Heat's on Rutgers players, and it isn't Schiano's

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It turns out that it's not just the fifth-year head coach at Rutgers who is feeling the heat these days.

The players are as well.

When trainer Dave McCune gave head coach Greg Schiano his daily pre-practice report on the temperature of the FieldTurf at Rutgers Stadium yesterday, he did so with the highest number he has ever recorded: 130 degrees.

"That's what he told me it was," Schiano said. "I haven't seen it hotter (since being at Rutgers). With the FieldTurf you probably add 10 degrees. It might have been as hot (in previous summers) in terms of air temperature but not field temperature."

It probably seemed even more uncomfortable to the players since they were in full pads for the first time yesterday -- just as it will seem even hotter today. Not only is there no relief predicted for the heat and humidity, Rutgers starts double sessions today.

"It feels like home to me," said wide receiver Willie Foster, who hails from Miami. "It's good weather to play in. I'm used to it."

Schiano, who served as defensive coordinator at Miami before coming to Rutgers, said he hopes his players use the heat to their advantage, just as the Hurricanes did.

"Hopefully, it builds confidence," he said. "I know at the University of Miami we used to look forward to getting those Northern teams down there in October and November.

"We train here all summer long. You're stuck in here. There's not a lot of air getting in. It's part of our advantage, I think."

But it is an adjustment for some players.

"Being from Toronto, I'm not used to the humidity," said safety Jason Nugent. "If we have a hot day in Toronto, there's a breeze. Here it's dead air and it's hot.

"I don't think you can get used to this weather. Not 130 degrees."

Foster disagrees. He says the hotter the better.

"I really don't care," he said. "If it was 150 I wouldn't care. It's football, and you play football in any condition. If it's a scorcher you play in a scorcher. If it's a blizzard you play in a blizzard."

The Knights will practice on the FieldTurf this morning before switching to the grass practice fields for the afternoon session -- a move that should provide some relief.

Junior Joe Giacobbe continued to work as the first-team center, with junior college transfer Darnell Stapleton leapfrogging from fourth team to second team.

Senior wide receiver Tres Moses, who rarely drops a pass, saw a ball slip through his hands in the end zone during the 7-on-7 drill. Moses, who set school records for receptions (81) and yardage (1,056) last year, slammed both hands into the ground in frustration, then ripped off his helmet and fired it to the turf.

Redshirt freshman wide receiver Keith Taylor has made a strong bid for time in the deep wide receiver mix. One unsung player who has shown promise is freshman tight end Kevin Brock, a walk-on from Hackensack. The 6-5 Brock, who arrived at 225 pounds, is up to 238 pounds and has flashed wide receiver moves at the position, looking like a young Clark Harris.

Schiano cut practice short by an hour yesterday -- but not because of the weather. The reason for abbreviated two-hour session, he said, was because Rutgers goes to two-a-days today.