Rutgers football will look to move to 2-0 when it hosts Akron on Saturday at SHI Stadium.

The Scarlet Knights are coming off a 44-7 win over Howard while the Zips last week fell to No. 2 Ohio State 52-6.

Here’s a preview and scouting report for what to expect on Saturday:

Rutgers vs. Akron

Date: Saturday, Sept. 7

Time: Noon kickoff

TV: Big Ten Network (Fox Sports App). Jason Horowitz will be on play-by-play alongside analyst Adam Breneman with Taryn Hatcher reporting from the sidelines.

Radio: The game will be broadcast on WFAN 660AM/101.9 FM, FOX Sports New Jersey (93.5 FM/1450 AM), SiriusXM 106/195, SXM app, Audacy app, Scarlet Knights app.

Series history: The teams have only met once previously and it came back on Oct. 27, 1990, in Piscataway. Rutgers won 20-17.

Akron players to watch

Tahj Bullock, quarterback

The 6-foot-3, 200-pound Bullock is an East Orange native and Saint Peter’s Prep grad. Rutgers recruited him out of high school (he was in the Class of 2021) but he ultimately went to Virginia Tech before transferring to Akron. The Zips deployed a two-quarterback system in their opener against Ohio State (a 52-6 loss) but Bullock took over the offense after Ben Finley suffered an injury. Bullock is a dual-threat and can do some damage with his legs, so Rutgers is going to need to contain him. It’s unclear at this point if Finley will play against Rutgers.

Jake Newell, tight end

The 6-foot-4, 240-pound Newell is a transfer from Arizona State. Newell stood out to Schiano when the coach watched Akron’s loss to Ohio State. “He’s a big kid and does some good things,” Schiano said. Newell is definitely one of Akron’s top offensive weapons. He had two catches for 41 yards against Ohio State.

Darrian Lewis, cornerback

Schiano called Lewis a “ballhawk” in the secondary. The 5-foot-10, 190-pound Lewis had 75 tackles (four for loss) last season with three pass breakups. Lewis is an Akron native and a graduate of St. Vincent-St. Mary, the high school LeBron James attended.

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Rutgers players to watch

Kaj Sanders, safety

Sanders got the start against Howard in place of the injured Flip Dixon and did well overall – that included making a key block on Eric Rogers’ pick six that started the scoring for the Scarlet Knights. The Bergen Catholic grad finished with three tackles and broke up one pass. Sanders impressed Schiano enough in the spring and in fall camp to earn the starting nod (it’s unclear if Sanders will again start against Akron).

“Kaj is a very gifted athlete, right, when you watch him play in high school, and even now,” Schiano said of Sanders. “He could be playing on the offensive side of the ball. He's that kind of athlete. We think that safety is his best position but he's fast. He's athletic. He's got instincts, and he's just got to learn.”

Moses Walker, linebacker

While Dariel Djabome garnered attention for his performance against Howard – rightfully so with a 14-tackle game – Walker was just as impressive. Walker also made his first career start and racked up seven tackles, including one for a loss. He received an 82.6 tackling grade by Pro Football Focus, the highest on the team. The former four-star recruit and No. 1 prospect in New York has made impressive strides.

Antwan Raymond, running back

Depending on how the game goes, the true freshman may not receive a ton of carries. Rutgers obviously has Kyle Monangai and Sam Brown atop the depth chart, so Raymond’s opportunities could be limited. But he saw time late in Rutgers’ win over Howard and scored on an 11-yard run on the game’s final play. If he does get in the game, though, Rutgers fans should watch closely with the future in mind. The 5-foot-11, 202-pound Raymond, who reclassified into the Class of 2024, is young but clearly has the potential to develop into a high-level running back.

Questions facing Rutgers football vs. Akron

1. How will Rutgers do containing Akron quarterback Tahj Bullock?

It’s not totally certain at this point whether Ben Finley will play, although Schiano said Wednesday the intel Rutgers has gotten is that he will (he also cautioned it may not be accurate). Regardless, Bullock is also going to play, and he brings a different style than Finley. Bullock is more elusive, similar to Howard QB Ja’Shawn Scroggins.

“A couple times he got into space with our guys and we couldn't catch him,” Schiano said earlier this week. “He's a very talented young man, but we are going to see another one this week.”

Rutgers’ defensive front will need to keep Bullock from getting loose and making plays with his legs.

2. How much healthier will Rutgers be?

The Scarlet Knights had a long availability report when it came out two hours prior to the Howard game. They were missing several notable players, including linebacker Tyreem Powell, safety Flip Dixon, cornerback Al-Shadee Salaam, defensive end Wesley Bailey and defensive tackle Troy Rainey. Schiano said Monday that he would defer any injury questions to the availability report each week, so we’ll have to wait until Saturday to know whether any of those players will return.

3. How will Rutgers’ offense look?

The Scarlet Knights ran the ball well against Howard, picking up 329 yards on the ground, with 165 of them coming from Monangai. Athan Kaliakmanis didn’t stretch the field too much with is arm – he didn’t attempt a pass of 20 yards or more, according to PFF (Rutgers did have a few called, though). It’s going to be interesting to see how much that changes against Akron. Rutgers is still going to be a run-heavy team no matter what – especially if the predictions for rain are accurate.

Rutgers football vs. Akron prediction

The Scarlet Knights’ defense will limit Akron and they should be able to run the ball effectively once again. Rutgers 34, Akron 10.  

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Rutgers football vs Akron prediction, preview, scouting report