Win and In.

When the Syracuse Orangemen take the field tomorrow, they will be walking into the Carrier Dome with one thing on their mind. Win and In. Sure, Head Coach Doug Marrone will tell us that the team is not concerned with any "four letter words." Marrone will certainly say that the team isn't focused on it.

However, every single fan who attends the game and all the players on the field know what is at stake. Win, and Syracuse is going to be going to a bowl game. Between 2005 and 2009 the only chance a Syracuse Football team had at going to a bowl game was to buy tickets like everyone else. Tomorrow we can change that.

The Syracuse Orangemen football fans who are left, the true fans, the ones who survived the Greg Robinson Era. The fans who took every single loss on the chin. The one's who took each 10 loss season personally. The fans who were kept up late at night screaming out "HOW CAN GREG ROBINSON POSSIBLY COME BACK TO COACH ANOTHER SEASON!" to anyone who would listen. For the fans who actually watched Greg Robinson punt on third down!!

The fans who went to the Dome every week knowing that their team was outmatched, out coached, and out worked, yet still bought tickets. The fans who kept tuning in week after week with a hope that the nightmare would soon end. Those fans are about to wake up to words that people told them would never be possible again.

Syracuse football fans were told that a small private school in upstate New York could not compete with the rest of the college football world. People were questioning whether or not Syracuse should leave the Big East and step down a level to play weaker schools. Teams that were on "our level" of competition. Fans were told that Syracuse football was dead and it would take ten years to return the program to any level of respectability.

Then Doug Marrone walked in.

In what took Greg Robinson four years, Doug Marrone has done in 20 weeks (10 wins). Greg Robinson won a total of three Big East games in four seasons. Doug Marrone has won 3 Big East games this year. On the road. And now Doug Marrone can lead Syracuse to something that Greg Robinson couldn't even spell.

Just nine weeks into the season, Syracuse will be looking for that elusive win. The win that will take the Orangemen back to respectability. Sure the win in Tampa against a South Florida team that utterly embarrassed Syracuse every single time they met was respectable. And certainly defeating a top-20 team on the road in Morgantown was great. However, without that seventh win to clinch bowl eligibility, it would have all been window dressing.

Now, just nine weeks into Doug Marrone's second campaign, with four games remaining on the schedule, Syracuse football fans are on the cusp of something that was unfathomable under Greg Robinson.

If you don't have tickets to the game Saturday and you have the means to be there, than you are going to miss the greatest re-birth witnessed by man since people started celebrating Easter! With a win on Saturday, Syracuse fans can finally say it!

WE ARE GOING BOWLING.

Game day art courtesy of Michael Borkowski

Syracuse's Road Warriors Return Home to Face Louisville

After winning two straight road games against West Virginia and Cincinnati the Syracuse Orangemen are coming home. This Saturday Syracuse will kickoff in the Carrier Dome against the Louisville Cardinals at noon on SNY. The Orangemen come back to the Dome sporting an impressive 6-2 record (3-1 in Big East play) and are just one win away from bowl eligibility. With a win on Saturday, Syracuse will ensure the program's first winning season since 2001 and their first bowl bid since the 2004 season.

Louisville comes to the Carrier Dome with an overall 4-4 record, 1-2 in the Big East and a laundry list of injuries. The Cardinals lost their last contest against Pittsburgh 20-3 and may be without their starting running back Bilal Powell, who suffered a knee injury in the game. Powell has 1,067 yard this season on 153 attempts and 9 rushing touchdowns along with 12 catches for 118 yards and 1 touchdown. Bilal Powell has the 5th most rushing yards in the nation and if he is unable to play Victor Anderson will get the majority of the carries. Anderson, who has 245 yards on 48 rushing attempts, missed the last three games for the Cardinals, including last weeks game against Pittsburgh, with a shoulder injury. However, he has been cleared to play against Syracuse on Saturday, although it is doubtful he will be 100% healthy.

