Rutgers will face multiple elite teams this fall.

Four of the 12 teams on the Scarlet Knights’ grueling 2025 schedule were ranked in the 2025 preseason Associated Press Top 25 , which was released at noon Monday.

— Penn State, who the Scarlet Knights will host on Nov. 29, is the highest-ranked Big Ten team. The Nittany Lions landed at No. 2 ahead of their most anticipated season in a long time.

— Defending national champion Ohio State, who Rutgers will face in Columbus on Nov. 22, landed at No. 3.

— Oregon, who Rutgers will host in its Homecoming game on Oct. 18, slotted at No. 7.

— Illinois, who defeated the Scarlet Knights in a dramatic finish in Piscataway last fall, come in at No. 12. Rutgers faces the Illini in Champaign on Nov. 1.

Iowa, who Rutgers will host in its Big Ten

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