looking No BACK
SU could be bowl-bound with win, but Marrone, Orange have sights set on more
PAGE 3
The SU defense’s test against Louisville PAGE 10
Beat writer predictions and pregame graphics PAGE 5 How Charlie Strong has turned the Louisville defense around
matthew ziegler | staff photographer
sports.dailyorange.com
a nd now, the Marrone plan sees its 1st big effect on recruiting
By Brett LoGiurato
Nov. 3, 2010 3:31 p.m.
USC. Penn State. Notre Dame. Alabama.
And Syracuse.
That’s the final list for the 2011 No. 1 prospect in New York state, defensive end-tight end Ishaq Williams of Lincoln High School in New York City. This is all according to the New York Post. According to Scout.com, Williams is the No. 7 defensive end prospect in the class.
Now, to start and be fair, both of Williams’ parents are Syracuse alumni. And he grew up in the Central New York-area until he was 16. So naturally, SU would have to be a consideration.
But it just doesn’t seem like Syracuse would be a real consideration for Williams if he hadn’t seen the recent steps of the program, which SU head coach Doug Marrone now has at 6-2 and on the way to a bowl for the first time since 2004. And a Big East title, which absolutely no one had seen coming at the beginning of this season, is not out of the realm of possibility.
And because of that, a dynamic player like Williams isn’t out of the realm of possibility, either. Marrone’s 2010 class was about on par with that of Rutgers as part of the middle of the pack around the nation. But Williams would be a huge step forward.
Marrone’s third class is already shaping up to be better than his second. Six three-star recruits have already verbally committed to play for the Orange, which is already more than half the number of three-star recruits Marrone scooped up last year. And Signing Day isn’t until February.
And a commit from Williams could spur even further progress for the 2011 class, according to the Post.
Williams could also possibly be the face of the program, the biggest prospect Marrone has landed since he arrived in upstate New York three years ago, and could lure fellow city standouts like Brandon Reddish of Fort Hamilton and Shaquell Jackson and Wayne Morgan of Erasmus Hall to Syracuse.
And here’s what Williams’ father, Shaun, had to say about Syracuse and Marrone to the Post:
“We think Coach Marrone is poised right now to really put Syracuse on the national map,” Shaun said. “He is really laying down the foundation for a winning program.”
And this:
“I thought he showed so much class,” Shaun said.
Ishaq Williams plans to commit on Jan. 8 during the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, according to the Post. He’s scheduled for a visit to Syracuse on Dec. 11. We’ll see what happens with this one. bplogiur@syr.edu
Against Cardinals, ever-improving SU defense will face new challenge
Doug Hogue doesn’t spend a lot of time dwelling on the numbers. Not at this point, just 10 weeks into the season.
To Hogue, the fact that Syracuse enters the weekend as 13th-ranked defense in the country is a trivial piece of information. It doesn’t at all speak to where the Orange hopes to be at season’s end. And focusing on it doesn’t do anything but bring complacency.
And that’s not something the Orange can have with the nation’s No. 5 rusher coming to town on Saturday in Bilal Powell.
“Personally, I never really pay attention to those things,” Hogue, a senior linebacker, said of the defensive ranking. “We just have to keep it up and keep building. I feel as though we have yet to play our best defense. We’re going to have to keep improving.”
Hogue’s mentality isn’t just his own, either. It’s one that is shared by his teammates, all the way up to SU head coach, Doug Marrone. Together, the Orange defense collectively understands that each week is a new obstacle to overcome. A new team looking to exploit what has steadily
andrew l. john
goin’ hog wild
become the rock upon which SU’s season relies.
And as the Orange prepares to take the field against a much improved Louisville offense Saturday in the Carrier Dome, that mindset won’t change. Facing an offense that features one of the premier running threats in the country in Powell, the Orange can’t get caught up in what it accomplished last week or the week before. For them it’s another new challenge. It’s another opportunity to continue improving.
Gone is the “swag” and brash trashtalking mentality we saw from the defense in the first few weeks. Now it’s all business. Because it didn’t really matter that the Orange defense had shut down Akron and South Florida on the road earlier this
season. Directly following each of those two games, that feeling of complacency set in, leading to embarrassing performances against Washington and Pittsburgh, SU’s only two losses of the season.
Now three weeks removed from that loss to Pitt, the same mentality that accompanied the Orange on the road in impressive wins against West Virginia and Cincinnati must remain Saturday against Louisville.
Though Powell — who leads the Big East in rushing — is questionable for the game with a swollen right knee, the Cardinals have enough offensive weapons to exploit the Orange if SU takes the game lightly.
Perhaps that’s why Hogue and his teammates are staying grounded. Despite what was accomplished last week or the week before, the approach remains the same: Don’t look back, just ahead. Focus on the task at hand.