Cardinals starting quarter back Adam Froman is another question mark going into the game on Saturday. Froman has yet to practice this week and has been seen on campus with crutches, however without any kind of cast or boot. Reports state that Froman has a thigh bruise, but no word yet on his status for Saturday. Froman has completed 132 of 218 passing attempts for 1,633 yards and 11 touchdowns with 4 interceptions. If he is unable to go Justin Burke will get the start. Burke is a senior who has only thrown 7 passes this season, completing 5 of them for 40 yards with 1 TD and 1 INT. He transferred to Louisville via North Carolina State and started three games last season. In 2009 Burke completed 49 of 97 passing attempts for 654 yards and 3 touchdowns. Unfortunately for the Cards he also threw 5 interceptions.

When Adam Froman is healthy he likes to spread the ball around on offense. Doug Beaumont leads the receiving corp with 31 catches for 358 yards and 1 touchdown. Josh Bellamy leads the team in touchdown grabs with 4, and has 18 catches for 284 yards. Cameron Graham has 23 catches for 269 yards 3 touchdown grabs, and Josh Chichester has 13 catches for 215 yards and 2 scores. Lastly, Andrell Smith has 12 catches for 118 yards and 1 touchdown to round out the likely targets.

Louisville's defense enters the Carrier Dome allowing just 18.8 points per game which is 21st best in the nation. The Cardinals also allow 318.8 yards per game which is 25th best in the country. Due to the possibility of a depleted offense and with Syracuse's dynamic defense, it could be a long afternoon for the Cardinals defenders, which will certainly slow them down and make them vulnerable to big plays.

The Syracuse Orangemen are not without injuries. Starting offensive tackle Michael Hay has yet to practice this week and has been sporting a boot on his left foot on the sidelines. In his place has been Ian Allport, who is 6'4" 320 pounds, and Andrew Phillips who is 6'6" and 280 pounds. While Hay had an extremely bad start to the season, he has settled down the last two weeks and provided adequate blocking on the offensive line. Head coach Doug Marrone has not ruled Hay out for Saturday's game yet.

Additionally, Prince-Tyson Gulley has been ruled inactive for the second straight game as he is currently battling mono. With Gulley out Syracuse just has two eligible runners in their backfield, Delone Carter and Antwon Bailey. As long as the Orangemen don't suffer any more injuries they should be fine, however Adam Harris has also seen an increased work load due to the thin numbers in the backfield. Wide receiver Van Chew did not participate in practice on Tuesday, however he was back on the field Wednesday and head coach Doug Marrone said he was just giving Chew a day of rest.

Scott Shafer's defense has been the catalyst for Syracuse's success this season, and currently rank 13th in the country in average yards allowed per game with 298.5. Orangemen D is also 14th in the nation in points allowed, averaging just 17.5 per contest. After a brutal defensive showing in their last home game versus Pittsburgh, expect to see the defense get after it on Saturday. They have been playing too good to come home and pull another disappearing act.

On offense it has been business as usual for the Orangemen. They have been running down opponents throats and punishing defenders along the way. Ryan Nassib bounced back from a rough outing in Morgantown to complete 16 of 26 passing attempts for 125 yards and 2 touchdowns (1 interception) in the win against Cinci last week. He will need to continue to protect the football and not put it on the turf if Syracuse wants to continue the winning ways this Saturday.

Delone Carter and Antwon Bailey's dynamic duo has continued to perform as Carter showed no ill-effects from his hip injury in Morgantown. Carter ran for 109 yards on 19 carries last week. Antwon Bailey scored two touchdowns in Cincinnati last week, 1 rushing 1 receiving, and finished with 68 combined yards from scrimmage in the win. If the duo can stay healthy and continue to pick up positive yardage then this train can keep on rolling!

The Orangemen were also able to get big contributions out of their tight ends this past week. Nick Provo caught 4 passes for 40 yards to lead the team in receiving yardage and Jose Cruz made 3 catches for 20 yards. Provo caught a huge pass on 4th down and 3 for 19 yards to set up Syracuse's first touchdown.

