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PAGE 3Pittsburgh game preview

PAGES 10-11Pregame graphics and beat writer predictions

PAGE 7Scouting Pittsburgh with Mike Holmes

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nate shron | staff photographer

G A M E DA Y W E E K E N D2 o c t obe r 15 - 17 , 2 0 1 0 S P O R T S @ D A I L Y O R A N G E . C O M

WEATHER

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Sports Editor Andrew L. JohnPresentation Director Becca McGovernPhoto Editor Bridget StreeterCopy Editor Susan KimAsst. Sports Editor Brett LoGiuratoAsst. Sports Editor Tony OliveroAsst. Photo Editor Kirsten CeloAsst. Photo Editor Danielle ParhizkaranAsst. Sports Copy Editor Michael CohenAsst. Sports Copy Editor Mark Cooper

Katie McInerney EDITOR IN CHIEF

Kathleen Ronayne MANAGING EDITOR

T H E I N D E P E N D E N T S T U D E N T N E W S P A P E R O F S Y R A C U S E , N E W Y O R K

General Manager Peter WaackIT Manager Mike EscalanteIT Manager Derek OstranderCirculation Manager Harold HeronAdvertising Representative Adam BeilmanAdvertising Representative Eric FormanAdvertising Representative Kelsey HoffmanAdvertising Representative Bonnie JonesAdvertising Representative Adam SchatzAdvertising Designer Dom DenaroAdvertising Designer Matt SmiroldoClassifieds Manager Michael KangSenior Advertising Designer Lauren HarmsAdvertising Design Coordinator Lauren GenivivaSpecial Advertising Sections Michelle ChiuStudent Business Manager Rebekah Jones Business Intern Tim BennettBusiness Intern Chenming Mo

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By Andrew L. JohnSportS Editor

Not long after Syracuse put together a 98-yard game-winning drive, the buzz started. A win at South Florida

in its conference opener set the Orange up quite well heading into its conference home opener Saturday against Pitts-burgh.

With Syracuse (4-1, 1-0 Big East) look-ing as legitimate as it has in years, this matchup gives the Orange a chance to take that next step toward returning the program to respectability and to its goal of a bowl bid. Yet to the Orange, this weekend’s matchup is nothing special. Instead it’s just the next game on the schedule.

“We’re just treating this week like every other game that we have to play,”

freshman tight end Beckett Wales said. “It’s just the next game. And that’s how we’re treating it.”

In just his first season, it may be unrealistic to expect Wales to approach Saturday’s game against Pittsburgh (2-3, 0-0) any differently. As a freshman, he hasn’t been around for each of the past five matchups between Syracuse and Pitt. Unlike most of the SU veterans, he wasn’t on the field for any of the five grueling losses over the past five years.

But what may come as a surprise is the fact that several of the veterans who were here for the majority of that losing streak to the Panthers are subscribing to a similar ideology entering the weekend. With Syracuse staring into the face of a 5-1 start for the first time in more than a decade, Saturday’s matchup against Pittsburgh (noon, Big East Network) at

the Carrier Dome is being hyped as any-thing but “just another game.”

Yet from Wales to Max Suter and Da’Mon Merkerson, the perception enter-ing this weekend remains the same. Amid the hype that surrounds what is expected to be one of the most intrigu-ing football games seen in the Dome in quite some time, players are keeping a relatively level head.

“You want to win every game, but the only way to do that is by winning the next

game,” Merkerson said. “So if there’s any reason this game is big, it’s because it’s the next game.”

But for the first time in years, the Orange can’t honestly use that phrase. Five years ago, under then-head coach Greg Robinson, every game was “just another game.” During that 1-10 season in 2005, when the significance of each game was a lost cause, the players could say that. And it was actually true.

“You want to win every game, but the only way to do that is by winning the next game. So if there’s any reason this game is big, it’s because it’s the next game.”

Da’Mon MerkersonSu cornErback

Despite downplaying game’s significance, Saturday presents rare opportunity for SUBuzzed

see pitt page 12

nate shron | staff photographerthe Syracuse football team can move to 5-1 for the first time in more than 10 years with a win against underachieving pittsburgh Saturday in its big East home opener.

4 o c t obe r 15 - 17 , 2 0 1 0 s p o r t s @ d a i l y o r a n g e . c o m

“I don’t know if they’ll play in a bowl game, but they’ll have good (crowd) turnouts.”

Dominique Pierrotsophomore marketing major

fa n P e r s P e c t i v e scompiled by asst. copy editor mark cooper

Will Syracuse make it to a bowl game this season?

“It’s more likely than it has been in a long time.”

Dan Tothsenior finance major

“I do expect them to make a bowl. They got off on the right foot, 1-0 in the conference is the way to go.”

Joe Giarrussosenior information studies major

“I expect them to contend in the Big East. I don’t know if they’ll make a bowl or not. I hope so.”

Alex Wronkowskisenior accounting major

“I expect better than past years. They’ll get to a bowl game.”

Dominique Cunninghamjunior environmental engineering major

DAILYORANGE.COM

“We have a good chance. I’m not counting on it, but I always have hope.”

Ryan Dowlingsenior counseling major

“Sadly, I don’t think they’ll make a bowl but they’re heading in the right direction.”

Scott Petersfreshman psychology major

“They can make a bowl. Last week’s win was definitely impressive.”

Sam Kenneysenior environmental engineering major


Doug Marrone is one who has never shied away from the fact that things take time. His ascent to the Syracuse

head coaching position took time — 17 years. Marrone’s attempt to groom 22 players of Big East caliber who fit his mold took time.

And that win last week, the win in which Syracuse leapfrogged everyone in the Big East, the win in which he shed a tear for his players — the ones who have needed the time to grow — took time. But for any meaningful stretch of time, there is a beginning.

“All the hard work and everything put into getting to that point is just beginning,” Mar-rone said Monday. “So it’s still a long way to go. We aren’t even halfway done with the season. We have to keep getting better every week. I have been saying that for a long time, but it’s the truth.”

It may be “a long way to go,” but here it comes. Quickly. Time is about to fly by.

This Syracuse team doesn’t have any more time. Pittsburgh enters the Carrier Dome Sat-

urday. Then there is the trip to West Virginia. That luxury of time — the luxury Marrone’s program has used as a crutch through eight wins and nine losses — is gone.

The time is now.The time is the next two weeks. The growing

and the steps that it took to get Syracuse to its first Big East-defining win over South Florida

took all of the 666 days since Marrone took the job. Syracuse didn’t make the leap until last Saturday.

But time’s up. With the upcoming two weeks, it could become two weeks full of two seasons worth of exponential growing for this Orange team. Something SU football hasn’t encoun-tered in recent memory, thanks to this year’s schedule.

Last Friday, the Orange was still, to some, the laughingstock of the Big East. SU ranked at 93rd on the Rivals.com weekly power rankings — dead last in the Big East. Two spots below Rutgers. Forty-four spots below South Florida.

Thirty-eight spots below Pittsburgh. Sixty-six spots below West Virginia.

But in one week, Syracuse went from cellar to recognized. Now win this week, and you are a Big East favorite that only had seven days to rel-ish the status of a marginal Big East contender. You are now a team traveling down to West Virginia on a bandwagon ready to compete in a

game to become the Big East’s favorite.And you are favored by one point in this

week’s game.It is funny how time has worked for this Syr-

acuse football team this season. The time and the ramifications of it are reflected and pertain to the schedule Syracuse had to traverse. With the first four games, all the talk was of how the game against Akron and the two games versus Maine and Colgate refused to let fans and critics know exactly what this team is. Through four games, everything was a question mark.