“It’s all about us maturing each week,” SU strong safety Shamarko Thomas said.
“The Pitt game just made us a tougher defense. It brought us together and taught us that we need to communicate better and
matthew ziegler | staff photographer
The Syracuse defense ranks 13th in total defense, but it will be tested Saturday against Louisville. The Cardinals rush for nearly 200 yards per game, No. 23 in the nation.
If Syracuse wins this weekend and makes it to a bowl game, how will you celebrate?
“I won’t really celebrate. They should make a bowl.”
“My friends and I have a game day dance that we’ll definitely perform, to Jock Jams.”
“I
“I would go crazy with my friends and look into making travel plans for the bowl game.”
“I’ll
attend more games next season. Obviously try to go to the bowl game.”
Molly Nelson Freshman
Antonio Rejman
Ricky D’Arrigo
Mike Lefko
on the Quad.”
Jackie Roberts Freshman
STRONG medicine
With arrival of head coach Charlie Strong, Louisville’s
defense evolves into one of conference’s best units
By Zach Brown STAFF WRITER
Doug Beaumont knew from the very fi rst team meeting of the year that new head coach Charlie Strong was ready to turn around a sagging Louisville program.
Before spring practices started, before he had gotten to know his players, Strong sent his team a message in that fi rst meeting. A message that the senior wide receiver Beaumont said was not delivered in the kindest of tones. It was a message, Beaumont said, that showed the Louisville football team that Strong was there to turn things around.
He demanded respect from his players. And he got it immediately.
“He told us from the get-go what he’s expecting, what he’s going to do,” Beaumont said. “And it showed us that it’s not time to play around no more, and we
“When you look at it, it’s a program that four years ago went to the Orange Bowl. It hasn’t been to a bowl game in the last three years, so it’s just change the overall attitude of this football team. You had to get them to believe that they can go play. Get them to believe that they can win.”
Charlie Strong LOUISVILLE HEAD COACH
just have to respect him. He got his trust right away. And from then on, he kept his trust.
“My fi rst impression was he was the real deal.”
Strong has eased off that intensity slightly as he has built a rapport with his players. But come Saturdays, the passion works its way back into the fi rst-year head coach’s demeanor. As the former Florida defensive coordinator, he was brought to Louisville to improve that side of the football, where the Cardinals (4-4, 1-2 Big East) fi nished 65th in the nation last year. And that improvement has already emerged in Louisville’s play this year.
Strong and the Cardinals’ No. 22-ranked defense will be on display when they take on Syracuse (6-2, 3-1) Saturday at noon in the Carrier Dome.
“It’s a big turnaround, you can just tell,” Beaumont said. “The defense is more motivated to get to the ball fast, play hard. … They have great execution planned from Coach Strong and the defensive staff.”
Just a year ago, Louisville struggled to keep teams out of the end zone, a major contributor to its 4-8 season. The defense allowed 26.3 points per game, a number that bumped up to 32.5 per game in the Cardinals’ eight losses. Their pass rush mustered just 23 sacks through those 12 games, and the run defense
SEE STRONG PAGE 19
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Scouting Louisville with Shamarko Thomas
ABy Andrew L. John Sport S Editor
s part of Syracuse’s 13th-ranked defensive unit, safety Shamarko Thomas has racked up 36 total tackles and two sacks and a fumble recovery through the Orange’s first eight games this season. Against West Virginia, Thomas had seven tackles and assisted on the final sack of WVU quarterback Geno Smith to end SU’s 19-14 victory. On Saturday, the Orange defense faces a new challenge coming from the nation’s No. 4 rusher in Bilal Powell. The Daily Orange spoke to Thomas this week to discuss how the unit is preparing for the Louisville offense.
the Daily orange: What is the team’s mentality heading into this game after winning two in a row on the road?
Thomas: We just need to stay focused and take it one game at a time. We’re only worried
about getting this ‘W.’ Go 1-0 every week. It’s just another game, and we need to stay focused and get back to work. the defense has played well in back-to-back games now coming off the disappointing game against Pittsburgh. What did that loss to Pitt do for you guys?
We had some miscues against Pitt. But it ultimately helped us become an even better defense. That game helped us mature. We had a little discussion and we talked it out and we were determined to step it up. We have been playing great, and that’s just from staying focused and having great defensive leadership.
What do you guys expect this week against an improved Louisville offense?
It’s the same mentality. Our whole mindset has changed from the beginning of the year. I tell our guys, “We’ve got a different kind of
swagger.” I mean, we know what we can do, and against a good Louisville offense, it’ll be another chance to prove it. What opportunities are presented for you guys as a defense going up against one of the top running backs in the country in Louisville running back Bilal Powell?