Tune in Saturday at 12PM to catch the live action on SNY when Syracuse takes on Louisville in the Carrier Dome. With a win Syracuse will improve to 7-2 on the year, become bowl eligible for the first time since 2004, and ensure the first winning season for the football program since 2001. Tickets are still available and I highly encourage all Syracuse-Area fans to be in attendance.

photo courtesy of syracuse.com

[UPDATE: Louisville RB Bilal Powell and QB Adam Froman are both ruled OUT on Saturday, as is OL Michael Hay for Syracuse.]

Syracuse Handles Kutztown With Ease

In the first exhibition game of the 2010/2011 season the Syracuse Orangemen defeated the Kutztown Golden Bears 96-60 with 7,371 fans at the Carrier Dome. Kris Joseph and C.J. Fair each scored 14 points to lead the Orangemen and James Southerland grabbed a team high 11 rebounds.

Syracuse fans who were able to watch the game caught their first glimpse of the "fab four" freshman and were not disappointed. Fab Melo recorded his first block in the games opening minutes and seconds later stole the ball at the top of the 3 point line and ran it to the house for a break away dunk. Melo looked like the prospect we have been hearing about for nearly a year, running the floor extremely well, making good passes, and finishing around the rim. Fab Melo finished 4-5 from the floor for 9 points. He also contributed 4 blocks, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and 4 turnovers in 23 minutes of action.

The freshman who shined the brightest on this night was C.J. Fair. C.J. Fair came in off the bench and his ability to finish and be in the right place at the right time were extremely evident. He lead the team in scoring (along with Kris Joseph) with 14 points on the evening and a few emphatic dunks. He converted a Fab Melo rebound for a big slam in the first half and finished 5-7 from the field along with a perfect 4-4 from the foul line. Fair also grabbed 6 rebounds, 4 of them on the offensive glass in 18 minutes on he floor.

Dion Waiters struggled a little at times during the first exhibition game of his college career. Waiters shot just 3-9 from the floor and finished with 6 points. He was 0-4 from behind the arc and grabbed 3 rebounds in 18 minutes of action. While he didn't look as polished as Fair did during this contest, its just one exhibition game. Jim Boeheim called Waiters one of the best freshman guards he's seen on campus and Boeheim doesn't just hand out comments for no reason. Expect a big bounce back game when Syracuse takes the floor in their final exhibition game against LeMoyne next week.

The final freshman, Baye Moussa Keita, contributed a solid 15 minutes of action in his first college contest. Keita was 3-5 from the floor and 2-2 from the charity stripe to finish with 8 points. He also grabbed 6 rebounds, 5 of them on the offensive glass. Keita was able to get his hands on a lot of loose balls however he did not always come down in possession of the rock. He needs to continue to work on his strength if he wants to win the battles inside once Big East play begins. Keita also had 4 blocks and seemed to be in sync with the rest of his teammates. If he can just hold onto the ball when he goes up for the rebound every time he will be a fine sub off the bench for the Orangemen this season.

Another extremely impressive part of this game was Syracuse's shooting from the free throw line. Syracuse, a historically poor free throw shooting team, managed to be a perfect 13-13 from the foul line. Not sure where that came from but we are all extremely happy to see it! The Orangemen's three point shooting however was not as impressive. Syracuse also forced Kutztown into 24 turnovers and recorded 11 blocks on defense.

The team finished just 5 of 29 from behind the arc and a mere 2 for 18 in the second half. Kris Joseph was 1-4 from 3, Scoop Jardine finished 0-3, Brandon Triche was 2-4, Waiters finished 0-4 from behind the arc, C.J. Fair missed his lone 3-pt attempt and Mookie Jones shot just 2-7 from 3 point land. [Griffin Hoffmann Syracuse bench player was also 0-1 from 3.]

Speaking of Mookie Jones, he was 3-9 from the floor [2-7 from 3] in 17 minutes of action. Jones finished with 10 points grabbed 1 rebound and two steals with just 1 turnover. Unfortunately, he still has an extremely quick trigger when he gets the ball on the perimeter and doesn't look to run the offense enough. He still has to work on his game if he wants to get solid minutes once the regular season begins.

Syracuse's Box Score:

The Orangemen take on the LeMoyne Dolphins in the Carrier Dome Tuesday November 9th in their final exhibition tune-up before they open the season November 12th versus Northern Iowa.

kris joseph photo courtesy of syracuse.com

Basketball Season (Unofficially) Kicks off Tonight!

