1. Rutgers doesn't have an exhausting and nauseatingly negative fan base empowered with a bully, troll media pulpit that is propped up to respectability by local media hacks that retweet/regurgitate the vitriol and worst tendencies of its fanatics.
2. Rutgers is a "never has been," "underdog" on-the-rise program in a P5 conference, rather than a punch line program in conference that people love to hate. (And make no mistake, the other conferences hate the SEC because of its historical dominance in athletics that matter, no the least of which is college football. And, they hate the SEC conference's strength, it's stability, it's media deals, and the fact that it does in fact "mean more," to southerners.) This is especially true of the Vols, whose fan base, for better and definitely for worse, are so "passionately" outspoken.
3. These young athletes (and their families) are almost a decade removed from the Penn State horrors. Greg Schiano, who admittedly (but not excusably) was removed from the direct events is now the guy who is seen as being victimized by those horrors several years later (thanks, again, social media). And, most people today are so desensitized or indifferent to the abuse (thank you ALL media, TV, radio, and internet) that it is easy to justify and explain away for the sake of a scholarship and possible NFL millions.
4. Schiano was a successful coach of multiple P5, championship winning programs. He is not some unproven, lower tier diamond in the rough. He is proving that he can win, and WINNING is all that matters.