Time froze: Could this offensive line play? Who knows. Can this offense become balanced? Nothing has been proven yet.

No longer the case.Within the span of these three weeks, time

will not stand still. It will take the route of Ant-won Bailey versus Colgate. Straight north and south. Zipping right by.

But for the Orange, any kind of an exponen-tial growth curve yielding in the Big East’s most favorable path to a BCS bowl following the WVU game starts with Saturday. And it starts with a withering down of the overarching theme canvassing this squad right now.

It is about not wasting any time. SU can’t take time Saturday. As the one-point favorite against a team that doesn’t know where it is at right now, admitted by head coach Dave Wannstedt, SU has to blitz through and through. Not just on a Scott Shafer stunt call, even though that will be a part of it and aplenty.

“I thought of wiping the slate clean,” Wannstedt said. “I’ve been in these meetings, and I’ve done it before where you put a drape up over the first half of the season. I’ve done all of that stuff. I’m not sure where we’re at right

now, how we’re trying to figure out who is doing what and how we’re trying to piece everything together.”

It has always been about mindset for Mar-rone. Saturday, it will be about a “go out and take what is yours” mindset in the first quarter. Hit and wither away that low Panthers confi-dence until it is no longer there.

But that can’t take time. It has to be an instant. And if the Orange is to get to 3-0 in the conference, the time it took to pummel Pitt in the Dome will seem like an instant over the course of these 21 days.

Time stood still for this program since Mar-rone took over. Now he and SU must make sure time doesn’t pass them by.

Tony Olivero is an assistant sports editor at The Daily Orange, where his column appears occasion-

ally. He can be reached at [email protected].

t o n y o l i v e r o

purify the colors

After much-awaited win at USF, time is now for Marrone, Orange

“All the hard work and everything put into getting to that point is just beginning.”

Doug Marronesu head coach

dailyorange.com

6 o c t obe r 15 - 17 , 2 0 1 0 S P O R T S @ D A I L Y O R A N G E . C O M

2005 Pittsburgh Pittsburgh 34, Syracuse 17

2006 Syracuse Pittsburgh 21, Syracuse 11


2008 Syracuse Pittsburgh 34, Syracuse 24


Pitt stop

Syracuse hasn’t beaten Big East rival Pittsburgh since a double-overtime, 38-31 victo-ry over the Panthers in 2004. The Orange came closest in 2007, losing by three points. Here’s a look at how SU has played Pittsburgh in those fi ve contests since 2004:

Year Location Result


By Brett LoGiuratoAsst. sports Editor

SU cornerback Mike Holmes was part of a Syra-cuse defense that didn’t allow the South Florida offense to score a touchdown last weekend. On Wednesday, Holmes talked about the meaning of the USF win and what it will take to have similar success against the challenge of the Pittsburgh offense.The Daily Orange: How important is it for you to come out and make a statement against Pittsburgh?

Holmes: We’ve been saying it for some time that we have a good team. It’s one thing to say it, but to go out there and do it by winning games, that’s what people want to see. It’s a different day. It’s very exciting to go out here and have an opportunity to win games, especially competing in the Big East. How much momentum does (the win at South Florida last Saturday) give you guys heading into the rest of the Big East schedule?

It’s definitely a lot of momentum, because South Florida is a good team. They have a lot of athletes. To go out and compete like this in the beginning is a good thing. What does it mean to you to see the stand-ings and see Syracuse right there at the top?

It’s early on. We really don’t read into it that much. We still have to play every team in the Big East besides South Florida. But it does feel good

to see our names up on the top. After suffering through some tough seasons at Syracuse, how much does the South Florida victory feel like redemption for all the hard work you’ve put in?

Everything is starting to come around. I think the hardest part was getting in the men-tality of winning games. I think getting a win like this is getting over that hump. We know we’re a good team. So sky’s the limit.Can you talk about (Pittsburgh quarterback) Tino Sunseri and what he brings to the table? What do you see in him, and what’s the chal-lenge for you guys there this week?

He’s a smart quarterback who doesn’t turn the ball over much. He gets the ball to his receiv-ers well. It’s going to be a challenge, just because of how he manages the game and how smart he is with the ball. Another challenge from Pittsburgh is (wide receiver) Jonathan Baldwin. How tough do you think he’s going to be to play against?

Baldwin is a great receiver. I had a chance to meet him up at (Big East) media day. Watching him on film, he covers the field well. He’s a very tall receiver with a big body. It’s going to be a challenge for me and (SU cornerback) Da’Mon (Merkerson). But we’re prepared, so I’m looking forward to playing him. At this point, after a very good performance from the secondary last week at USF, where

do you think the secondary unit is? Is it where you want it to be? Is there room to improve?

We definitely have room to improve. Going over the film (from USF), there were definitely some mistakes that were made. There are always areas to improve. We’re never getting complacent of where we are in the secondary. Secondary-wise, we definitely have opportuni-ties to change the game. So we’re just trying to make more plays and create more turnovers in the secondary, so we can change the game. Syracuse hasn’t beaten Pittsburgh since 2004. So what do you and the secondary

have to do against Pittsburgh specifically to do your part to make that happen?

Just play good football, you know. Talking about the Big East, too, I haven’t beaten a handful of Big East teams since I’ve been here. I hadn’t gotten a chance to beat South Florida, being one. A lot of us were talking about that. It just felt good to be able to go out and have the last laugh and win going out. Pittsburgh is another team we haven’t beaten since I’ve been here and since a lot of the seniors have been here. So it’ll definitely feel good to go out winning.

[email protected]

matthew ziegler | xtaff photogrpahermIkE HOlmES (35) leads the Big East in punt return average with 18.7 yards per return. He faces a tough test in the panthers, the top net-punting team in the country.

Scouting Pittsburgh with Mike Holmes


It was a game that reflected most of the sto-rylines from the 2009 season. Delone Carter played well for Syracuse, the passing game struggled and the defense wore down by the end of the game.

The result, a 37-10 road loss to No. 14 Pitts-burgh, left the team unsatisfied.

“That’s fine, but it really doesn’t matter to me unless I win,” Carter said after the game, according to an article published by The Daily Orange on Nov. 9, 2009. “All the yards and all that, it really doesn’t mean anything to me unless I get ‘W.’”

But in reality, he had been the only one who really did execute. Carter’s 143 yards rushing would prove to be his second highest total of the 2009 season and one of his four 100-yard games. Add in his one reception for 22 yards, he account-ed for 58 percent of his team’s total yards.

Though Carter was carrying the load, including a career-best 58-yard run, the rest of the offense was anemic. Quarterbacks Greg Paulus and Ryan Nassib combined to complete just 50 percent of their passes. They threw for a total of 141 yards, zero touchdowns and three interceptions.

“They do a good job with their pass rush,” Paulus said. “Defensively, they made some good plays in the secondary. Whether that’s knock-ing the ball away to get an interception, they do a good job of pressuring and being fundamen-tally sound.”

Looking back, this would be only the second game all season in which fans would get to see Nassib, the quarterback of the future, for an extended period of time.