For the die hard Syracuse basketball junkies out there, your days are about to get a little easier. Tonight at 7PM the Syracuse Orangemen's 2010/2011 season unofficially starts with an exhibition game against Kutztown University. The game will be shown live on SNY. Many of you probably never heard of Kutztown and probably doubt that it's even a real college, but I can assure you that it is very real.

Kutztown is a division II school located in Kutztown, Pennsylvania about 20 miles southwest of Allentown. Although the school has churned out numerous mayors of Pennsylvania towns, their best known alum might be Andre Reed, former Buffalo Bills receiver.

The Kutztown Golden Bears are coming off a 23-8 season, however they will be without Division II National Player of the Year Stephen Dennis who graduated this past spring. Syracuse fans will have to watch out for Julius Gray, the team's returning leading scorer from last season. Julius Gray is a 6'0" guard and averaged 13.8 points per game last season and was first on the team in 3-pointers made. Another player that should be on Syracuse fan's radar is Eric Brennan who avaraged 17.5 points per game last year and had 40 steals at Lock Haven before transferring to Kutztown. Brennan is a 6'7" forward and averaged 7.5 rebounds per game last year.

The Golden Bear's center is Alex Reed, a 6'9" 225 pound sophomore who's career scoring high is two points. That should be a pretty nice first match up for Fab Melo, who will be making his first start at center for Syracuse University tonight. Also gives Baye Moussa Keita a good chance to get acclimated to the world of college basketball against a less than qualified opponent.

For Syracuse, we know what to expect. This game should be at least a 30 point win and anything short of a blowout would be disappointing. Everyone remembers the LeMoyne fiasco last season, and no one wants a repeat of that. Especially the players. This game also provides the rest of the freshman class a nice introduction to college basketball with 10 days to go before the regular season opener.

For those fans who missed The Cuse Connection's Basketball Season Previews, check out part 1 here, a look at the returning Orangemen from last season. Part 2 is a look at the incoming freshman players. Lastly, part 3 was a two parter. First Zach Menchini, a Cuse Connection contributer, wrote up a piece about his predicted starting five, prior to DaShonte Riley's injury, and then the second part consisted of my season prediction and a response to Zach's starting five. Also penned before the injury to Riley.

Due to DaShonte Riley's injured right foot he will most likely miss the entire season and be eligible for a medical redshirt. In part 3 of the season preview, we debated whether or not Riley would start the season at center, however now with the injury it is clear that Fab Melo will be the starting center for the Orangemen.

The game tonight will be broadcast live on SNY and tip-off is 7:00PM. Check back in with The Cuse Connection following the game for recap and analysis.

Photo courtesy of syracuse.com

Big East Conference Roundup (Week 9)

The Big East kicked things off this week with a shocker Friday night. With West Virginia coming off a very tough loss at home against Syracuse, the Mountaineers traveled to Connecticut this weekend to take on the Huskies. WVU was clearly still stinging from the loss to Syracuse because they put the ball on the turf a total of seven times. UCONN managed to recover four of the fumbles and take the Mountaineers into overtime. In the overtime WVU fumbled the ball yet again, and UCONN recovered to end the scoring drive. A few Jordan Todman carries later and Dave Teggart came out to drill a 27 yard field goal for the win. 16-13 UCONN. West Virginia hasn't lost two straight games since the 2008 season. Todman finished the game with 113 yards on 35 carries and a touchdown. Both teams have a bye this week. The Loss drops West Virginia to 5-3 overall, 1-2 Big East. UCONN is now 4-4 on the year, 1-2 in the conference.

Aside from the Syracuse-Cincinnati game there was one other match up on the Big East slate. Pittsburgh hosted Louisville and the Panthers did not disappoint the home town fans. Louisville was held to just 82 passing yards and their star running back Bilal Powell (4th best runner in the country) was lost in the 3rd quarter for the remainder of the game with a right knee injury. After Louisville jumped out to an early 3-0 lead, it was all Pittsburgh, as they rattled off 20 unanswered points. Louisville will travel to Syracuse next week to take on the Orangemen at 12:00. Pittsburgh gets the bye. Pittsburgh is now 5-3 overall, 3-0 in the Big East and alone in 1st place in the conference. Louisville is 4-4, 1-2 Big East.

