWAY, N.J. — There hasn’t been much change to the coaching staff this offseason for Rutgers football, a rare period of stability in what seems like otherwise turbulent times in college football. But for Rutgers football and head coach Greg Schiano, the addition of two coaches to the staff are important in that they bring a singularity of purpose to their roles.
In mid-February, Rutgers promoted Scott Vallone to be the new tight ends coach. And last week, David Rowe was hired by Rutgers to be defensive quality control.
The connection here is simple to understand for Schiano: Both Vallone and Rowe are former Rutgers players. And more than that, both also played for Schiano.
Make no mistakes about it, Schiano runs a tight detail-oriented program. Vallone has been with the program since Schiano returned in 2020 and has paid his dues through the system. Rowe comes with an impressive resume where most recently was the secondary coach at Houston.
“More importantly than the system, they understand our culture. You know, systems change, details change, but the culture is not going to change,” Schiano said on Tuesday.
“That’s who we are. That’s how we operate. And Scott has earned his way, right? Scott stepped away – he was at Fordham and he was in a leadership role. And he stepped away four years ago when we came back and sacrificed for our program, came here as a quality control assistant, and worked his way up and we all felt and Kirk (offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca) and I especially felt that Scott deserved the opportunity to be tight ends coach. And he’s doing a great job. So, excited about that.”
Prior to joining the Rutgers staff, Vallone was the defensive line coach at Fordham from 2018-19. At Rutgers, he was a standout defensive tackle who spent time in the NFL with three teams.
As for Rowe, he has quickly earned a reputation as a young and exciting coach. A former three-star recruit from Florida, Rowe should be an asset for Rutgers in terms of recruiting.
Rutgers had targeted Rowe last year for part of its coaching staff. The time turned turned out to be right for both parties this offseason.
“We had the opportunity. David Rowe was available, which is rare that a guy of that quality is available this time of year,” Schiano said.
“But when we had the opportunity to get him we certainly did it without thinking because he’s an excellent DB coach and you guys remember him as a player. That same approach – he was always a very smart player. He’s a he’s a very smart coach, and fits right in with our defensive staff. I think he’s going to help in many ways.”
