Delone Carter's Run for the Record Book

After rushing for 85 yards on 18 carries in Piscataway, NJ on November 13th against Rutgers, Delone Carter rushed for 67 yards on 19 attempts in the Carrier Dome on Saturday in Syracuse's Big East finale against the Connecticut Huskies. His efforts earned him 1,005 yards on the ground this season, Carter's 2nd straight 1,000 yard season. It is the 14th time in school history a running back has rushed for 1,000 yards in a season.

The total also gives Delone Carter 2,876 career rushing yards, which moves him past the #4 All-Time leading rusher at Syracuse University, James Mungro. DC3 is now 58 yards behind the #3 rusher on the list, football legend Larry Csonka.

Between 1965 and 1967 Larry Csonka rushed for 2,934 yards on 594 carries at Syracuse University. In 1967, Csonka was named the ECAC Player of the Year and drafted 8th overall in the 1968 NFL draft by the Miami Dolphins. Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1987, Csonka played 11 years in the NFL for both the Dolphins and the NY Giants. He was a key member of the undefeated Dolphin team of 1972, and was the Super Bowl MVP in 1974 with 145 yards and two touchdowns in the Championship game against Minnesota.

If Delone Carter can pick up 59 yards in the finale this coming Saturday against Boston College, he will solidify himself as the 3rd leading rusher in Syracuse Orangemen football history, with his name along side Joe Morris (4,299) and Walter Reyes (3,424).

Top Ten All-Time Leading Rushers at Syracuse University:

1. Joe Morris 4,299

2. Walter Reyes 3,424

3. Larry Csonka 2,934

4. Delone Carter 2,876

5. James Mungro 2,869

6. Floyd Little 2,704

7. David Walker 2,643

8. Dee Brown 2,626

9. Bill Hurley 2,551

10. Damien Rhodes 2,461

photo courtesy of Michael Borkowski

Syracuse Steps Up In Second Half to Knock Off Northern Iowa

After a lackluster first half inside the Carrier Dome, the Syracuse Orangemen entered the locker room up 23-20. The Northern Iowa Panthers played tremendous defense and took very good care of the basketball for 20 minutes to hold Syracuse to just 23 points. Thankfully, after a half time pep-talk from Jim Boeheim, the Orangemen burst out of the locker room and outscored Northern Iowa 45-26 in the second half en route to a 68-46 Syracuse victory in front of 22,198 fans in the Dome.

Fab Melo converted the first field goal of the season to give the Orangemen a 2-0 lead, a surprising 3 scoreless minutes into the game. Fab Melo would foul out of the game in just 18 minutes of playing time in his college debut. He finished with 4 points on 2-3 shooting from the floor with 3 rebounds and 1 steal.

Speaking of freshman debuts, Dion Waiters was extremely impressive in his first regular season game. Chipping in 18 minutes, Waiters scored 10 points on 3-6 shooting from the floor (2-4 from 3), with 1 steal 1 rebound and zero turnovers. Apparently he saves his "A" game for when the games count.

The most impressive Orangemen on this night were Rick Jackson and Kris Joseph. Each scored 14 points to lead the Orangemen and Jackson added 7 rebounds 4 assists 2 blocks and 2 steals (along with 3 turnovers), to help Syracuse earn the win. Joseph also grabbed 5 rebounds and dished 2 assists in 29 minutes of action.

C.J. Fair got 8 minutes of game time, and was 3-3 from the floor for six points in limited action. He also picked up 1 block and 1 steal in the game and had the lone monster jam of the night. Scoop Jardine played just 19 minutes and was held scoreless shooting 0-7 from the floor with 4 assists and two turnovers.

After the game Boeheim said that Brandon Triche needs to be more aggressive and stated that he has "not found his way." Coach Boeheim added that Triche is playing very conservatively, and needs to be more aggressive on the offensive end. In 32 minutes Brandon Triche had 5 points on 2 of 5 shooting (1 of 3 from three).

The win was Jim Boeheim's 830th All-Time and ties him for 5th on the All-Time coaching wins list with Mount Saint Mary's coach Jim Phelan. Syracuse's next game is today (Sunday) at 3PM on ESPNU when Syracuse takes on Canisius.

photo courtesy of syracuse.com

Ryan Nassib's Time to Step Up

Through the first four games of the season Ryan Nassib has looked like the first real quarterback to put on a Syracuse Orangemen uniform since the departure of Donovan McNabb. Syracuse fans have watched Troy Nunes, R.J. Anderson, Perry Patterson, Andrew Robinson, and Cameron Dantley take snaps under center for the Orangemen. We have also been witness to Duke point guard Greg Paulus playing at QB (as weird as that is to type its true). There has been the two headed QB by committee system and there has been outright confusion. Overall, one thing Syracuse has lacked since the late 1990s is a true quarterback.

Enter Ryan Nassib.

In just four career starts, Nassib has already set the record for most TD passes in a single game at Syracuse. Of course it came against the Maine Black Bears, but five touchdown passes in one game is still quite the accomplishment at the college level. Through the early part of the season Nassib has been 61 of 105 pass attempts, 860 yards with 9TD passes and 2 INTs. Now the true test comes. Now is the time for Nassib to show the fans that he isn't just a quarterback that can beat up on lesser opponents. He must prove to everyone that he can perform at a high level against the faster and bigger Big East defenses as well.

Not just a passer, Ryan Nassib has the wheels to run for positive yardage. He moves very well in the pocket and has rushed for 70 net yards this season and 1 touchdown. Nassib has the arm to throw the ball down field to deep threat Van Chew, and he can gun the ball over the middle for quick slants to slot receiver Alec Lemon and Antwon Bailey out of the back field as well. For a team that came into the season with big question marks at wide receiver, Nassib is making the most of the targets he has. Ryan Nassib currently has the highest passing efficiency rating in the conference at 151.4, good enough for 24th overall in the country.

After the loss of Aaron Weaver many SU fans were concerned about the depth at the WR position. Antwon Bailey showed Coach Marrone that he can be a lethal player out of the backfield and our tight ends have shown an ability to not only catch the ball, but pick up yards after the catch as well, most notably Nick Provo. Syracuse's offense hasn't skipped a beat since the season ending injury to Weaver and we are all hoping that the lack of a #3 receiver doesn't burn the team later in the year.

Now the true test for Nassib begins. This Saturday the Orangemen travel to Tampa, Florida to take on the South Florida Bulls. Syracuse has never beaten South Florida since USF joined the Big East in 2005. Of course their arrival to the conference coincided with Greg Robinson's arrival on the Hill so that shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. This year though Syracuse fans everywhere have a reason to believe that the Orangemen have a CHANCE to win this game.

Both teams enter 3-1 and both teams have beaten up on squads with a combined record of 2-10 thus far in 2010. Ryan Nassib has to be the quarterback that takes over the game. He must continue to make time in the pocket with his feet and stretch the defense with attacks through the air. If Nassib can continue to excel within Syracuse's attack, than SU will finally have an opportunity to return to a bowl game for the first time since 2004.

Now is the time for Ryan Nassib to show Orangemen fans that he belongs.

photo courtesy of syracuse.com