2006 Syracuse Orange Season, Game Recaps, Scores and Reviews
Nov. 25
Rutgers 38 ... Syracuse 7
Rutgers dominated from the opening drive going 88 yards in
eight play finishing up with a ten-yard Ray Rice touchdown run. Mike
Teel connected twice with Kenny Britt for scores and Brian Leonard
ran for two, two-yard touchdown runs on the way to the easy win.
Syracuse only managed 191 yards of total offense only scoring on a
14-yard Andrew Robinson touchdown pass to Jawad Nesheiwat in the
third quarter. Both Rice and Leonard ran for over 100 yards. Player of the game ... Rutgers RBs Ray Rice and Brian
Leonard combined to run 42 times for 214 yards and three touchdowns Stat Leaders: Rutgers - Passing: Mike
Teel, 10-15, 146 yds, 2 TD Rushing: Ray Rice, 23-107, 1 TD. Receiving:
Kenny Britt, 4-94, 2 TD Syracuse - Passing: Perry Patterson,
7-16, 49 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Curtis Brinkley, 12-51. Receiving: Tom
Ferron, 2-16 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Perry
Patterson should've been pulled sooner against Rutgers, and probably
shouldn't have played at all. Last week's win against Connecticut
was his moment, but for the future, Andrew Robinson should've gotten
the work and the experience. Now the year is over, the offense stunk
in a blowout loss, and nothing positive has come out of it. The
defense didn't have a prayer once the Scarlet Knight offensive line
got into a lather. Ray Rice and Brian Leonard were way too
effective.
Nov. 18
Syracuse 20 ... Connecticut 13
Curtis Brinkley ran for a one-yard score and took a pass 18
yards for a touchdowns while the Syracuse defense held UConn to just
168 yards before a final garbage-time 98-yard drive finished off
with a 16-yard Terence Jeffers touchdown catch with just four
seconds to play. The Huskies tied it at seven in the first quarter
on a three-yard catch from Donald Brown, but the running game was
held to just 70 yards while D.J. Hernandez turned it over three
times. Patrick Shadle connected on field goals from 35 and 44 yards
out for the Orange.
Player of the game ...
Syracuse RB Curtis Brinkley ran 19 times for 68 yards and a
touchdown and added an 18-yard touchdown reception on his only
catch. Stat Leaders: Connecticut- Passing: D.J.
Hernandez, 19-29, 188 yds, 2 TDs, 3 INTs Rushing: Donald Brown, 18-67 Receiving: Larry Taylor,
5-45 Syracuse: Perry Patterson, 9-18, 143 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Delone Carter, 16-115 Receiving: Tim Lane, 2-48 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... The
monkey is finally off Greg Robinson's back getting a Big East win.
The defense stopped a red-hot Connecticut offense, while Perry
Patterson, Curtis Brinkley and Delone Carter all helped provide a
bit of offensive balance. There's still a date with Rutgers to close
things out, and even though the Scarlet Knights are going to be down
after losing to Cincinnati, a win would be a huge way to close out
the season. As long as the run defense is as active and tough in the
first five yards as it was against the Huskies, SU has a shot.
Nov. 11
South Florida 27 ... Syracuse 10
Delbert Alvarado hit a Big East record 56-yard field goal to
go along with a 47-yard shot to give the Bulls a 13-3 halftime lead,
and Matt Grothe threw two touchdowns including a 79-yard play to
Taurus Johnson. Syracuse started off the scoring with a field goal
and got a 27-yard catch from Mike Williams to pull within ten early
in the fourth, but the Bulls converted off a turnover to get a
three-yard Pat Julmiste run to put it away. the Bulls
outgained Syracuse 514 yards to 250. Player of the
game ... South Florida QB
Matt Grothe completed 25 of 35 passes for 364 yards and two
touchdowns with an interception. Stat Leaders: Syracuse- Passing: Perry
Patterson, 15-29, 174 yds, 1 TD Rushing: Delone Carter, 12-86 Receiving:
Rice Moss, 5-63 South Florida - Passing: Matt Grothe, 25-35,
364 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Matt Grothe, 8-45 Receiving: Taurus
Johnson, 5-131, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Syracuse
had two weeks off and they came up with that against South
Florida? The big problem was in pass protection allowing seven sacks
with the line never giving Perry Patterson room to breathe.