It’s not just him, Louisville has a great offense so we’re not just focused on him. We’re focused on the whole offense. We’re looking forward to the challenge.
Does it change your game plan if he does not play on saturday?
Not at all. We’re focused on that matchup, but the approach is the same every week. Like I said before, our mindset is to go 1-0 and play balls-out, balls-to-the-wall. Like our coaches always tell us, fly to the ball.
That has been our theme. Every week, we just want to get better and better, and that’s
our goal.
What are you guys looking to focus on specifically with this offense? What kind of things have stood out to you in watching film? Big plays. On film, they make a lot of big plays. Deep balls, screens and a lot of other stuff. So our goal is to eliminate the big plays they make on offense.
how do you guys stay grounded coming off two big wins? how do you not allow Louisville to come into the Carrier Dome and catch you guys off guard?
We always have to persevere and stay strong and stay together as a team. This is our family, so (SU head coach Doug Marrone) taught us how to grow with each other and stay together. He’s showed us how to win. He speaks about that a lot, about winning and coming together as a team.
aljohn@syr.edu
matthew ziegler | staff photographer
shamarko thomas (21) ranks fifth on the Syracuse defense with 36 tackles this season and also has two sacks. He had 4.5 tackles in last season’s 10-9 loss to Louisville.
has made 11 tackles and one sack this year as a backup linebacker for the o range. t he freshman has played mostly on special teams this season.
Q&A with SU linebacker Malcolm Cater
By Brett LoGiurato Asst. s ports Editor
Though most of the attention has been focused on freshman linebacker Marquis Spruill, a fellow freshman has made noise at the same position. Malcolm Cater has played a key role on special teams while occasionally fitting into the linebacker rotation on defense. Cater, a 6-foot1, 212-pound linebacker from Riverhead, N.Y., has 11 total tackles and a sack this season. The Daily Orange caught up with Cater this week to discuss his freshman season thus far and look ahead to Saturday’s contest with Louisville and beyond.
The Daily Orange: Going back to the game against Maine when you had five tackles and a big hit on a kickoff return, was that your coming out party?
Cater: Yeah, it was exciting just going out there as a freshman and showing my team that I’m ready to be on the field and be ready to just play ball. I’m out here to play ball and show what I can do.
Have you heard the nickname “Clothesline Cater” off that big hit?
Yeah, that was pretty funny. I saw it online and everything. It’s a pretty cool nickname to have. In my recent game I played against Cincinnati, I just played all right. I have to work a little more now, wrap up a little more. But I took some shots out there that I’m a little upset about, and I should have made those tackles. I’ll make it better.
How important is the hard-hitting, physical aspect for you as a linebacker?
That’s very important. I’m a very physical person. I like to be a hard-hitter. I like to make big plays. It’s just being a middle linebacker. That’s what you have to do. You have to come between those tackles, and you have to fill the gaps. You just have to keep playing hard and keep doing it.
SU head coach Doug Marrone was talking
from page 3
know our roles out there. And we’ve been doing that each week ever since.
“We had some miscues against Pitt. But it ultimately helped us become an even better defense. That game helped us mature.”
And after holding WVU and Cincy scoreless in the second half of each of the last two games, the defensive unit only appears to be getting better with each week.
That’s the only thing that interests Hogue and his teammates right now. The numbers and past accomplishments are virtually meaningless to this group. The defense has evolved from the trash-talking unit that had that “swag” at the beginning of the season.
Monday about how some of the matchups with Louisville worried him. What are some of the matchups you guys are worried about on defense and are looking at as keys to come out on top?
We need to stay in the “camera club.” Everybody just has to fly to the ball, just run to the ball and keep tackling. Just keep going for shots and make things happen. We have a great defense on the field. Everything needs to flow on defense. I’m not really worried about defense. I think our defense is going to keep going hard and fly to the ball like we usually do.
As a freshman linebacker, what have you learned from Doug Hogue and Derrell Smith? Just hard work. How they study film and how they’re so focused on film. They want to learn more and more every day. Even though they’re good players, they work on the small, small details. How they “dip and rip,” how they burst through the hole, how fast they close to the ball, how they take the right angle to the ball-carrier. Just small things like that, they stress so much. And being seniors, they show us as freshmen how to be more focused. It’s really good working behind Doug and Derrell.
Along the same lines, what have you learned from fellow freshman starting linebacker Marquis Spruill? What’s your relationship like, and what do you see from you guys going forward?