And he did nothing to impress.He attempted a season-high 16 passes, but

completed just five for a total of 21 yards. SU

traveled with just 55 scholarship players, which made it nearly impossible to beat one of the Big East’s bests.

“Obviously, we don’t have a lot of depth on our football team,” head coach Doug Marrone said. “But again, that’s a problem we have now, and I don’t see this as a problem at all for the future of this program.”

Syracuse played without wide receiver Mike Williams, who was leading the team in every receiving category. The Orange was also with-out running back Antwon Bailey, defensive end Torrey Ball and guard Andrew Tiller, who were suspended.

Tight end Cody Catalina and Max Suter sustained injuries in the first half and couldn’t return.

“We had some injuries occur,” Marrone said. “Those injuries forced us to come out of some of our packages, which limited us somewhat on offense and defense.”

And that is when the Panthers capitalized: the second half. Twenty-four of the team’s 37 points came after halftime, due in large part to three players having at least 55 yards rushing. Freshman Dion Lewis led the way with 110 yards and a touchdown by himself. In all, Pitts-burgh gouged a defense that was giving up fewer than 90 rushing yards per game for 247 yards on the ground.

“I think we did a good job of keeping our feet on the ground, knowing the importance of this conference game putting us 5-0, coming out and not taking nothing for granted,” Pittsburgh head coach Dave Wannstedt said. “We got it going in the second half.”

— Compiled by Asst. Copy Editor Michael Cohen

Last time they pLayedpittsburgh 37, syracuse 10

o c t obe r 15 - 17 , 2 0 1 0 9S P O R T S @ D A I L Y O R A N G E . C O M

Quick hit statistics

SyracusePittsburghPOINTS PER GAME

POINTS ALLOWED PER GAME

RUSHING YARDS GAINED PER GAME

PASSING YARDS GAINED PER GAME

TOTAL OFFENSIVE YARDS PER GAME

RUSHING YARDS ALLOWED PER GAME

PASSING YARDS ALLOWED PER GAME

28.414.8

163.8

206.0

369.8

124.2

160.4

25.2

22.8

157.8

201.0

358.8

95.0

244.2

TOTAL YARDS ALLOWED PER GAME 284.6339.2


starting lineups

did you know?

key matchups

da’mon merkersoncb

jon baldwinwr

Merkerson had a key interception in last week’s victory over South Florida. He’ll need to shut down Baldwin, who leads the Panthers with 322 yards receiving and three touchdowns.

derrell smithlb

ray grahamrb

Graham has the same amount of rushing attempts as preseason Heisman Trophy candi-date Dion Lewis. He has 317 more yards than Lewis on those 60 attempts. He has become a true rushing threat in the Big East.

justin pughlt

jabaal sheardde

No rest for an always-tested SU offensive line. Three players on Pittsburgh have four sacks or more, including Sheard, who leads the Panthers with five sacks.

van chewwr

jared holleyFs

Chew had his least spectacular game of SU’s season last week as the Orange offense strug-gled. He’ll need to be that big-play threat and deep target once again for Ryan Nassib.

Saturday, noon, Big East Network

they said it

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PIttSBURGH At SyRAcUSE

PITTSBURGH OFFENSE12 QB TINO SUNSERI28 RB DION LEWIS27 FB HENRY HYNOSKI87 WR MIKE SHANAHAN82 WR JON BALDWIN85 TE MIKE CRUZ77 LT JASON PINKSTON54 LG CHRIS JACOBSON61 C ALEX KARABIN52 RG LUCAS NIX68 RT JORDAN GIBBS

PITTSBURGH DEFENSE97 LE JABAAL SHEARD 98 DT CHAS ALECXIH94 NT MYLES CARAGEIN35 RE BRANDON LINDSEY38 LB GREG WILLIAMS55 LB MAX GRUDER32 LB TRISTAN ROBERTS26 CB RICKY GARY22 CB ANTWUAN REED31 SS DOM DECICCO18 FS JARRED HOLLEY

98

The last time a Pittsburgh player has converted on a 50-plus yard field goal was all the way back in 1994. Sixteen years ago, David Merrick hit a 54-yarder versus Texas.

Syracuse has scored the exact same number of total points in the second quarter and the third quarter thus far this year: 37.

Pittsburgh has scored the exact same number of points in the second quarter and third quarter as well: 27. But the Panthers have scored by far their most points in the fourth quarter, as Pitt has racked up 59 total points in 75 total minutes.

@west virginiaOct. 23, noon

@cincinnatiOct. 30, TBD

louisvilleNov. 6, noon

“We have to beat Pitt. It’s time to get after them this year, and we’re ready to do it.”

Max SuterSU STRONG SAFETY

“Whenever you set a goal and you can see it unfold, it’s always a great sense of satisfaction to see the plan in action. I think after each win, we do feel a sense of satisfaction as we continue to move forward, but we can’t dwell on wins because there is always something up next.”

Da’Mon MerkersonSU CORNERBACK

SYRACUSE OFFENSE12 QB RYAN NASSIB3 RB DELONE CARTER49 FB ADAM HARRIS15 WR ALEC LEMON82 WR VAN CHEW85 TE JOSE CRUZ67 LT JUSTIN PUGH75 LG ZACK CHIBANE70 C RYAN BARTHOLOMEW66 RG ANDREW TILLER74 RT MICHAEL HAY

s p o r t s @ d a i l y o r a n g e . c o m o c t obe r 15 - 17 , 2 0 1 0 1 1

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ANDREW L. JOHNSyracuse 21

Pittsburgh 17

by the numbers

beat writer predictions

85 82

6

22

85 82

BRETT LoGIURATOPittsburgh 20

Syracuse 17

TONY OLIVEROPittsburgh 24

Syracuse 17

SYRACUSE DEFENSE54 DE MIKHAIL MARINOVICH94 NT BUD TRIBBEY51 DT ANDREW LEWIS99 DE CHANDLER JONES11 SLB MARQUIS SPRUILL25 MLB DERRELL SMITH32 WLB RYAN GILLUM6 CB DA’MON MERKERSON35 CB MIKE HOLMES24 SS MAX SUTER1 FS PHILLIP THOMAS

The number of running yards Pitt running back Ray Graham has tal-

lied on average this season.

The number of net punting yards the Panthers punter Dan Hutchins

average on the season. This is good for first in the nation.

The number of yards SU running back Delone Carter needs to

surpass NFL Hall-of-Famer Larry Csonka for third place on Syra-

cuse’s career rushing list.

The current NCAA rank for Syra-cuse’s pass defense. The Orange

is giving up just 160.4 passing yards per game.

The NCAA rank for the Orange in fewest penalties per game, out of

120 Division I-A teams.

Despite the fact that Pitt is 2-3, this could honestly be SU’s toughest game of the

year. But SU knows the sig-nificance of this game, and the Dome crowd will help.

A little dose of reality for the Orange here. There are still flaws that need to be fixed before SU can win another marquee game. One drive won’t save SU- this time.

It took Marrone’s SU 666 days (yes, 666) to muster up

the complete game for the USF-caliber win. One week

just isn’t enough to pull it off back-to-back.

@rugtersNov. 13, TBD

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S P O R T S @ D A I L Y O R A N G E . C O M1 2 o c t obe r 15 - 17 , 2 0 1 0

Even a year ago, under current head coach Doug Marrone, players could get away with say-ing that. The Orange was in a transition year, in Marrone’s fi rst season, and the foundation was just being laid. The outside expectations were nonexistent.