Patterson has to do a better job of getting rid of the ball and
getting out of trouble, but it wasn't all his fault. The Orange
defense, a strength throughout the year, picked a bad time to come
up with one of its worst games. Head coach Greg Robinson desperately
needs his first Big East win against either Connecticut or Rutgers,
or it's going to be a long, long off-season.
Oct. 28
Cincinnati 17 ... Syracuse 3
Cincinnati outscored Syracuse 14-0 in the second half with a
two-yard Greg Moore touchdown run and a 37-yard Derrick Stewart
scoring catch. The D held the Orange to 180 yards with four sacks of
Perry Patterson. The Orange only managed a 23-yard Patrick Shadle
field goal to answer a 20-yard Kevin Lovell first quarter field
goal. The Orange got deep into Bearcat territory in the second half,
but stalled after missing on two fourth downs. Player of the
game ... Cincinnati RB
Greg Moore ran for 70 yards and the eventual game-winning touchdown
on 17 carries. Stat Leaders: Syracuse- Passing: Perry
Patterson, 13-29, 119 yds Rushing: Delone Carter, 21-85 Receiving: Jawad
Nesheiwat, 4-14 Cincinnati - Passing: Dustin Grutza, 13-18, 205
yds, 1 TD, 2 INTs
Rushing: Greg Moore, 17-70, 1 TD Receiving: Derrick
Stewart, 3-91, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Syracuse
needed to beat Cincinnati to stay within range of bowl eligibility,
but now on a four-game losing streak, and with road trips to South
Florida and Rutgers still ahead, it's all about figuring out how to
get the team prepared as well as possible for next year. Perry
Patterson simply isn't getting the job done, and although he's the
best quarterback to try to win right now, Syracuse gets no closer to
a future Big East title with him at quarterback. It's time to see
what Andrew Robinson can do.
Oct. 21
Louisville 28 ... Syracuse 13
Louisville didn't play well, but it outrushed Syracuse 223
yards to 19 getting two short scores from Kolby Smith and Anthony
Allen. Syracuse went up 6-0 in the first half and was on the way for
an apparent touchdown, but Curtis Brinkley was upended and fumbled
on the goal line. SU got into the end zone with just over five
minutes to play on a 37-yard touchdown pass to Mike Williams, but
the Cardinals were able to put it away on a nine-play, 93-yard drive
culminating in a 31-yard Smith run. Player of the game ... Louisville RB Kolby Smith ran 16
times for 165 yards and two touchdowns. Stat Leaders: Syracuse - Passing: Perry
Patterson, 24-38, 303 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT Rushing: Curtis Brinkley, 10-35. Receiving:
Tom Ferrow, 7-88 Louisville - Passing: Brian Brohm,18-26,
203 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Kolby Smith, 16-165, 2 TD. Receiving:
Harry Douglas, 6-72 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Even
though close doesn't count at this point, Syracuse did a decent job
of keeping the high-powered Louisville offense under wraps. It
would've been nice to have seen what Perry Patterson and the attack
could've done with one last shot, but the defense couldn't come up
with the late stop it absolutely needed to have. The running game
has to be far, far better than it was this week to get through a
final stretch of three road games in the final four dates. On the
plus side, Patterson and the passing game showed good pop.
Oct. 14
West Virginia 41 ... Syracuse 17
West Virginia ran for 457 yards and five touchdowns with QB
Pat White tearing of scoring runs from 69, 40, 32 and 12 yards and
Steve Slaton running for a 52-yard score. Syracuse played well in
the first half with Perry Patterson rushing for a score and hitting
Mike Williams for a 47-yard touchdown to be down three at halftime,
and then White took over with three of his touchdown runs coming in
the third quarter.
Player of the
game ...
West Virginia QB Pat White completed 12 of 19 passes for 99 yards
and an interception and ran 15 times for 247 yards and four
touchdowns Stat Leaders: West Virginia- Passing: Pat
White, 12-19, 99 yds, 1 INT Rushing: Pat White, 15-247, 4 TD Receiving:
Darius Reynaud, 7-55 Syracuse - Passing: Perry Patterson, 9-21, 146
yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Delone Carter, 13-58 Receiving: Mike
Williams, 3-99, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
West Virginia is going to run all over
everyone, so there's no reason to get too upset about not being able
to stop Pat White, Steve Slaton and the bunch. The team played well
in the first half, but wasn't able to make adjustments once things
started going downhill in the second half with nothing on offense to
slow down the momentum and no big stops on defense. With Louisville
coming up next, the offense will have to find a lot more explosion
in a big hurry.