Me and Marquis are roommates. We just talk about the future and everything. We talk about how he could make better plays and how he could focus up a little more on small details and just how he slow-plays sometimes and could speed it up. Seeing him play, everybody wants to be in that position. But just seeing him and how he works so hard, he makes me work hard. He’s a hard-working kid. Next year, it’ll be me and him. I’ll be middle linebacker, he’ll be outside linebacker. It’ll be a great duet.
bplogiur@syr.edu
Now, after each win, it’s simply on to the next one.
“Every week we just try to forget about what we’ve accomplished the previous game,” defensive end Mikhail Marinovich said. “This week it’s a new challenge. We face a good offense, and despite what is behind us or ahead of us, this is our focus.”
Perhaps that’s why Hogue and the rest of his unit aren’t paying attention to the numbers. Despite what this defense has done in previous weeks, the biggest challenge for the Orange is the one just around the corner.
Regardless of whether or not Powell is lining up in the backfield.
Andrew L. John is the sports editor at The Daily Orange, where his column appears occasionally. He can be reached at aljohn@syr.edu.
matthew ziegler | staff photographer
MALCOLM CAT er (4)
Nassib will take on Louisville’s 13th-ranked pass defense, and it starts with Patrick, who will likely be covering Van Chew most of the game. Nassib needs to improve from his relatively shaky Big East performances thus far.
Louisville’s rush defense is not as strong as its pass, and that’s what SU will likely look to exploit. With Prince-Tyson Gulley out, though, SU needs both Carter and Antwon Bailey at full strength.
LoUisviLLe
yards per game, on average, the Syracuse defense has allowed its opponents this season, its best mark since 1997.
road Big East wins for Syracuse in three games, the most for the orange since 2001.
Pugh and the offensive line allowed Nassib to move methodically last week at Cincinnati. Against Gnat, who leads the Cardinals with 6.5 sacks, Pugh has to be at the top of his game.
If Powell plays, it’ll be a different animal for SU. That comes in the form of a top-five running back nationally in terms of average yards per game. And as the leader of the defense, Smith will be in charge of stopping him.
In
When SU shocked No. 18
in
, current starting strong safety max Suter ran back a kickoff return 93 yards for a touchdown.
Louisville has gone 129 consecutive games without being shut out Syracuse has shut out four of its eight opponents in the second half this season.
“Everyone knows what our record is. Everyone knows how many wins we have to have to become bowl eligible. It’s in everyone’s mind. Yeah, we talk about it.”
“In the back of our heads, we know.” Doug
Hogue
Conference wins for Louisville in the past three seasons. Louisville is 3-14 in Big East play over that span.
Non-specialist scholarship players that will be available Saturday against Louisville, SU head coach doug m arrone said m onday.
Second-quarter points for Louisville in eight games this season, compared with just 34 first-quarter points.
Louisville has been a surprise team in the Big East this year. But Syracuse appears to be on a roll, and I
GAMES TO WATCH
No. 4 Texas Christian vs. No. 6 Utah
In this matchup of two unbeatens, someone’s hope of playing for the national championship will be crushed. With these two
CAMERON NEWTON, QB, AUBURN
Newton just keeps finding ways to help his team win. It’s as simple as that. And as he does it, he improves his Heisman resume. Two weeks ago against LSU, the Tigers held him to just 86 yards through the air. Instead, Newton ripped off a season-best 217 yards on the ground and two scores to push his team to a 24-17 win. His 1,122 yards rushing is good enough for fourth-best in the country, and his 14 rushing touchdowns are tied for the NCAA’s best mark. Through the air, Newton has been nothing less than solid. True enough, he’s never topped 250 yards passing this year, but he’s been effi cient and accurate with 3-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio.
LAMICHAEL JAMES, RB, OREGON
schools and No. 2 Boise State all ranked in the Top 10, there are three non-BCS schools with a legitimate shot at finishing the season undefeated. Saturday’s game will be an
HEISMAN WATCH
There’s no real debate here — James has easily been the best running back in the country in 2010. He leads all tailbacks with 1,210 yards rushing and has an astonishing 7.1 yards per carry. But perhaps even more impressive is that he has three games of more than 225 yards already this season. Last week against USC, James carried the ball 36 times for 239 yards and three touchdowns. His 14 rushing touchdowns are tied with Newton for the highest total in the country. This weekend, James and the Ducks take on a lowly Washington team, so expect this electrifying sophomore to have another huge game.
KELLEN MOORE, QB, BOISE STATE
Moore and the Broncos just keep rolling along in 2010. Another week, another double-digit win. That’s six in a row, if you’re counting. Last week against Louisiana Tech, Moore threw his first interception since Sept. 18 against Wyoming. In that four-game, pick-free stretch, Moore totaled 11 passing touchdowns and 982 yards. He leads the country in quarterback rating and yards per attempt and is sixth in completion percentage. The Broncos have one more game against a ranked opponent (Nov. 26 @ Nevada) in which Moore can make a statement to Heisman voters.
