Kordell Young may finally see some game action this Saturday against Cincinnati. He looked good yesterday in practice, ripping off a 35+ yard run. No Rutgers back has had a single gain of that much in any game this season. Even more promising is that Young is no longer wearing his supportive brace. Now, today’s braces are so light and flexible that one hardly knows he’s wearing it, so from that standpoint, they don’t really interfere with one’s game. But from a psychological standpoint, it has to help Young because it’s a sign that he might finally be over this ACL problem. The absence of the brace should help him mentally on game day.

Now, nothing is definitive, so we don’t really know whether Kordell will see any time this week. But, if I had to guess, I’d say he plays and gets maybe 12-15 carries, at most. I think Schiano expects him to play, but is just being cautious with how unpredictable this injury has been. Also, there’s probably a little “coach-speak” involved here. Why say that he’s playing and tip the Cincy defense off before gametime? Use Kordell as a surprise. Don’t let them know anything they don’t need to know right now.

All-in-all, I think Kordell’s return could spark this team. His speed will be the best compliment to Jourdan’s power running game. All teams are doing right now is stacking the middle of the field because they know Jourdan is going to run it up the gut. With Kordell in there, the defense will need to worry about containment on the outside, and they will also need to defend against the threat of a long run. And Kordell won’t get drilled like Mason does behind the line because of his patience and vision. Furthermore, Kordell’s pass protection is the best out of any of the other backs, and he should provide a little more time for Teel in the pocket. He picks up blitzes well, and the more time Teel has to throw, the better he is. Mike doesn’t like being pressured, and that’s usually where most of his mistakes occur. If Young does play, I’d like to see some double back sets with both he and Jourdan. I think some good things could come out of a formation where both players are on the field at the same time. Let’s use our thunder and lightning backs to the best of our abilities on Thursday.