Chicago — Chris Ash didn’t back away from the statistic, as unpleasant as it is. Rutgers hasn’t been able to keep an offensive coordinator in Piscataway from one year to the next in a long time, but that changes this year.

John McNulty is returning to run the Scarlet Knights offense again in 2019. It marks the first time since 2010 the program has started a season with the same offensive coordinator that it ended with the previous year. The never-ending carousel has final come to a halt.

“I think it’s the first time in maybe 10 years at Rutgers,” Ash said at B1G Media Days. “It’s an amazing stat, but it’s a true stat.”

Rutgers has been attempting to renovate a crumbling house over the last three seasons, but has rotated contractors. Each time a new face walked through the door, the changes were stripped and demolished. The Scarlet Knights have been starting from scratch every fall for the last decade.

With McNulty returning for a second season, Rutgers is already one step ahead. The offense can pick up where it left off — not that it carries much momentum into the season. Players aren’t learning a new playbook or scheme. McNulty understands the strengths and weaknesses of the roster and position groups.

“Coming back for a second year, John has a great understanding of our roster, our players, and more importantly probably, what our offensive line can do and what our quarterback can do,” Ash said. “That’s a huge point for our program, to be able to get a guy to come back in that position for a second year and work with our players so their is some consistency.

“That’s a big part of what we feel will be our success moving forward.”

McNulty’s return is undoubtedly a boost for Rutgers, but it’s not as if it’s a cure-all to the issues the offense endured last year. The Scarlet Knights were at the bottom of the B1G in scoring offense (13.5 points), passing (132.2 yards) and total offense (266.3 yards). They were 12th in rushing (134.1 yards).

There’s a lot to fix.

Credit: Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports

Having someone familiar with what needs to be repaired — and knowing the strengths and weaknesses of a team — is obviously an advantage Rutgers hasn’t had in some time. And, for maybe the first time since Ash took over in Piscataway, there are some pieces in place that could allow the program to make a significant leap from one year to the next.

Rutgers has two really talented running backs returning, Raheem Blackshear and Isaih Pacheco, both eclipsing 500 yards last season. Quarterback Artur Sitkowski has a full year of work under his belt, and McLane Carter provides McNulty with a solid back-up option (if he doesn’t eventually win the job). The offensive line — despite losing Jonah Jackson and Tariq Cole — has some experience.

Maybe it’s not the kind of talent you’d see at Ohio State, Michigan or other programs, but the cupboard is hardly bare. And when you combine the returning talent with a second-year offensive coordinator, it creates some momentum within the program itself, even after a 1-11 campaign.

“Just the biggest thing, it’s been that we’re finally getting some continuity in the fact that we have an OC now for two years straight,” said Rutgers offensive lineman Zach Venesky. “I think that’s a big part of having a coach there and learning his system.”

McNulty was big addition to the program the day Ash hired him. With his knowledge of the program and experience with quarterbacks, he seemed like the perfect fit to help rebuild a floundering program. His decision to return might be even more significant than taking the job in the first place.

Now that the offensive players have been around a coordinator for more than a year, they’ve gotten to know McNulty’s personality a bit. That, too, has helped with the unit’s continuity.

“Coach McNulty is a great coach. He’s a fiery coach, we love that,” Venesky said. “We’ll got to war for him any day.”

If Rutgers wants to see improvement on that side of the ball, that’s exactly the mentality it needs.

For the first time under Ash, Rutgers has a little momentum. Yes, this is a team fresh off a one-win season. Vegas has the over-under for the Scarlet Knights at 2.5 victories. Nationally — even regionally — there isn’t much buzz about Year 4 of the Ash era.

But Ash was able to convince McNulty to stick around for a second season. That’s a step in the right direction. We’ll see how many more steps Rutgers can take this fall.