After one half in Piscataway, Rutgers and Army are knotted in a 7-7 tie. Army is well-known for their option attack and their rush-heavy offense. It shortens the game and gives the opponent limited offensive opportunities. They've controlled the time of possession so far in the first half to keep it close against a rested and ranked Rutgers team. But despite their success moving the ball, they have just seven points because of missed opportunities. A fumble inside the 15-yard line and two blocked field goals resulted in three squandered chances.
It didn't take long for Army to get rolling on the round, however, as quarterback Trent Steelman marched the Black Knights down the field on their opening possession. It was a 16-play drive that ate up more than six minutes of clock and ended with Steelman punching it it from one-yard out.
The Scarlet Knights finally got on the board in the second quarter with a little bit of trickery. Rutgers had been pounding the ball on the ground with Jawan Jamison for much of the first half, but inside the red zone, Kyle Flood and his staff called for a halfback pass. Jamison took a handoff and running to his right, he set up and fired to Brandon Coleman in the back of the end zone. The 16-yard touchdown strike pulled the game even early in the second quarter, and that tie would remain.