ANDREW LUCK, QB, STANFORD
Ever since the Cardinal suffered a disappointing loss to then-No. 4 Oregon three weeks ago, Luck has responded by leading his team to three straight wins. His 20 touchdown passes are tied for ninth in the nation, and he is 10th nationally in quarterback rating. Luck showed off his legs in last week’s dominating win over Washington. In addition to his 192 yards and a touchdown through the air, he also carried the ball fi ve times for a season-high 92 yards and a score. Saturday’s game against Arizona will be a tough test for Luck, as he goes up against one of the nation’s Top 10 defenses. — Compiled by Asst. Copy Editor Michael Cohen
offensive showdown with national-title implications on the line. Both the Horned Frogs and the Utes come into the game scoring at least 40 points per game this season and in the Top 25 in total offense. After this game, neither team plays a ranked opponent for the remainder of the season. For either TCU or Utah, Saturday is an audition for a possible chance to sneak into the national title game.
No. 5 Alabama vs. No. 12 Louisiana State It feels like there is a good game every week in the SEC, and this one is no exception. Two teams with identical records (7-1, 4-1 SEC) are fi ghting for a chance to get to the league’s title game. Although the Tigers are the underdog this weekend, playing the game in Baton Rouge, La., is a huge advantage. The Tigers are undefeated at home this season, and its only home loss last year was to No. 1 Florida. Les Miles’ defense allows just 16 points per game, good for 10th in the nation. And if the Tigers want to come out on top in this one, that defense will have to shut down an Alabama offense that hasn’t scored fewer than 21 points all year.
No. 17 Arkansas vs. No. 18 South Carolina The Gamecocks (6-2) control their own destiny as they pursue a trip to the SEC title game. Currently sitting atop the East Division, South Carolina could punch its ticket to Atlanta with a win Saturday and a Florida loss to Vanderbilt. Though the Razorbacks
and SEC passing leader Ryan Mallet are no slouch of an opponent, the Gamecocks are fortunate in that Mallet will be without one of his best playmakers. Wide receiver Greg Childs, who had led the team in receptions, yards and touchdown receptions, is out of the season with a patella tendon injury. Thus far in 2010, the Gamecocks allowed a conference-worst 260 yards per game through the air, so head coach Steve Spurrier and his defense might be breathing a sigh of relief that Childs is out.
No. 13 Arizona vs. No. 10 Stanford
Behind the stellar play of quarterback Andrew Luck, the Cardinals are off to their best start in 40 years at 8-1. Luck, who many project to be the No. 1 pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, is 10th in the country in quarterback rating. He will take on the No. 10 defense in the country when Arizona arrives in California Saturday. These two teams both trail Oregon in the Pac-10 race. A win keeps them alive for the conference’s BCS berth if the Ducks slip up along the rest of the way. Saturday’s game is going to come down to whether or not the Wildcats can keep Luck under control and limit big plays downfi eld. So far, though, he has at least two passing touchdowns in six of his team’s eight games this season.
News and notes
Despite a season that has many people pegging him as the Heisman frontrunner, Auburn quarterback Cameron Newton doesn’t want to think about the NFL quite yet. The nation’s fourth-leading rusher and third-highest rated quarterback said Monday that he will ponder his football future after the season is over. Newton said he can’t be thinking about those types of “selfi sh thoughts” with his team in the midst of the Southeastern Conference title hunt. Not to mention a possible push toward the national championship. As for right now, Newton wouldn’t be able to give “a definite decision on how I’m feeling right now.”
Miami is already down to its fourth-string quarterback for Saturday’s game against a surprising Maryland team. Now the Hurricanes will be without their top running back as well. Senior tailback Damien Berry, who had amassed 690 yards rushing and four touchdowns, is a “little sore, banged up,” his head coach Randy Shannon said. Shannon said Berry has been dealing with this injury for a little over two weeks, although he wouldn’t identify what it was specifi cally. So without Berry, the life of true-freshman replacement quarterback Stephen Morris is much more diffi cult. The Hurricanes have dropped all the way to third in ACC’s Coastal Division after a disappointing loss to Virginia last week.
The campus of Mississippi State is mourning the loss of defensive end Nick Bell, who died Tuesday after a fi ght with cancer. The sophomore Alabama native was diagnosed near the end of September. On Oct. 1, he had surgery to remove a mass from his brain, but emergency surgery was necessary Monday when the cancer was found to be spreading throughout his body. The No. 21 Bulldogs have a bye this week before returning to the fi eld on Nov. 13 against Alabama. Through the first four games of this season, Bell had seven total tackles, two of which were for a loss.
