Rutgers suffered the heaviest defeat of Greg Schiano's second spell as head coach, losing 37-21 at home to UMass in their opening game of the 2026 college football season. The result stunned observers given Rutgers had been priced as 29.5-point favourites by some bookmakers, while UMass had not won a game since October 2024 and had gone the entire 2025 season without a victory. The loss ends a run in which Rutgers had not lost to a non-conference opponent outside a bowl game since 2019, undermining momentum built up since Schiano's return in 2020, which included notable wins over Miami and Washington.

UMass raced into control by scoring 30 unanswered points before Rutgers responded, with quarterback Dylan Lonergan eventually finding wide receiver KJ Duff to narrow the gap to 30-14 with just over seven minutes remaining. UMass then added a further touchdown to seal the 37-21 win at Shi Stadium in New Jersey on Thursday night. Rutgers, regarded as the state's leading FBS programme, next travel to face Boston College, with commentators suggesting a win is needed to steady the season before it is written off.