There are only two Big East games this week, the aforementioned Syracuse-Louisville showdown and Rutgers versus South Florida in Tampa on Wednesday at 7pm on ESPN2.

Conference Standings through week 9:

1. Pittsburgh 5-3 (3-0)

2. SYRACUSE 6-2 (3-1)

3. Rutgers 4-3 (1-1)

4. West Virginia 5-3 (1-2)

5. South Florida 4-3 (1-2)

6. Connecticut 4-4 (1-2)

7. Louisville 4-4 (1-2)

8. Cincinnati 3-5 (1-2)

Delone Carter's Run for the Record Book

This Saturday in Cincinnati, Delone Carter added 109 yards on 19 carries to his career rushing totals. Carter now has 2,617 yards on the ground, which was enough to move him past Bill Hurley and take over the #8 spot on the All-Time Rushing List at Syracuse University.

Up next on the list is #7 Dee Brown who has 2,626 yards, just 9 more than DC3 currently has, and #6 David Walker who totaled 2,643 yards while at Syracuse University, just 26 yards ahead of Carter. David Walker is currently the running backs coach at the University of Pittsburgh. A little further on up the road is another Syracuse Football legend, Floyd Little.

Floyd Little totaled 2,704 yards in just 3 years. Little, like Ernie Davis, didn't play his freshman year at Syracuse due to rules restricting freshman's participation in varsity football games. Little was an All-American each of his three years on the gridiron at Syracuse. He still holds the record for career touchdowns (46), and punts returned for a touchdown (5).

Delone Carter is just 87 yards behind #5 All-Time Leading rusher Floyd Little and could leap frog Dee Brown, David Walker and Floyd Little with a solid rushing performance Saturday against Louisville.

With an 80 yard per game average Carter can finish with 2,937 yards, just three more yards than Larry Csonka's career total. That would give DC3 the third highest rushing total in the program's history.

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. James Mungro 2,869

5. Floyd Little 2,704

6. David Walker 2,643

7. Dee Brown 2,626

8. Delone Carter 2,617

9. Bill Hurley 2,551

10. Damien Rhodes 2,461

Photo courtesy of Michael Borkowski

Syracuse Continues to Ruin Homecomings Across the Country: Upends Cincinnati!

SYRACUSE 31

CINCINNATI 7

Syracuse did it again. On another sunny Saturday in October the underdog Syracuse Orangemen marched into hostile territory and pulled out a gutty victory. With Scott Shafer's defense leading the way, the Orangemen shut out the Bearcats high flying offense in the second half en route to a 31-7 win. Cincinnati was playing without starting quarter back Zach Collaros, but with Syracuse's shut down defense, the player under center wouldn't have made much difference in the outcome.

Syracuse's defense forced Cincinnati's QB Chazz Anderson (making just his 3rd career start and first since 2008) into throwing 1 interception, a costly one deep in Syracuse's territory, and recovered two fumbles. The Orangemen took full advantage of those turnovers, to the tune of 17 points.

Ryan Nassib got Syracuse on the board first just 2:04 into the 2nd quarter. After starting the drive on their own 20 yard line, Delone Carter and Antwon Bailey helped lead the Orangemen down field to the Cinci 36 yard line. Facing a 4th down with 3 yards to go, Doug Marrone opted to send his offense back on the field. Nassib found Nick Provo over the middle for a 19 yard gain and a Syracuse first down. Two plays later on 3rd and 10 from the Cinci 17 yard line Ryan Nassib threw an absolute bullet to Alec Lemon to give Syracuse 1st and Goal from the 3 yard line. Once again Syracuse would go to the air, with Nassib finding Van Chew for the touchdown to give Syracuse a 7-0 lead in the game.