Though the players maintain the same disposi-tion about this week’s game, deep down inside, they understand the signifi cance. For them, a chance to advance the program’s best record in over a decade is the reality. A chance to do that by taking down the preseason favorite to win the conference is what has billed this game as perhaps the most signifi cant to grace the Dome in years.

That’s what makes this more than “just another game.” SU is sitting on the doorstep of

something signifi cant. “Whenever you set a goal and you can see it

unfold, it’s always a great sense of satisfaction to see the plan in action,” Merkerson said. “I think after each win, we do feel a sense of satisfaction as we continue to move forward, but we can’t dwell on wins because there is always something up next.

“So as big as it would be to win (Saturday), it’s just the next step. I think we’ve done a good job staying on course for our ultimate goal, and we need to stay focused each week to obtain it.”

It’s easy to see how the hype may have spun out of control. But the reality is this game is just that signifi cant for the Orange football program. A loss certainly doesn’t ruin the season or crush SU’s hopes for a bowl bid. But a win? Well, that would set off a level of hysteria not seen since the Donovan McNabb era, when SU was at its highest recent peak.

That would set up the following week’s nationally televised matchup at West Virginia that much better. It could begin to change the way Syracuse is viewed around the nation. It’s that simple.

The players have heard the numbers. None of them have beaten Pitt. The Panthers have won fi ve straight against the Orange — ironically, the same streak USF owned until last weekend. But the feeling is different this year. Which makes this weekend’s game different. Fueled by the 4-1 start and a big win at USF last week, the collective confi dence of this year’s Syracuse squad is undoubtedly increasing.

“It’s a big game because it’s the next game,” Marrone said. “And then all of a sudden, now we are onto a bigger game because it’s the next game. You win a game, and then you move onto the next. That’s just how I feel. … I am happy that we came away with a win and won a Big East

road game and matched the win total for Big East games in a season since 2004. Now we are going, and our objective is to get a second win.”

To get that second win, the Orange will look to its offense, which is its best scoring offense (28.4 points per game) since 2003. It will look to its scoring defense (14.8 points per game), which is its best since 1999. For the Orange, there’s no reason to believe this won’t be the year to fi nally end that streak of futility against Pitt.

The Orange snapped a fi ve-game losing streak to South Florida last weekend. For Syra-cuse to take the next step, it must do it again this weekend. This time against Pitt.

And the signifi cance of doing that would transcend beyond just another win.

“We have to beat Pitt,” Suter said. “It’s time to get after them this year, and we’re ready to do it.”

[email protected]

PITTF R O M P A G E 3

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Around the Big East

1Syracuse4-1 (1-0)

West Virginia

2

5-1 (1-0)

Louisville

3

3-2 (0-0)

Rutgers

4

3-2 (1-0)

South Florida

5

3-3 (0-2)

Cincinnati

6

2-3 (0-0)

Pittsburgh

7

2-3 (0-0)

8

Connecticut3-3 (0-1)

CINCINNATI (2-3, 0-0 BIG EAST) AT LOUISVILLE (3-2, 0-0 BIG EAST), 8 P.M., ESPNCincinnati and Louisville both enter their Big East openers confi dent after offensive outbursts in victories last weekend. The Bearcats took a 45-3 lead into the half Saturday against Miami (Ohio), picking up their fi rst victory in nearly a month. Louisville looked impressive on offense for the third consecutive game, blowing out Memphis 56-0. Cincinnati quarterback Zach Collaros and UL quarterback Adam Froman rank No. 1 and No. 2 in passing yards in the Big East, respectively. First-year Louisville head coach Charlie Strong could really make a statement about how far the Cardinals have progressed by defeating the defending Big East champion in his fi rst conference game. Cincinnati defeated Louisville 41-10 last season.

ARMY (4-2) AT RUTGERS (3-2, 1-0), 2 P.M.The Scarlet Knights take on Army Saturday in the fi rst Football Bowl Subdivision game ever played in New Meadowlands Stadium. The Scarlet Knights hope to ride the momentum of their victory against Connecticut last Friday, as freshman quarterback Chas Dodd makes his second career start. Dodd threw for over 300 yards and two touchdowns in his fi rst career start against the Huskies, and it looks like he may have supplanted incumbent starter Tom Savage at the position. Army will provide a stiff test to the Scarlet Knights defense, however, as the Black Knights come in averaging 32 points per game. Army is coming off a 41-23 win over Tulane, a team that defeated Rutgers the week before. The Black Knights’ two losses, to Hawaii and Temple, have come by a combined 10 points. Rutgers defeated Army 27-10 last season in West Point, N.Y.

PASSING TEAM COMP-ATT PCT. YARDS TD INTZach Collaros CIN 91-144 63.2 1180 12 1

Adam Froman LOU 83-139 59.7 1177 9 4

Geno Smith WVU 97-146 66.4 1139 12 2

Ryan Nassib SYR 73-127 57.5 989 10 2

Tino Sunseri PITT 90-139 64.7 961 5 3

RUSHING TEAM ATT. YARDS AVG. TD LONGJordan Todman CONN 122 761 6.2 8 66

Bilal Powell LOU 91 689 7.6 7 80

Ray Graham PITT 60 536 8.9 5 79

Delone Carter SYR 99 524 5.3 5 36

Noel Devine WVU 90 475 5.3 4 50

RECEIVING TEAM REC. YARDS AVG/CATCH TD LONGD.J. Woods CIN 29 489 16.9 4 69

Michael Smith CONN 23 411 17.9 2 56

Van Chew SYR 23 402 17.5 2 48

Tavon Austin WVU 27 366 13.6 2 41

Armon Binns CIN 24 350 14.6 4 60

Adam Froman wasn’t named Louisville’s starting quarterback until Aug. 23. The senior quarterback began the season with little to no acclaim, and expectations were limited, too.

He’s injury prone — Froman struggled to stay healthy last season. He makes too many mistakes — in six games in which Froman threw 15 or more passes, he had an interception in four.

Lucky for Froman, the critics aren’t the ones throwing the football.

Froman threw for four touchdowns Saturday in a 56-0 victory over Memphis, the second straight win for a Cardinals team predicted to fi nish last in the Big East. He’s got seven touchdowns in his last two games, squashing the questions that sur-rounded the Louisville quarterback situation

entering the season.“What has happened is we’re a balanced

offense,” Louisville head coach Charlie Strong said in the Big East coaches’ tele-conference Monday. “Our running game, we’re running the ball very well, so anytime you can run the ball well, it opens up the passing game. He’s been able to make some really good throws.”

Cincinnati got off to a worrisome start in 2010, but it wasn’t because of its quarterback. Zach Collaros will still make other teams worry, even if the Bearcats aren’t winning.

In fi ve games, Collaros has thrown 12 touchdown passes to just one interception. That gives him 22 touchdown passes to three interceptions for his collegiate career.

The junior has completed over 60 per-

cent of his passes this season — 68 percent for his career. He leads the Big East in pass-ing yards and quarterback effi ciency and is tied for the lead in touchdown throws.

He steps it up in big moments, too.In place of Pike last season, Collaros led

Cincinnati to vital wins over Connecticut and West Virginia, throwing for 480 yards in the wild 47-45 win over the Huskies.