Oct. 7
Pitt 21 ... Syracuse 11
Pitt got a 20 of 24, 177 yard passing day from Tyler Palko and
a 221-yard day from LaRod Stephens. The Panthers got up 21-3 on a
70-yard dash from Stephens, a four-yard Palko run, and a one-yard
pass to Steve Buches, but couldn't put the game away. Syracuse got a
Mike Williams 29-yard touchdown catch late in the fourth quarter to
cap off the best drive of the game, but wasn't able to get any
closer. Player of the
game ... Pitt RB LaRod
Stephens ran 27 times for 221 yards and a touchdown Stat Leaders: Pitt- Passing: Tyler Palko,
20-24, 177 yds, 1 TD Rushing: LaRod Stephens, 27-221, 1 TD Receiving:
Oderick Turner, 6-37 Syracuse - Passing: Perry Patterson, 20-29, 225
yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Delone Carter, 16-57 Receiving: Donte
Davis, 5-53 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Perry
Patterson was efficient against Pitt, but he couldn't keep the
offense moving and he didn't do enough to get the big plays needed
to change the game. The defense settled down after getting hit hard
by a big LaRod Stephens run, but it only came up with one turnover
and only came up with one huge stop holding Pitt on a fourth and one
play early. All in all, this wasn't a horrible game against a good
Pitt team, but everything needs to be working to stay with West
Virginia and Louisville over the next few weeks.
Sept. 30
Syracuse 40 ... Wyoming 34 2OT
Delone Carter ran for a 15-yard score in the second overtime
after the Syracuse defense held on Wyoming's possession. Carter ran
for a 16-yard score in the first overtime, but the Cowboys answered
with a 14-yard Wynel Seldon scoring run. Carter scored four times in
the see-saw game with neither team ever getting up by more than one
score. Carter appeared to put the game away late in the fourth
quarter on a 13-yard scoring run, but Wyoming was able to go on a
92-yard, 14-play drive culminating in a 15-yard touchdown pass to
Hoost Marsh with five seconds to play. Player of the
game ... Syracuse RB
Delone Carter had 20 carries for 131 yards and four touchdowns,
including the game-winner in the second overtime. Stat Leaders: Wyoming- Passing: Karsten Sween,
19-27, 201 yds, 2 TDs, 1 INT Rushing: Devin Moore, 7-86 Receiving: Michael Ford,
12-110 Syracuse - Passing: Perry Patterson, 11-25, 121
yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Delone Carter, 20-131, 4 TDs Receiving: Tom
Ferron, 4-64, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
Yeah, Syracuse was able to come away
with a double-overtime win over Wyoming, but the defense had way too
many problems and Perry Patterson throwing the ball went back to
being Perry Patterson. The emergence of Delone Carter once Curtis
Brinkley started fumbling was a real find in a big win like this,
and now SU has two backs it can go to now that Big East play
starts next week against Pitt. To survive an ugly three-game stretch
with West Virginia and Louisville to follow the Panthers, Patterson
has to be far more efficient.
Sept. 23
Syracuse 34 ... Miami University 14
Syracuse came up with eight sacks and held Miami to a net of
31 rushing yards on the way to the easy win. The Orange offense
exploded in the first quarter with a 52-yard Taj Smith touchdown
catch, and then broke the game open in the fourth quarter on Perry
Patterson's second touchdown pass of the game and a 27-yard
interception return for a touchdown from Ben Maljovec. Miami managed
a nine-yard Ryne Robinson touchdown catch in the second quarter, but
didn't get back on the board until the final minute with a second
Robinson scoring grab with 35 seconds to play. Player of the game ... Syracuse WR Taj Smith caught
five passes for 106 yards and a touchdown. He also recovered a
fumble for a 41-yard touchdown. Stat Leaders: Syracuse- Passing: Perry
Patterson, 14-20, 163 yds, 2 TD Rushing: Curtis Brinkley, 15-108, 1 TD. Receiving:
Tom Ferron, 5-54 Miami Univ. - Passing: Mike Kokal, 17-28,
171 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Mike Kokal, 16-24. Receiving: Ryne
Robinson, 7-72, 2 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Syracuse
is starting to settle down, and it seems to have figured out after
the Iowa game that it can actually play a little bit. Perry
Patterson is more decisive and has found something with Taj Smith,
while Curtis Brinkley is looking like a back to revolve the offense
around. The defense dominated Miami University's offensive line with
the attacking style crushing anything the offense wanted to do. With
a winnable game against Wyoming ahead, the Orange has a must-win if
it wants to stay in the hunt for a bowl game. As long as the defense
continues to play well and Patterson doesn't screw up, the team has
a puncher's chance against everyone left on the schedule. Even the
big boys.
