How many of you were worried when the Rutgers football team was down 14-0 at home to lowly Syracuse after one quarter, faced with a comeback in a steady rain.  Well, you probably had a sense that it was only a matter of time that the suddenly rejuvenated Scarlet Knight offense would get its bearings while the defense would continue it’s steady play.  And that’s what happened Saturday afternoon in Piscataway as R-U ran to a 35-17 win for its third straight Big East victory.  And just like that, the Knights are 3-2 in league, just a half game behind the three teams tied for first at 3-1—Pittsburgh, West Virginia and Cincinnati, which pulled off an overtime upset in Morgantown Saturday night.  Rutgers also is 4-5 overall with three games left, keeping alive their hopes of a winning season and bowl eligibility…something almost unthinkable a month ago.  Individually, let’s start with quarterback Mike Teel.  The last time he played a game at Rutgers Stadium, he was booed unmercifully by the Scarlet faithful in a R-U win over Connecticut.  This time around, Teel was 26-for-36 passing for 276 yards and three touchdowns, two to wideout Tiquan Underwood, who appears to be back from the football dead.  Teel now has thrown nine td’s in his last two games.  Meanwhile, running back Kordell Young had a big day…29 carries for 143 yards.  And the defense was solid…giving up only one touchdown (the other was on a blocked punt return) and holding Syracuse’s top running back Curtis Brinkley to just 67 yards on 18 carries.  Bottom line—it was an expected win but a much-needed win.  And now it’s on to Tampa next Saturday for a crucial Big East game at USF.  The Bulls, who were idle Saturday, are only 1-3 in league but 6-3 overall…tough at home…and playing with the incentive of trying to secure a solid bowl game berth.  USF will be favored but if Rutgers can get a win there, the chances of running the table will be very good with just a home game against non-conference opponent Army and a season finale at home against Big East opponent Louisville, a team with the wheels coming off (i.e. Saturday’s 41-7 loss to Pittsburgh), standing in the way of an unprecedented fourth straight bowl appearance.