This year, he shook off some struggles from early in the game to throw two fourth-quarter touchdown passes, coming up just short as UC (2-3) lost to No. 8 Oklahoma by two points.

And he is 4-0 as a starter in Big East games, which could be good news to a Cin-cinnati team looking to gain momentum.

—Compiled by Mark Cooper, asst. copy editor, [email protected]

Game previews

Leaders (after Week 6)

News and notes STANDINGS

6

7

8

Froman rank No. 1 and No. 2 in passing yards in the Big East, respectively. First-year Louisville head coach Charlie Strong could really make a statement about how far the Cardinals have progressed by defeating the defending Big East champion in his fi rst

The Scarlet Knights take on Army Saturday in the fi rst Football Bowl Subdivision

PASSING TEAM COMP-ATT PCT. YARDS TD INTZach Collaros CIN 91-144 63.2 1180 12 1

Adam Froman LOU 83-139 59.7 1177 9 4

Geno Smith WVU 97-146 66.4 1139 12 2

Ryan Nassib SYR 73-127 57.5 989 10 2

Tino Sunseri PITT 90-139 64.7 961 5 3

RUSHING TEAM ATT. YARDS AVG. TD LONGJordan Todman CONN 122 761 6.2 8 66

Bilal Powell LOU 91 689 7.6 7 80

Ray Graham PITT 60 536 8.9 5 79

Delone Carter SYR 99 524 5.3 5 36

Noel Devine WVU 90 475 5.3 4 50

RECEIVING TEAM REC. YARDS AVG/CATCH TD LONGD.J. Woods CIN 29 489 16.9 4 69

Michael Smith CONN 23 411 17.9 2 56

Van Chew SYR 23 402 17.5 2 48

Tavon Austin WVU 27 366 13.6 2 41

Armon Binns CIN 24 350 14.6 4 60

Leaders (after Week 6)Leaders (after Week 6)

courtesy of louisville sports information

1 4 o c t obe r 15 - 17 , 2 0 1 0 s p o r t s @ d a i l y o r a n g e . c o m

By Brett LoGiuratoAsst. sports Editor

Syracuse right tackle Michael Hay is one of the bookends to a relatively inexperienced SU offen-sive line that has gone through some ups and downs this season. The line struggled last week, giving up four sacks to the South Florida defense and committing several penalties that stalled Orange drives. The Daily Orange caught up with the 6-foot-4 junior Hay to talk about the line’s performance last week and the adjustments going into Saturday’s contest with Pittsburgh:The Daily Orange: Last week, you faced a disruptive front seven at USF, and it got four sacks on Ryan Nassib. It’s a similar situation against Pittsburgh — three players on the Panthers have more than four sacks. How is the offensive line planning to stop Pitts-burgh?

Hay: We’re going to approach it the same way. We know both teams are both very physical teams, on defense especially. So we’re just going to go out there and be physical with them. We’re just going to try to play our game. We’re going to do the same thing — we’re going to practice the same way we do every week, the same thing — and see what happens on Saturday. We’ll be out there and ready to play. Last week, the offensive line had a few penal-ties that killed SU drives. Why do you think

so many little, simple mistakes like that hap-pened, and how do you plan to fix that?

If there weren’t little mistakes, there would be nothing to get better on. There are just things that we have to get better on. Nobody plays a perfect game. There’s no such thing as a perfect game. Those are little things — you’re caught up in the moment. It’s a game of football. The crowd, everything. There’s everything involved. They’re just mistakes. It’s better that they’re mistakes that can be fixed than mistakes that are long gone. So how do you work to fix those mistakes?

We’ll just concentrate on it a lot more dur-ing practice. The people who committed (the penalties), the people who had little mental errors, who had little problems, as a player you’re always going to keep that in the back of your head. And you know that when you step out on that field, that’s something you have to get better at. Last week, the only drive the offense did not have a penalty was on the last 98-yard drive that won the game. What do you think that says about the need for more drives like that one?

If anything, it says to where we should be. It’s something we have to practice. Every time we go out on that field, we should play like that. And I know it’s not always going to be like that. There is always going to be little stuff — little stuff that we have to get over. False stars, hands to the face, legs are out, offside, whatever, anything like that. But we always have to get better. That (98-yard drive) was one case of us doing what we can. There were still mistakes on that drive, but it was a taste of something we can be doing — as good as that. How do you try to keep having drives like that, where you have near perfection every single timeout?

That was just everybody on all cylinders clicking right there. The coaches, the players, the running backs, the offensive (line), the guards, the centers — everything. Quarter-backs. It’s something we have to practice. We have to watch the film, watch what we did right and what we did wrong. Again there were still some mistakes on that drive that we could have executed better. But we just have

to keep up the intensity and keep up the prac-tice — keep up the practice like it has been the

past couple of games. [email protected]

Q & A with SU right tackle Michael Hay

DAILYORANGE.COM

matthew ziegler | staff photographerMIcHaeL Hay (74) and the syracuse offensive line face another tough test this week in pittsburgh. the panthers have three players with at least four sacks so far in 2010.

NO. 12 ARKANSAS (4-1, 1-1 SEC) VS. NO. 7 AUBURN (6-0, 3-0), 3:30 P.M., CBSDespite being ranked twelfth in the country, the Razorbacks currently sit in fourth place in the SEC West. One of the four teams ahead of them is Auburn. If the Razorbacks want to make a push for the SEC championship game, they need to beat the Tigers on the road. Much like he did against Georgia, this is another chance for Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett to take over on the national stage. If he can lead his team to another quality road win, the Razorbacks should jump back into the Top 10 in the country. Mallett’s 1,748 passing yards is third best in the country and he ranks seventh in quarter-back rating. X-Factor: Cameron Newton, QB, Auburn – The Tigers’ leader is without question the catalyst for his team’s offense, but at times he has failed to protect the football. Newton has thrown an interception in four of his last fi ve games. If he can establish the running game for Auburn, there will be less pressure on his arm. The most passes Newton has attempted in a game this season is 21, and Arkansas could steal this game on the road if it can force him to throw more often than he is used to.

NO. 15 IOWA (4-1, 1-0 BIG TEN) VS. MICHIGAN (5-1, 1-1), 3:30 P.M., ABC/ESPNAfter a disappointing home loss to Michigan State, this game is huge for the Wolverines if they want to stay in the Big Ten title race. Quarterback Denard Robinson is coming off his worst game of the season in which he threw three interceptions and failed to rush for 100 yards for the fi rst time in 2010. This week’s game won’t be easy against the Hawkeyes, though. Iowa allows the few-est points in the nation at just more than 10 per game. The unit also gives up the fourth fewest yards per game. Iowa hasn’t allowed a single rushing touchdown in 2010, some-thing that doesn’t bode well for Robinson and Co. X-Factor: Michigan’s receiving corps – Will Roy Roundtree and Junior Hemingway step up? If they can get open against the Iowa secondary, Robinson won’t be forced to win the game by himself. The less he has to scramble on plays that aren’t called runs, the better. Michigan doesn’t have a chance in this game if he isn’t healthy, so the wide receivers need to make a conscious effort to free themselves up and limit the number of hits that Robinson has to take.

