Rutgers Center Gus Zilinskas has been named to the 2025 Rimington Trophy Watchlist. The award is given to the best center in NCAA Division I. 40 centers in total are named to the watch list. He is the second Rutgers player ever to receive this preseason honor.
Zilinskas has become a staple of the Rutgers offensive line for the past two seasons, as he has made 26 consecutive starts, helping the Scarlet Knights reach two bowl games over that period. In 2024, with Zilinkas at center, Rutgers averaged 28.9 points per game, the best mark since 2008. They also had 4,975 yards of total offense, fourth-most in a season in program history. The team rushed for 175.3 yards per game last season to place third in the Big Ten for the program’s best placement since joining the conference. The Knights allowed two or fewer sacks in nine games last year, and he surrendered the least amount of Quarterback pressures on the Knights’ offensive line
Zilinskas was also a part of the offensive line that earned a spot on the Joe Moore Award Midseason Honor Roll.