After the Big East schools unanimously agreed Tuesday to expand the number of football participants in the conference from eight to 10, the speculation game began. Which two schools would be invited to fi ll those final two spots? Many believe the conference will target Conference USA members Central Florida and Houston. But Wednesday, both schools spoke out saying they had not been contacted by the Big East. For the time being, each school continues to be a “proud member of Conference USA.” A third potential target is the Mountain West’s TCU, according to various reports.
Just one week after their teammate was shot and killed by police, four Pace University football players pleaded not guilty Thursday at their arraignment at Mount Pleasant Town Court in Valhalla, N.Y. Three of the players are charged with disorderly conduct, and the fourth is charged with criminal mischief in connection to an incident that left teammate Danroy Henry dead at a suburban shopping center. Authorities allege that Daniel Parker, Joseph Garcia and Yves Delpeche interfered with getting medical help for Henry. The fourth player, Joseph Romanick, allegedly broke a store window. All four were arrested in the aftermath of the Oct. 17 shooting, which took place just a few hours after the team’s Homecoming game.
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DAILYORANGE.COM
LAST TIME THEY PLAYED LOUISVILLE 10 SYRACUSE 9 NOV. 14, 2009
In a way, the games could be thought of as exact opposites. Last year’s game against Louisville was a must-win to keep any hope of a bowl alive. This year’s game could grant the Orange bowl eligibility in its pursuit of something more than simply being eligible.
That’s why last year’s 10-9 loss to the Cardinals in Louisville, Ky., stung so much. It was only Nov. 14, and the team had to deal with knowing that its hopes of postseason play were
already over.
“It hurts, that’s all I can say really,” SU running back Delone Carter said after last season’s game, according to an article published in The Daily Orange on Nov. 16, 2009. “We had it, we had it in the bag, and it slipped away from us.”
Louisville quarterback Adam Froman found wide receiver Josh Chichester for a 15-yard touchdown with less than two minutes to play to earn the come-from-behind win. It was a game
in which Syracuse only trailed for 1:24 seconds, yet SU came away with nothing.
The Orange outgained Louisville by 115 yards. It had nearly 10 more minutes of possession than Louisville. And it had more than four-and-a-half times as many rushing yards as the Cardinals.
But it had one fewer point on the scoreboard.
“It’s a heartbreaker,” SU center Jim McKenzie said. “They pulled it out at the end. It’s unfortunate. It’s a part of football. You got to play all four quarters, all 60 minutes.”
And as tended to be the case for most of last season, it was Carter who kept the Orange on top throughout the game. Carter ran the ball 28 times for 129 yards and a score, accounting for just less than 50 percent of the team’s 266 total yards.
On SU’s lone touchdown-scoring drive of the game, Carter carried the ball on three out of the four plays — almost single-handedly willing the Orange into the end zone.
But other than Carter, the team struggled. Quarterback Greg Paulus failed to top 100 yards and had no touchdown passes with one interception. Wide receiver Marcus Sales had a ball clang off his chest and intercepted by Louisville. And the team racked up nine penalties for 65 yards.
“We did well overall, I thought we played hard, we had great effort, I was really proud of my teammates,” McKenzie said. “But in the end,
it was just one too many mistakes. There was a litany of them throughout the game.”
That game was part of a stretch of four Big East games in 2009, during which the Orange failed to score more than 13 points. At that point, Syracuse (3-7, 0-5 Big East) was demoralized with nothing left to play for. No postseason. No bowl. No wins in the conference.
It left the team deflated and longing for 2010.
“I think you have to execute, and that’s the whole thing you expect to execute at a high level, and to win football games, that’s what you have to do,” Marrone said. “There’s nothing really crazy about this game. It’s about execution.”
— Compiled by Michael Cohen, asst. copy editor, mjcohe02@syr.edu
LOUISVILLE 10, SYRACUSE 9
Around the Big East
Defensive Player of the Year
1. DE Jabaal Sheard, Pittsburgh Sheard has filled the void left by the injury of Greg Romeus, last year’s Co-Defensive Player of the Year. Sheard leads the Big East with nine sacks, four forced fumbles and 12.5 tackles for loss. He had two sacks in last week’s win against Louisville.
2. LB Doug Hogue, Syracuse Both Hogue and fellow SU linebacker Derrell Smith are in the race for the award, but to this point Hogue has had the more prolific season. His 57 tackles rank second on the Orange, and he has seven tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and two interceptions. He won the National Defensive Player of the Week award in Syracuse’s win against West Virginia this year with 10 tackles and two interceptions.
