Rutgers' Savage looks to build on freshman success

PISCATAWAY, N.J. - For the first time in a long time, Tom Savage's mind is clear.

He is not game-planning, he is not trying to learn the schemes and personnel of an opposing defense. The Rutgers quarterback started spring practice Tuesday with one simple goal - he just wants to be better at his job.

"During the season, I was learning on the run," Savage said. "I was learning what defenses were doing, but I wasn't really learning why they were doing it. Now I can focus on why defenses are doing what they're doing and everything that's going on out there.

"It's definitely more relaxed; it's one of the few times since I've been here that I can really focus on fundamentals."

Savage was thrown into the fire as Rutgers' starting quarterback in the second week of his freshman year last season. The next three months of the Springfield (Delaware County) athlete's life were a blur of X's and O's and stadiums packed with tens of thousands of screaming fans, not to mention that pesky task of adjusting to life as a college student.

But a whirlwind freshman season ended with Savage's completing 14 of 27 passes for 294 yards and two touchdowns in Rutgers' 45-24 win over Central Florida in the St. Petersburg Bowl, giving Rutgers a final record of 9-4.

Not bad for someone just one year removed from his high school playing days at Cardinal O'Hara.

The significance of that final game was not lost on Savage's coaches or teammates. Like most of the team's fan base, the Knights are eager to see what Savage can accomplish now that some of that pressure is, at least temporarily, lifted from his shoulders.

"I think back to Tom's first practice as a freshman, and it's already like night and day," Rutgers coach Greg Schiano said. "But this has to be a big spring for him. He's got 15 opportunities this spring to really take the next step as a quarterback."

Savage spent the winter working out with teammates, including sophomore wide receiver Mohamed Sanu.

With the graduation of Tim Brown, the 6-foot-2 Sanu entered the spring as Savage's obvious No. 1 target. The versatile receiver hauled in 51 passes for 639 yards last season to go along with 346 rushing yards, most of which came as a result of Sanu's taking snaps out of the Wildcat formation.

"We only live a couple of doors down from each other. We're really tight - that's my guy," Sanu said of Savage. "We took a couple of weeks off to get our bodies back after the season, but we've been working out together ever since. We just know we have to take what we did last year and get even higher and more proficient."

Sanu and Savage are the youthful cornerstones of one of the youngest teams Rutgers has fielded in Schiano's 10-year tenure at the university.

Sixty-two of the 85 players on Rutgers' roster have at least three years of eligibility remaining.

The Knights are replacing starters at a number of key positions, including three spots on the offensive line.

"We're all scholarship athletes and we all came here to play," Savage said. "The biggest thing about having a young team is bonding with the older guys, and I think our team is really bonding very well right now."

That youth may have created a lot of question marks at Rutgers, but one thing is certain right now: This is Savage's team.

Last year at this time, Savage was an unassuming high school senior who attended spring practice as a spectator.

Now he's on the field as the experienced leader expected to guide Rutgers for the next three years.

Savage isn't hiding from that role, but in his first full week of spring practice as a college football player, it's not something he was focused on.

"It's different," Savage said. "Last spring, I came here and I tried just to learn as much as I could because I couldn't get in there. But this spring, it's just been fun so far."