Sept. 16
Syracuse 31 ... Illinois 21
Syracuse shocked Illinois with a 24-point mid-game burst with
two Perry Patterson touchdown passes, highlighted by a 65-yard play
to Taj Smith, and a 15-yard fumble return for a score from Tom
Ferron. It was the Orange's day early on as Smith recovered a
Patterson fumble and took it 41 yards for the opening score.
Illinois tied it at seven on a five-yard Tim Brasic touchdown run,
but that was the last time it was close. Illinois closed out with
two huge plays from Isaiah, "Juice" Williams who threw a 76-yard
touchdown pass to Rashad Mendenall and a 69-yard scoring play to
Kyle Hudson. Player of the game ... Syracuse WR Taj Smith caught
five passes for 106 yards and a touchdown. He also recovered a
fumble for a 41-yard touchdown. Stat Leaders: Syracuse- Passing: Perry
Patterson, 9-18, 167 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT Rushing: Curtis Brinkley, 18-69. Receiving:
Taj Smith, 5-106 Illinois - Passing: Juice Williams, 9-16,
227 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Tim Brasic, 9-38, 1 TD. Receiving: Kyle
Hudson, 3-87, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... The
Syracuse coaching staff has been knocked around over the last two
years, and now it deserves credit for getting the team back and
focused after last week's painful loss to Iowa. Illinois never knew
what hit it as the Orange got the big plays and the good drives to
put the game away in the third quarter. The running game showed up
for the first time all year thanks to a wonderful game from the
offensive line. Think the coaching staff got on this group after
last week's problems on the goal line? Now SU has the potential to
go on a run with winnable games against Miami University and Wyoming
ahead before dealing with Pitt.
Sept. 9
Iowa 20 ... Syracuse 13 2OT
Iowa stopped Syracuse seven times from the two-yard line to
preserve an overtime win. Without QB Drew Tate, who didn't play with
an abdominal injury, the Iowa offense sputtered all game long with
Jason Manson throwing four interceptions and only one touchdown pass
to Scott Chandler. The game went into overtime tied at ten after Pat
Shadle nailed a 41-yard field goal as time ran out following a pass
interference call. After a dropped pass in the end zone led to a
Shadle 19-yard field goal, Iowa's Kyle Schlicher answered with a
26-yard strike. Albert Young scored from one yard out on Iowa's
second OT possession, and it looked like the Orange would have no
problems tying it up after a pass interference call got it down to
the two, and another pass interference penalty gave SU four more
downs. SU's Tony Fiammetta was stuffed on first and second down, and
Perry Patterson was stuffed on a quarterback sneak on third down.
After a timeout, SU tried a tricky running play that went nowhere
with Pat Chiara getting stuffed by Iowa's Ken Iwebema. Player of the game ... The entire Iowa defensive line
for the seven stops from inside the two to hold on in overtime for
the win. Stat Leaders: Syracuse- Passing: Perry
Patterson, 19-32, 186 yds, 1 TD Rushing: Curtis Brinkley, 11-53. Receiving:
Taj Smith, 5-61 Iowa - Passing: Jason Manson, 14-28, 178
yds, 1 TD, 4 INT
Rushing: Albert Young, 14-58, 1 TD. Receiving:
Scott Chandler, 6-65 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
Why didn't Syracuse get Curtis Brinkley
involved on the goal line during the final sequence against Iowa? It
was as if the coaching staff outthought itself just to try to get
one yard. Perry Patterson was just good enough to keep the coaching
staff to try out other options at quarterback, and just bad enough
to not come away with the win. The defense, when jacked up, is a
quick, playmaking unit that should be able to control the running
games of Illinois and Miami University over the next two weeks, but
there has to be more offense, especially more of a running game, to
do anything in Big East play.
Sept. 2
Wake Forest 20 ... Syracuse 10
Wake Forest outgained Syracuse 363 yards to 136, but it needed
a 19-yard touchdown run from De'Angelo Bryant to finally put the
Orange away. The two teams traded touchdowns in the first quarter
with Willie Idlette catching a 14-yard touchdown pass for the Demon
Deacons before Rice Moss answered with a 21-yard scoring grab.