NO. 1 OHIO STATE (6-0, 2-0 BIG TEN) VS. NO. 18 WISCONSIN (5-1, 1-1), 7 P.M., ESPNThis is the game that could determine whether or not the Buckeyes make it to the national championship. The Badgers are arguably the toughest team OSU will face this season, and Madison, Wis., isn’t an easy place to play. In order for Wisconsin to pull the upset, it’s going to have stop Buckeyes quarterback Terrelle Pryor. This season it’s been pick your poison when it comes to defending Pryor. Last week, Indiana held him to -19 rushing yards, but he threw for 334 yards and three touchdowns. Two weeks ago Illinois limited him to 76 yards passing, but he ran for 104 yards. Wisconsin needs to limit both his arm and his legs on Saturday in order to stun the Buckeyes.X-Factor: John Clay and James White, RBs, Wisconsin – One of the best ways to pre-vent Pryor from wreaking havoc is to keep the ball out of his hands. In order for that to happen, Wisconsin needs to win the time of possession battle. Running backs John Clay and James White need to fi nd holes against the OSU defense and be able to pick up fi rst downs. If they are stopped for gains of two, three and four yards throughout the game, Ohio State will force punts and get their hands on the ball much more often.

NO. 24 OREGON STATE (3-2, 2-0 PAC-10) VS. WASHINGTON (2-3, 1-1)The Beavers need to win this game in order to keep the Pac-10 race interesting. Oregon currently sits unbeaten atop the conference (6-0, 3-0 Pac-10). Oregon State is the only other team without a conference loss. If OSU can get by Washington Saturday, it has three easier games against California, UCLA and Washington State coming up. In that time, the Beavers can hope for an Oregon loss, which will make the season fi nale against the Ducks a game with BCS implications. A loss to the Huskies means that Oregon is a game clear of everyone else in the Pac-10, and the Ducks don’t face another ranked team until Nov. 26. Washington is looking to avoid back-to-back losses after coming off a disappointing home loss to unranked Arizona State last week. X-Factor: Oregon State’s wide receivers – Someone in this group needs to step up and fi ll the void left by James Rodgers, who is out for the year with a knee injury. Rodgers led the team in receptions, receiving yards and was second in touchdowns prior to get-ting hurt. Luckily, the Beavers have fi ve other wide receivers with at least 10 receptions and at least one touchdown this season. It’s just a matter of whether or not any of them can become the big-play guy that Rodgers was.

S P O R T S @ D A I L Y O R A N G E . C O M o c t obe r 15 - 17 , 2 0 1 0 15

Around the nation

DENARD ROBINSON, QB, MICHIGANAfter looking to have run away with the race through his team’s fi rst fi ve games of the season, Robinson took a step back in Saturday’s loss to Michi-gan State. For the fi rst time all season he was held to fewer than 100 yards rushing. He also threw three interceptions. Nonetheless, he still leads the nation in rushing with 991 yards and has also thrown for 1,223 yards. His 8.3 yards per carry is tied for fi fth best in the country. If Robinson can remain healthy the rest of the season, he should be able to make a push back to the top of the Heisman-hopeful fi eld.

TERRELLE PRYOR, QB, OHIO STATEOhio State’s 6-0 start to the season wouldn’t have been possible without the drastic improvements made by Pryor over last season. So far in 2010, his completion percentage is up more than 11 percentage points to 68 percent. As a result, he’s thrown for 1,349 yards and 15 touchdowns with only three interceptions. He’s also run for 354 yards and three scores. His 15 pass-ing touchdowns are good for seventh best in the nation and are only three away from his career high. His quarterback rating of 170.5 is nearly 25 points higher than his previous career best.

KELLEN MOORE, QB, BOISE STATEWith much of the early-season attention devoted to dual-threat quarterbacks Denard Robinson and Terrelle Pryor, the typical drop-back passer Kellen Moore has quietly guided the Broncos to an undefeated start. His passer rating of 183.3 is best in the country. This is due in large part to his phenom-enal 14-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio. He also ranks in the 17th in the nation in completion percentage (67.4) and fourth in yards per attempt (9.9). In all he’s racked up 1,336 yards and 14 touchdowns.

LAMICHAEL JAMES, RB, OREGONJames is perhaps the only running back in the nation with a chance to win this year’s Heisman Trophy. Although his team is 6-0, James has only played in fi ve games so far this season. He’s still managed to rush for 848 yards, second in the nation behind Michigan’s Denard Robinson. Twice already this season James has gone over the 200-yard mark in game, including a stag-gering 257-yard, three-touchdown performance against Stanford. His nine rushing touchdowns are tied for fi fth most in the country.

HEISMAN WATCH

GAMES

Around the nation

HEISMAN WATCH

CAMERON NEWTON, QB, AUBURNThe 6-foot-6, 250-pound Newton has bowled his way over SEC competition so far this season to the tune of 672 yards rushing and nine touchdowns. He’s been no slouch through the air, either. He’s thrown for 1,138 yards and 12 touchdowns. In his last game, a 37-34 win over Kentucky, Newton gained 408 total yards and scored four touchdowns. His one downfall has been interceptions, and he’s thrown at least one in four of his team’s six games this season. If he can limit his mistakes down the stretch, Newton could emerge as the dark horse.

WEEKof the

courtesy of todd van emst | auburn media relations

S P O R T S @ D A I L Y O R A N G E . C O M16 o c t obe r 15 - 17 , 2 0 1 0

NO. NAME POS. HT. WT. CLASS

1 Jeremiah Davis DB 5-10 175 So.1 Ray Graham RB 5-9 195 So. 2 Saheed Imoru DB 5-10 190 Jr. 3 Aaron Smith WR 6-0 175 Jr. 4 Andrew Janocko QB 6-2 220 Jr. 4 Todd Thomas WR 6-2 210 Fr.5 Cameron Saddler WR 5-7 170 So.6 Kevin Weatherspoon WR 5-10 170 Fr.8 Anthony Gonzalez QB 6-3 215 Fr.9 Jason Douglas RB 5-7 170 Fr. 9 Pat Costello DB 5-11 185 So. 10 Aundre Wright DB 5-11 180 Jr.10 Drake Greer P 6-4 200 Fr.11 Mark Myers QB 6-4 225 Fr.12 Tino Sunseri QB 6-2 210 So.14 Greg Cross WR 6-2 205 Sr.15 Devin Street WR 6-4 190 Fr.16 Dan Cafaro DB 5-10 170 Sr.16 Kolby Gray DB 6-2 195 Fr.17 Joseph Lopez DB 5-9 170 Fr.17 Salath Williams WR 6-3 200 Fr.18 Jarred Holley DB 5-10 180 So.19 Pat Bostick QB 6-3 235 Jr.20 Emanuel Rackard LB 6-0 210 Fr.20 Brandon Ifi ll DB 6-1 190 Fr. 21 Buddy Jackson DB 6-1 180 Jr. 21 Jake Delmonico WR 5-10 185 So.22 Antwuan Reed DB 5-10 185 Jr.23 Kevin Adams FB 6-1 215 Fr.23 Marco Pecora DB 5-11 205 So.24 K’Waun Williams DB 5-10 175 Fr.24 Garrett Tonio PK 5-10 185 Jr.25 Jason Hendricks DB 6-0 180 Fr.26 Ricky Gary DB 5-9 175 Sr.26 Aaron Hassett P 5-11 190 So.27 Henry Hynoski FB 6-2 260 Jr.27 Todd Gilcrist DB 5-11 195 Jr.28 Dion Lewis RB 5-8 195 So.29 Chris Burns RB 5-11 200 So.29 Phil Peckich DB 5-10 180 Fr.30 Dan Hutchins P/PK 5-11 195 Sr.31 Dom DeCicco DB 6-4 230 Sr.32 Tristan Roberts LB 6-1 235 Jr.35 Brandon Lindsey DL 6-2 250 Jr.36 Brett Zuck WR 6-1 180 Fr.36 Manny Williams LB 6-1 225 So.37 Joe Capp FB 5-10 235 Sr.37 Derrick Burns DB 5-11 205 Fr.38 Greg Williams LB 6-3 240 Jr.39 Kevin Harper PK 5-10 180 So.40 Dan Mason LB 6-0 235 So.41 Andrew Taglianetti DB 5-11 190 So.

