Rutgers football is set to rehire Greg Schiano as head coach

The return of Greg Schiano as head football coach for Rutgers University was imminent Sunday, as both the Rutgers athletic director and Governor Phil Murphy shared news of a pending deal.

Rutgers Director of Athletics Pat Hobbs issued a statement Sunday, after 11 a.m., that said "The next great chapter for Rutgers Football is about to begin. There are many people to thank for where we are today, particularly Coach Schiano and his team, as well as everyone here at Rutgers. They all played important roles in bringing these complex negotiations to a close."

Hobbs also noted the deal needed final approval, as "It wouldn't be appropriate to prejudge any action that the Board of Governors may take, but I believe today that Rutgers Football is on the path to greatness,"

The Rutgers Board of Governors also announced a special meeting for "the consideration and approval of an employment contract for the Head Football Coach in the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics at Rutgers University-New Brunswick." The meeting was slated for Tuesday at 10 a.m. on the New Brunswick campus.

"Just took a call from Greg Schiano and spoke to President Barchi. Thrilled to usher in a new era of Rutgers football with Greg at the helm. Rutgers student-athletes, alumni, and fans deserve a top-flight program that strives for excellence both on and off the field," Murphy tweeted Sunday, in between messages about state storm preparation.

While taking reporter's questions at a Sunday briefing about the mixed weather bearing down amid holiday travel in New Jersey, Murphy said he would let Rutgers break any news "but, count us all in," noting "if we’re going to be in the Big Ten, to be competitive — it’s important to our student athletes, it’s important to the Rutgers community, it’s important certainly to the alums and I think it’s a point of Jersey pride."

An Associated Press report Sunday said Schiano and Rutgers had agreed to a deal that will bring the former Scarlet Knights coach back to lead the program, according to an unnamed source.

Meanwhile, acting head coach Nunzio Campanile tweeted a statement Saturday, saying being head coach for 8 games this season "was truly a dream come true."

Campanile, a Fair Lawn native, stepped in as interim head coach after the firing of Chris Ash, five games into his fourth season. Ash went 8-32 in three-plus seasons, including 3-26 in the Big Ten.

Rutgers had offered Schiano an eight-year contract worth $32 million last week, but negotiations stopped as the two sides could not agree on "other financial commitments by the school" according to the same AP report.

The 53-year-old Schiano, a Bergen County native, went 68-67 at Rutgers over a decade as head coach, during which the school also landed its invite to join the Big Ten.

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