Howard vs Rutgers Picks and Prediction for Friday September 25 2026

The Howard Bison visit the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at SHI Stadium in Piscataway, New Jersey, on Friday, September 25, 2026. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 PM ET with coverage on Big Ten Network. Rutgers enters the matchup at 0-3 after losses to UMass, Boston College and No. 11 USC, but the Scarlet Knights showed substantial offensive improvement in their latest 42-35 defeat. Howard arrives as the FCS opponent in Rutgers’ final September game. At the time of this writing the odds were not released. Be sure to check out our free college football picks for more NCAAF predictions throughout the season.

Howard Faces a Major Step Up

Howard heads to Piscataway facing a significant challenge against a Big Ten opponent. Games like this demand efficiency because the Bison cannot afford wasted possessions, short fields or repeated negative plays. Staying competitive will require Howard to protect the football and prevent Rutgers from turning the game into a physical mismatch.

The Bison’s path is likely to involve shortening the contest and avoiding an early scoring avalanche. Rutgers has allowed plenty of points through three games, so there should be opportunities for Howard to move the football. The bigger question is whether the Bison can consistently finish drives against a larger FBS roster.

Howard also needs its defense to prevent Rutgers from carrying the offensive momentum it established against USC into this matchup. If Rutgers is consistently producing chunk plays and controlling the line of scrimmage, Howard could spend most of the evening playing from behind. Creating turnovers would dramatically change that equation.

Rutgers Searches for Its First Victory

Rutgers is 0-3, but its latest performance was easily the most encouraging of the season. The Scarlet Knights opened with a 37-21 home loss to UMass and then lost 28-21 at Boston College before pushing nationally ranked USC in a 42-35 defeat. Rutgers remained within one possession late in that contest and generated considerably more offensive production than it had in the first two games.

Through three contests Rutgers has scored 77 points while allowing 107. That defensive figure explains much of the winless start, but the 35-point performance against USC was a meaningful offensive step forward. The Scarlet Knights also showed they could generate production both through the air and on the ground against a nationally ranked opponent.

This matchup provides Rutgers with a substantial opportunity to translate that improvement into its first victory. The Scarlet Knights cannot overlook Howard after an emotional game against USC, but the physical and depth advantages favor the home team. The larger question for bettors is not necessarily whether Rutgers wins, but how large a margin is reasonable.

Howard vs Rutgers Picks and Prediction

Pick: Rutgers -21 or Better

Without a verified market spread, -21 is the highest number I would want to lay. Rutgers is winless, so there is no reason to price the Scarlet Knights as though they have been dominant. However, the offensive performance against USC represented a major improvement, and stepping down from a ranked Big Ten opponent to an FCS opponent should create considerably more favorable matchups. Rutgers has the ability to build separation if it carries that offensive progress into Friday.

Pick: Over 48.5 or Lower

Rutgers has allowed at least 28 points in every game but also just produced 35 against USC. That creates an interesting setup for an over if the number is reasonably low. Rutgers should have opportunities to do most of the scoring itself, while Howard does not necessarily need a huge contribution to push a total in the upper 40s over the number. Once the market approaches the mid-50s, however, the value would become considerably less attractive.

Final Picks: Rutgers -21 or Better and Over 48.5 or Lower