Just nine seconds later Syracuse would get their first big break of the ball game. Chazz Anderson fumbled the snap and senior linebacker Derrell Smith recovered the ball for Syracuse at the Cincinnati 19 yard line. After a 14 yard run from Delone Carter set Syracuse up inside the five yard line, Syracuse would give the ball to fullback Adam Harris at the 1 yard line. Harris fumbled the ball into the end zone, and then big offensive lineman Ryan Bartholomew fell on the loose ball to give Syracuse a 14-0 lead and Bartholomew his first career touchdown.

Literally five seconds after the Orangemen jumped out to a 14-0 lead, Cincinnati once again turned the ball over. DJ Woods caught a pass from Anderson at the 40 yard line however he coughed up the football and Philip Thomas picked up the pigskin. Thomas ran the ball 21 yards to the Cincinnati 19 Yard line and once again Syracuse was in business.

This time Cincinnati's defense would hold, giving Ross Krautman a 26 yard field goal attempt which he drilled to push Syracuse's lead to 17-0.

Cincinnati would finally get on the board following this defensive stand, a 33 yard touchdown pass from Chazz Anderson to DJ Woods to cut Syracuse's lead to 17-7 with 4:52 left in the first half. The score would stay that way and Syracuse ran into the locker room with a 13 point half time lead. In the first half Syracuse had the ball for 21:47, compared to just 8:13 for the Bearcats.

To open the 2nd half Cincinnati staged a tremendous drive down to the Syracuse 6 yard line. With Syracuse fans everywhere worrying that their 17 point lead was about to be cut to 3, Derrell Smith intercepted Anderson and returned the ball sixty yards to the Cincinnati 37 yard line. That would essentially be the ball game, as Syracuse drove deep inside Bearcat territory leading to a 5 yard touchdown pass from Ryan Nassib to Antwon Bailey. 24-7 Syracuse. The Bearcats would not threaten again.

In the fourth quarter came a humorous moment for cuse fans at Cincinnati head coach Butch Jones' expense. Facing 4th and 2 from his own 42 yard line and trailing 24-7 in the game Jones sent out the punting unit, which was met with a chorus of boos from the fans at Nippert Stadium. ESPNU cameras were focused on Jones when he clearly said "f-ck it" and called time out rather emphatically. Jones sent his offense back out onto the field, dropped Chazz Anderson back to pass, at which time Mikhail Marinovich reached up and batted down the pass attempt to give Syracuse the ball back at the Cincinnati 42 yard line. It was one of those days for Butch Jones.

Just 4:40 later Syracuse would be dancing in the Bearcats endzone again. Antwon Bailey added his 2nd touchdown of the second half from 1 yard out to give Syracuse the 31-7 lead and cement the Syracuse victory.

With the win Syracuse has guaranteed their first non-losing season since 2004. The Orangemen are now 6-2 on the year, 3-1 in Big East play, and have won four road games for the first time since the 1996 season!

Next week Syracuse will play host to Louisville in the Carrier Dome. With a win on Saturday giving Syracuse bowl eligibility for the first time since 2004, can Syracuse University find a way to sell out this game? I know there is no draw of "Orange Central" like the last home game, but maybe Orangemen fans can see past that and find a way to the Dome?

And now for the Game Notes:

• Syracuse's running backs failed to pick up the blitz on a few occasions, all leading to hard hits on Nassib.
• After completing just 5 passes for 63 yard last week, Ryan Nassib responded by completing 16 of 26 passing attempts for 125 yards 2 touchdowns and 1 interception.
• Delone Carter returned from limited action in last weeks game to finish with 109 yards on 19 carries along with 2 catches for 11 yards.
• DC3's 109 rushing yards gives him 2,617 for his career, moving him past #8 Bill Hurley and leaving him only 9 yard behind #7 rusher Dee Brown.
• Syracuse shut out their opponent in the 2nd half for the second straight week on the road.
• Nassib's 3rd quarter touchdown pass to Antwon Bailey gave him 14 on the year, which ties him with Marvin Graves for 8th place on Syracuse's single season touchdown passing list.
• Syracuse has won 3 Big East road games for the first time since 2001.
• TE Nick Provo lead the receivers with 4 catches for 40 yards.

photo courtesy of syracuse.com