NO. NAME POS. HT. WT. CLASS 43 T.J. Peeler RB 6-1 210 Fr.43 Mark Giubilato LB 6-2 225 Fr.44 Nate Nix DL 6-4 240 Sr.45 Tyler Tkach DL 6-3 275 Sr.46 Shayne Hale DL 6-4 250 So.47 Andrew Devlin TE 6-6 265 Jr.47 Jon Taglianetti LB 6-1 215 So.48 Carl Fleming LB 6-1 220 Fr.48 Chris Mike FB 6-1 240 So.49 Adam Lazenga FB 6-0 210 Fr.49 Eric Williams LB 6-3 215 Fr.50 Tyrone Ezell DL 6-4 285 Fr.51 Bernardo Nunez DL 6-2 240 Fr.52 Lucas Nix OL 6-6 305 Jr.53 Joe Trebitz LB 6-3 220 So.54 Chris Jacobson OL 6-3 290 Jr.55 Max Gruder LB 6-2 230 Jr.56 Arthur Doakes OL 6-6 325 Fr.57 Aaron Donald DL 6-0 270 Fr.58 Kevin Barthelemy LS 6-3 255 Fr.58 Shane Gordon LB 6-1 230 Fr.59 Keith Coleman OL 6-5 305 So.60 Greg Gaskins OL 6-4 285 Jr.61 Alex Karabin OL 6-1 290 Sr.62 Fernando Diaz OL 6-2 280 Fr.63 Brandon Sacco OL 6-3 255 Fr.64 Shane Johnson OL 6-5 295 Fr.66 Matt Rotheram OL 6-6 300 Fr.68 Jordan Gibbs OL 6-7 305 Jr.70 Juantez Hollins OL 6-5 290 Fr.71 John Fieger OL 6-6 285 Jr.72 Jack Lippert OL 6-4 275 Fr.75 Ryan Turnley OL 6-6 305 So.76 Ryan Schlieper OL 6-5 300 Fr.77 Jason Pinkston OL 6-4 305 Sr.78 Cory King OL 6-6 315 Fr.80 Brendan Carozzoni TE 6-4 220 Fr.81 Brock DeCicco TE 6-5 240 Fr.82 Jon Baldwin WR 6-5 230 Jr.83 Hubie Graham TE 6-4 230 Jr.84 Ed Tinker WR 6-2 200 Fr.85 Mike Cruz TE 6-5 255 So.86 Dan Schneider TE 6-4 240 Fr.87 Mike Shanahan WR 6-5 220 So.88 Drew Carswell WR 6-4 210 Fr.90 T.J. Clemmings DL 6-6 280 Fr.91 Greg Romeus DL 6-6 270 Sr.92 Matt Yoklic P 6-4 210 Fr.92 Justin Virbitsky TE 6-4 265 So.93 Bryan Murphy DL 6-3 245 Fr.94 Myles Caragein DL 6-2 290 Jr.96 Justin Hargrove DL 6-4 270 Jr.97 Jabaal Sheard DL 6-4 260 Sr.98 Chas Alecxih DL 6-5 280 Jr.

PITTSBURGH ROSTER 2010

o c t obe r 15 - 17 , 2 0 1 0 1 7S P O R T S @ D A I L Y O R A N G E . C O M

SY

RA

CU

SE

RO

ST

ER

20

10NO. NAME POS. HT. WT. CLASS1 Phillip Thomas FS 6-0 189 So.2 Olando Fisher SS 5-11 198 Jr.3 Delone Carter RB 5-10 215 Sr.4 Malcolm Cater LB 6-1 212 Fr.5 Marcus Sales WR 6-0 177 Jr.6 Da’Mon Merkerson CB 6-1 184 Sr.7 Jonny Miller QB 6-1 210 Fr.8 Cody Catalina TE 6-3 231 Sr.9 Ri’Shard Anderson CB 6-0 185 So.10 Dorian Graham WR 5-11 190 So.11 Marquis Spruill LB 6-2 223 Fr.12 Ryan Nassib QB 6-2 224 So.13 Deon Goggins DL 6-3 280 Jr.14 John Kinder QB 6-2 182 Fr.15 Alec Lemon WR 6-2 196 So.16 Dom Anene CB 6-1 209 So.16 James Jarrett QB 6-2 204 So.17 Charley Loeb QB 6-4 208 So.18 Keon Lyn DB 6-1 188 Fr.18 Nick Raven QB 6-3 218 Fr.19 Ryan Lichtenstein K 5-10 155 So.20 Brice Hawkes LB 6-0 216 Fr.21 Shamarko Thomas SS 5-10 200 So.22 Adrian Fleming WR 6-3 198 Fr.23 Prince-Tyson Gulley RB 5-9 178 Fr.24 Max Suter SS 5-11 191 Sr.25 Derrell Smith LB 6-1 232 Sr.26 Kevyn Scott CB 5-11 207 Jr.28 Jeremi Wilkes DB 5-9 177 Fr.29 Antwon Bailey RB 5-8 192 Jr.30 Steve Rene WR 5-7 167 Fr.31 Clay Cleveland FB 6-0 218 Fr.31 Colin Reno WR 5-10 182 So.32 Doug Hogue LB 6-2 226 Sr.33 Dan Vaughan LB 6-2 214 So.34 Tombe Kose FB 5-9 253 Jr.35 Mike Holmes CB 5-11 182 Sr.36 George Mayes CB 5-8 182 Sr.37 Ross Krautman K 5-7 154 Fr.38 Ryan Ahern FS 6-0 198 Sr.39 Ricky Azzoto RB 5-9 203 Jr.40 Zachary McCarrell S 5-11 195 Fr.40 Joe Nassib CB 5-9 141 Fr.41 Ryan Gillum LB 5-11 219 Jr.42 Shane Kimmel FB 6-1 242 So.43 Mario Tull LB 6-0 206 Fr.45 Jerome Smith RB 6-0 210 Fr.46 Robert Nieves FB 5-11 221 Sr.47 Rob Long P 6-3 190 Sr.48 Carl Cutler FB 6-2 240 Jr.49 Adam Harris FB 6-2 232 Jr.50 Femi Aliyu LB 5-11 204 Fr.51 Andrew Lewis DT 6-2 285 Sr.52 Ollie Haney NT 6-2 292 Sr.53 Chad Battles DE 6-2 230 Jr.54 Mikhail Marinovich DE 6-5 245 Jr.55 Anthony Perkins DT 6-4 282 Sr.56 Cory Boatman DT 6-2 256 So.57 Max Leo LS 5-11 210 Sr.58 Lewellyn Coker LB 6-1 210 Fr.59 Macky MacPherson C 6-2 256 Fr.60 Sean Hickey OL 6-5 292 Fr.62 Andrew Phillips OT 6-6 280 Fr.65 Jarel Lowery OG 6-3 299 So.66 Andrew Tiller OT 6-5 338 Jr.67 Justin Pugh OG 6-5 287 Fr.69 Robert Welsh DL 6-4 259 Fr.70 Ryan Bartholomew C 6-2 298 Sr.71 Adam Rosner OG 6-5 326 Sr.72 Nick Lepak C 6-4 336 Jr.73 Nicholas Pedrotti OL 6-4 296 Fr.74 Michael Hay OT 6-4 290 Jr.75 Zack Chibane OG 6-5 298 So.76 Ian Allport OT 6-4 320 Jr.78 Austin Lane OL 6-6 300 Fr.80 Nick Provo TE 6-4 241 Sr.81 Cody Morgan WR 5-8 182 So.82 Van Chew WR 6-1 170 Jr.83 Kyle Ishman WR 6-1 170 Fr.84 Michael Acchione WR 5-10 164 Jr.85 Jose Cruz TE 6-5 250 Sr.86 David Stevens TE 6-2 219 So.87 Aaron Weaver WR 6-2 220 Sr.88 Jarrod West WR 6-3 190 Fr.89 Thomas Trendowski TE 6-1 238 Jr.90 Jared Kimmel DE 6-6 250 Sr.91 Brandon Sharpe DE 6-2 233 So.92 Charlie Copa TE 6-6 246 Fr.93 Micah Robinson DL 6-3 259 Fr.94 Bud Tribbey DT 6-0 290 Sr.95 Torrey Ball DE 6-3 247 Jr.96 Jay Bromley DE 6-3 273 Fr.97 Beckett Wales TE 6-3 233 Fr.98 Max Beaulieu DE 6-4 255 Fr.99 Chandler Jones DE 6-5 251 So.


