PISCATAWAY – Ryan Blaszczyk waxed on, about his fear when Kordell Young first went down, about his hurt for the junior tailback when the MRI showed a torn ACL, about the void Rutgers will now feel.
“The younger backs – ,” Blaszczyk said, just as Joe Martinek cut in, “I don’t feel like a younger guy anymore.”
Truth is, he isn’t. And he can’t.
Rutgers coach Greg Schiano announced Monday that Young will have surgery, ending his season just as it was starting to open up for him. Martinek has been Rutgers’ starter and Thursday against South Florida, he notched his fourth 100-yard game. But Young’s value this year hasn’t been about starts, or carries.
“He’s just such a leader,” said Blasczcyk, a senior and a captain himself. “He’s just so hardworking. And he’s been such a leader on offense, with all the young guys, at every position, not just the running backs.”
Aditi Kinkhabwala has written a regular column for SI.com and been published in Sports Illustrated.