Big East awards r ac E s
Offensive Player of the Year
1. RB Bilal Powell, Louisville
The Cardinals are 4-4 and surprisingly in contention for a bowl, and Powell is one of the main reasons why. Head coach Charlie Strong named his running back the “face” of the program in the preseason to the surprise of many after Powell ran for just 392 yards last season. But the senior has been the star of the Big East, rushing for 1,067 yards on seven yards per carry. Powell is fifth in the nation in rushing yards.
2. QB Zach Collaros, Cincinnati
Despite missing last week’s game with a knee injury, Collaros is still the Big East’s leader in passing yards and touchdown passes. The Bearcats are just 3-5, but it’s more a result of UC’s porous defense than Collaros’ efficiency. Collaros is 16th in the country in passing efficiency, above stars such as Michigan’s Denard Robinson and Southern California’s Matt Barkley.
3. QB Tino Sunseri, Pittsburgh
Although Pittsburgh (5-3, 3-0 Big East) is well out in front of the conference, the Panthers do not have a standout star on offense. Still, Sunseri is the leader under center, and he’s come on strong in conference play. He has thrown seven touchdowns to just one interception in Pitt’s three conference games. And with his success through the air has come a Pitt team that averages more than 35 points per game in Big East play.
3. LB Lawrence Wilson, Connecticut Wilson was one of the favorites for the award after making 140 tackles last season, and he has lived up to expectations in 2010. His 84 tackles lead the Big East, and he ranks 12th in the nation with 10.5 tackles per game.
1
2 5-3 (3-0)
6-2 (3-1)
3 5-3 (1-2)
4 5-3 (2-2)
6 4-4 (1-2)
7 4-4
5 3-5 (1-2)
— Compiled by Asst. Copy Editor Mark Cooper
courtesy of pittsburgh media relations
LOUISVILLE ROSTER 2010
5
218 JR
Goodwin WR 6-0 190 FR 29 Hakeem Smith S 6-1 175 FR 30
Hogan RB 6-0 206 FR
Champ Lee DB 6-0 185 FR
Senorise Perry CB 6-0 182 FR
Mike Evans CB 5-10 180 JR 33 Grant Donovan LS 6-1 192 FR
SYRACUSE ROSTER 2010
GAMES TO WATCH
TELEVISION IN THE AGE OF THE INTERNET TRF 400—Section 1/TRF600-Section 1
Mondays 5:15-8:30 pm
History of Television in the Cable Era: 1980 to 2001
At the end of the 1970s, only 23% of American homes had cable TV, and the highest-rated shows on the air included “The Dukes of Hazzard,” “Little House on the Prairie,” “CHiPS,” and “Diff’rent Strokes.” That was about to change, however. This class will trace the history of prime-time TV from 1980 to the present. We’ll examine programs like:
*DALLAS
*MTV
*HILL STREET BLUES
*The shooting of Ronald Reagan
*CHEERS
*THE A-TEAM
*KNIGHT RIDER
*THE COSBY SHOW
*MIAMI VICE
*The Space Shuttle Explosion
*MOONLIGHTING
*90210
*MY SO-CALLED LIFE
*DARIA
*Letterman/Conan/Jon Stewart
*MARRIED…WITH CHILDREN
*THESIMPSONS
*THIRTYSOMETHING
*TWIN PEAKS
*SEINFELD
*IN LIVING COLOR
*The Gulf War
*Clarence Thomas hearings
*The Rodney King case
*The O.J. Simpson case
*THE REAL WORLD
*Monica Lewinsky
*SOUTH PARK
*Reality TV
*The 2000 Presidential elections
*The 9/11 terrorist attacks
*THE LARRY SANDERS SHOW
*SEX AND THE CITY
*THE SOPRANOS
Tale of the tape
A position-by-position breakdown of Saturday’s game
Quarterbacks
Syracuse’s Ryan Nassib and Louisville’s Adam Froman have been similar quarterbacks thus far. They are Nos. 4 and 5 in the Big East in pass efficiency and average passing yards per game, though Nassib has 14 touchdowns to Froman’s 11. With Froman’s status in question, SU gets the nod here.
Advantage: Syracuse
d efensive line
Both Syracuse and Louisville have legitimate pass rushers in Chandler Jones and Rodney Gnat. Both getting to the quarterback will be key in the game’s outcome.
Advantage: Even
r unning backs
Both teams’ offenses are built around their respective running games. And both of those running games are currently hampered by injuries. In SU’s case, it’s the absence of freshman Prince-Tyson Gulley. In Louisville’s case, it’s the uncertain status of the nation’s fourth-leading rusher in Bilal Powell. SU’s two best running backs in Delone Carter and Antwon Bailey, though, should be good to go.
Advantage: Syracuse
l inebackers
The position is Louisville’s weak link on defense. No linebacker has more than 27.5 tackles this season. The Orange has two tackling machines in Derrell Smith and Doug Hogue, who have 63 and 57, respectively.
