The Rutgers Scarlet Knights were able to prevail with a clear 21:18 victory over the Washington Huskies on Friday evening, but did not manage to bring the team back to 4-0 for the first time since 2012.

Quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis and running back Kyle Monangai led the offense, and when they needed it, several no-nonsense penalties from the Huskies helped Rutgers out.

The nationally televised game against the Huskies was the Scarlet Knights’ first Big Ten game of the year after facing Howard, Akron and Virginia Tech to start the 2024 season.

Kaliakmanis finished the game completing 14 of 24 passes for 115 yards and one touchdown pass.

Monangai had his third straight 100-plus yard rushing game on a night in which he passed Isiah Pacheco and moved into seventh place on Rutgers’ all-time rushing list.

Monangai finished the night with 132 yards on the ground, which included a confident rush that saw him deflect multiple tackles and gain 42 yards in the third quarter.

The Huskies managed to make the game interesting with a final drive in the final minute of the game, trailing by just three.

Washington was able to get the ball into Rutgers territory with a series of passes before kicker Grady Gross missed a 55-yard field goal attempt past the left net to end the game.

It was his third missed field goal of the game.

Monangai’s 1-yard rushing touchdown run with 11:16 remaining in the second quarter erased a 3-0 deficit for the Scarlet Knights on a drive that included a 19-yard pass from Kaliakmanis to wide receiver Chris Long included.

It was later in the second quarter that the Scarlet Knights took advantage of one of the Huskies’ biggest mistakes of the night.

Washington forced Rutgers into a 38-yard field attempt and blocked the kick, but it was nullified when Vince Holmes was called for an illegal substitution that gave Rutgers new life on the drive.

On the ensuing play, Kaliakmanis connected with receiver Ian Strong for a jump-ball touchdown, extending the Scarlet Knights’ lead to 14-3 with 30 seconds left before halftime.

Late in the third quarter, Washington finally found the end zone on a six-play drive that culminated with Huskies quarterback Will Rodgers finding Denzel Boston for a 51-yard touchdown pass that included a crucial block from Keleki Latu enabled the development of the move.

While the touchdown late in the third quarter brought the Huskies within five minutes, Rutgers responded with a touchdown of their own 4:03 minutes into the final quarter.

Samuel Brown V bulldozed his way through a hole and scored on a 37-yard touchdown run to extend Rutgers’ lead to 21-10.

The Huskies managed to close the gap with a drive late in the game in the fourth quarter, cutting Rutgers’ lead back to three on a drive that started at Washington’s 24-yard line.

The highlight was the Huskies keeping the game alive with a short rush on fourth-and-1 and then Rodgers found Boston in the end zone.

They completed the two-point conversion, cutting the lead to 21-18 with 1:40 left.

Washington opened the scoring with a 22-yard field goal, marking the first time since November 25 that Rutgers allowed an opponent to score in the first quarter.

Friday night marked the first time the Huskies and Scarlet Knights faced each other since 2017, and it was Washington’s first road game against a Big Ten opponent as a member of the conference.

Washington was a member of the Pac-12 until last year. This was the last year that the conference as football fans knew it existed after conference realignment resulted in massive changes.

The Huskies played their first Big Ten game of the year last week with a win over Northwestern at Husky Stadium.

The Blackout Game at SHI Stadium drew 54,079 fans, which was the second highest attendance in its history.