Two-time Heisman finalist Colt McCoy will be honored by his alma mater on Oct. 30 when Texas retires his No. 12 jersey. It will be just the sixth jersey retired by the Long-horns program, joining the likes of Vince Young, Earl Campbell and Ricky Williams. In his four seasons at Texas, McCoy won more games (45) than any other player in the his-tory of college football. He holds the school record for total touchdowns, touchdown passes and passing yards. McCoy, who was selected in the third round of the 2010 NFL draft, will make his first career start for the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.

For years, a bulldog named Uga has roamed the Georgia sidelines as one of the few remaining living mascots in college football. But after Uga VII passed away last year, the Bulldogs began their season with an interim mascot, Russ. Finally, the search for Uga VIII has ended, and he will be introduced to the crowd on Saturday when Georgia hosts Van-derbilt. The transition will be complete dur-ing the pregame ceremony when the collar is passed from Russ to Uga VIII. Interestingly, Uga VIII is the grandson of Uga VI.

Florida running back Chris Rainey has been given a second chance by head coach Urban Meyer. He was partially reinstated Tuesday just one month after his arrest on an aggra-vated stalking charge. Rainey won’t be on the field Saturday, however, when the Gators

take on Mississippi State. He could return to action on Oct. 30 against Georgia, Meyer said. Rainey, who also runs track at Florida, is one of the fastest players in the nation. Over the past two seasons he has rushed for 1,227 yards and nine touchdowns.

Alabama is still uncertain whether or not it will have wide receiver Julio Jones on the field Saturday against Mississippi. Jones broke his hand last week against South Caro-lina and had surgery Sunday to insert a plate and screws. He caught passes in practice on Wednesday, but will need to be reevaluated before a decision about Saturday’s game can be made. Jones is the team’s leading receiver and finished the game against South Carolina with a season-high eight catches for 118 yards despite the broken hand.

Boston College freshman quarterback Chase Rettig is on pace to be healthy enough to start Saturday against No. 14 Florida State. Rettig was named the starter on Oct. 2 prior to the team’s game against Notre Dame, but he sprained his ankle in the second quarter. His action against the Fighting Irish was Rettig’s first of the season. He was 5-for-10 for 72 yards and a touchdown. BC finishes its regular season with a trip to the Carrier Dome on Nov. 27 to take on Syracuse.

-- Compiled by Asst. Copy Editor Michael Cohen

Around the nation

news and notesGentleman’s club

s p o r t s @ d a i l y o r a n g e . c o m

QuarterbacksRyan Nassib came through in the clutch against South Florida last weekend, leading SU the length of the field to victory. Pittsburgh quarterback Tino Sunseri has been unable to post decent stats (a five-to-three touchdown-to-interception ratio) or wins.

Advantage: Syracuse

running backsThe Orange continued to use Antwon Bailey more last week, and that’s a good thing. He was the perfect complement to Delone Carter. Though Dion Lewis has been a disappointment for Pittsburgh, Ray Graham has been just as much of a pleasant surprise.

Advantage: Even

Wide receiversSU’s receiver cast is too depleted to win this matchup. The Panthers have six players with nine catches or more. Jon Baldwin (24 catches) and Mike Shanahan (19 catches) are their two biggest threats.

Advantage: Pittsburgh

tight endsNick Provo is third on the Orange with 12 catches on the season. He has established himself as an option for Nassib. Mike Cruz leads Pittsburgh tight ends with only four receptions.

Advantage: Syracuse

Offensive lineThis SU line is still inexperienced, judging by the amount of silly mis-takes and penalties it committed against USF. The unit is in for anoth-er tough test with Pittsburgh’s defensive line. But Pittsburgh’s line is shaky, too, already having allowed 11 sacks to SU’s 12.

Advantage: Even

defensive lineThe Panthers have too much balance here, with three separate defen-sive linemen — Jabaal Sheard, Chas Alecxih and Brandon Lindsey — having four sacks or more. Sheard has eight tackles for loss on the season.


linebackersDerrell Smith, Doug Hogue and Marquis Spruill have been as good as anticipated for the Orange. Pittsburgh’s linebacking corps doesn’t have the same kind of presence.

Advantage: Syracuse

secOndaryPittsburgh’s pass defense has given up just over 40 more yards per game than has Syracuse’s, albeit against stronger competition. SU’s unit is riding the waves, coming off a dominating performance against USF.

Advantage: Even

special teamsMike Holmes leads the Big East in punt return average by a wide mar-gin. Holmes averages 18.7 yards per return, a huge advantage in the field-position game.

Advantage: Syracuse

cOachingDave Wannstedt’s pedigree has to win out here. He has a proven track record of success, while Doug Marrone has a start with last week’s win.


— Compiled by Asst. Sports Editor Brett LoGiurato

Tale of the tape A position-by-position breakdown of Saturday’s game

o c t obe r 15 - 17 , 2 0 1 0 19

Ed Harris to host screening of his feature film

Touching Home, followed by a special screening of

screening of his award winning film Pollock.

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2010 The Palace Theatre

2384 James St. Syracuse, NY 13206

THE SEVENTH ANNUAL

SYRFILMFEST'10 SYRACUSE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

TICKETS: $15 each – includes film and talk back with filmmaker/director

Touching Home—4:15 pm Pollock—7:45 pm

To purchase tickets, please visit the festival website at Syrfilmfest.com, or call the festival office at 315.443.8826.

matthew ziegler | staff photographer

Documents

October 15, 2010