Advantage: Syracuse
Wide receivers
The not-so-secret weapon in the Orange’s pass game could be Bailey, who is quickly climbing up the charts and now has 20 receptions. Overall, both teams’ receivers are similar. SU’s Van Chew and UL’s Doug Beaumont both have 31 receptions, though Chew has exploded for 143 more yards on those receptions.
Advantage: Syracuse
s ec O ndary
Telling of Scott Shaffer’s defense is the fact that three defensive backs have a sack this season. But Louisville’s secondary is good in its own right, as it leads a defense that is ranked 13th nationally against the pass.
Advantage: Even
s pecial teams
Overlooked amid the overall hoopla surrounding Syracuse is that Ross Krautman has only missed two kicks the entire season — one on a botched snap on an extra point and one field goal. He is 11-for-12 on the season, providing consistency and reliability.
Advantage: Syracuse
t ight ends
SU’s Nick Provo has established himself as a legitimate weapon in the Orange’s passing attack, and he now has 20 receptions on the year. But Louisville’s Cameron Graham is the Cardinals’ red-zone threat. He has three touchdown catches this year.
Advantage: Louisville
Offensive line
Syracuse’s offensive line has steadily improved from a penalty-riddled performance at South Florida. But Louisville’s line has only allowed 10 sacks this season to SU’s 17, and it paves the way for Powell.
Advantage: Louisville
cO aching
Both Doug Marrone and Charlie Strong inherited programs at the bottom of the Big East and are starting to build those programs back up. In his second season, Marrone is on a faster track, but not by much.
Advantage: Syracuse
Compiled by Asst. Sports Editor Brett LoGiurato
ranked No. 84 in the country.
Enter Strong.
He served as Florida’s defensive coordinator from 2003 to 2009 and won two national championships with the Gators. After accepting the new position at Louisville, he completely revamped the entire coaching staff — offense included. He brought Vance Bedford with him from Florida to serve as defensive coordinator and added position coaches from all over the country on both sides of the ball.
With all the changes have come improvements, especially in Strong’s area of expertise. The defense has shaved a full touchdown off its points-allowed average from a year ago. It already has 20 sacks through its first eight games, and its pass defense ranks No. 13 in the nation. The Cardinals have even pitched
two shutouts already this year in wins against Memphis and Connecticut.
Strong said it starts with defensive line play.
“It’s important that you play well up front,” he said. “Especially on the defensive front, because if you can’t stop anybody from running the ball, then you don’t even get a chance to rush the passer. So it’s critical that we get going there, that we play very well up front.”
But what makes Strong different from other coaches is not his talent with X’s and O’s. Florida head coach Urban Meyer, who Strong served under while with the Gators, said last offseason that it was his skills off the field that separate him from others.
“A lot of times, you may not be the best schematic coach, which I think (Strong is) very good,” Meyer told reporters. “But the thing that makes Charlie such a special guy is the fact that he has impeccable character and is a great leader.”
The Cardinal players have taken notice of their coach’s intangibles as well. Beaumont said the coach can command respect and express his
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passion one day, like he did in that first team meeting, but can also keep things light-hearted. He has maintained trust and respect from his players by developing relationships with them. He jokes around and laughs with the team when appropriate.
But he also comes down on them when he needs to, as he did by benching defensive end Rodney Gnat for the Cardinals’ opening day loss to Kentucky. Strong said the senior didn’t practice well leading up to the game, resulting in his benching. Gnat responded by tallying seven tackles and 4.5 sacks the next week in Louisville’s 23-13 win over Eastern Kentucky. He currently ranks fourth in the Big East with 6.5 sacks on the year.
“I just think he’s a players’ coach,” Beaumont said. “He can joke around with us. He can fool around with us. He’s a coach that knows how to lead. He has a fun time but, at the same time, knows it’s business and knows that we have to be serious on the game field.
“And that’s what he’s good at.”
Strong has already initiated the turnaround he was hired to produce. He does delve into the offense to make sure it is prepared for Saturdays, but his heart lies with the defense, where he has already left a mark.
He has said he wants to change the mindset of the program. Louisville went to a BCS bowl as recently as 2006 before stumbling to a 15-21 record over the past three years. He sent the message to his team that it was time for a change in that first team meeting.
And as Strong’s era has gotten underway, so too has the turnaround for Louisville football.
“When you look at it, it’s a program that four years ago went to the Orange Bowl,” Strong said. “It hasn’t been to a bowl game in the last three years, so it’s just change the overall attitude of this football team. You had to get them to believe that they can go play. Get them to believe that they can win.”
zjbrown@syr.edu