While Wake won the game, it proved costly as starting quarterback
Ben Mauk was carried off on a stretcher after suffering an arm
injury diving for a fumble. SU LB Kelvin Smith led all defenders
with 16 tackles. Player of the game ... Wake Forest RB Micah Andrews ran
20 times for 142 yards. Stat Leaders: Syracuse- Passing: Perry
Patterson , 5-18, 45 yds, 1 TD Rushing: Curtis Brinkley, 8-49. Receiving:
Tim Lane, 3-20 Wake Forest - Passing: Ben Mauk, 14-21,
105 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Micah Andrews, 20-142. Receiving: Willie
Idlette, 4-41, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... If it was
apparent before, it is now; Perry Patterson isn't the answer at
quarterback. After years of struggling, he needs to be more
efficient and more effective, especially on third downs. SU only
converted one of 11 third down chances with Patterson completing
five of 18 passes for 45 yards. The defense held up well against the
Demon Deacon ground game, but it got no support whatsoever from the
offense. The Iowa game will be ugly unless a light goes on for the
passing game this week.
Things started to slip under former head coach Paul Pasqualoni, but
the 6-6 seasons of 2003 and 2004 looked like national title
campaigns compared to last year's 1-10 fiasco.
Was it the coaching, the talent, or a little of both? How could such
a proud program have fallen so far? Call it a case of a new staff
tying to implement a new system and not having too much luck. The
defense, head coach Greg Robinson's forte, was just fine, but the
offense, well, the defense was just fine.
The Syracuse offense had been having problems over the years,
but the new West Coast attack took things down to another level.
Nothing seemed to work as the year went on with little production
from the quarterbacks and not nearly enough of a push from the
running game. After September, the SU attack failed to generate more
than 17 points.
Fine, so Syracuse isn't going to take the Big East by storm this year,
either. That's O.K. as long as big strides are being made for the
future. As many as nine underclassmen could end up starting in key
spots, and most of the top talents are inexperienced backups ... at
least for now.
Job one has to be to figure out how to generate more points. Quarterback
Perry Patterson has been around long enough to be more of a playmaker
and more of a consistent leader; he has to make everyone around him
better. Despite the loss of Damien Rhodes, the backfield should grow
into a strength if Curtis Brinkley and Kareem Jones can break out. The
receiving corps has great players like Lavar Lobdell and Taj Smith
ready to push the starters, and the line has four rising sophomores
that'll have to take their lumps before possibly forming the strength of
the team in 2007.
Until things start to jell on offense, can Robinson and his staff pick
up the slack with a defense that returns four starters? Linebacker
Kelvin Smith and corner Tanard Jackson are All-America caliber
performers to build around. The back seven will be surprisingly strong,
while the line should be good against the run. Depth needs to be
developed and there's no proven pass rush, but Robinson will quickly
find a way to rectify both situations.
SU has to show signs of life this season and can't get blown out in game
after game again. Robinson's future might depend on it.
The
Schedule: There are only five bowl teams on the slate, and two of
those are against South Florida and Rutgers. There's a problem with the
lack of gimmes; winnable games against teams like Wake Forest, Illinois,
and Cincinnati are on the road. The Orange has to take advantage of an
early home stand against Miami University, Wyoming and Pitt, and has to
try to hold up against the big boys Iowa, at West Virginia and
Louisville before the schedule lightens up.
Best
Offensive Player: Senior QB Perry Patterson. He has the size, the
arm, and the mobility to be a great all-around quarterback. Now he has
to put it all together and be a consistent passer and a better leader of
the offense. While he has the starting job, that could quickly change if
he struggles early on.
Best
Defensive Player: Senior LB Kelvin Smith. The 233-pound senior
projects as a better outside linebacker at the next level, but there's
not a more sure tackler in the Big East and he should be in the hunt for
defensive player of the year honors in the middle.
Key player
to a successful season:
Patterson. Joe Fields, Cameron Dantley and Matt Hale will all get shots
to show what they can do, but for the offense to put up more than 13.8
points per game, Patterson has to shine. He has to be more comfortable
in the West Coast offense and has to be effective on third downs.
The season
will be a success if ... Syracuse wins six games. It would be a huge turnaround
considering how bad the team was last year, but it's possible with Wake
Forest, Illinois, Miami University, Wyoming, Cincinnati, and Connecticut
all at SU's level.
Key game:
September 2nd at Wake Forest. A win in the season opener would do
wonders considering the team won one game last year. With Iowa and at
Illinois ahead, the possibility of a crushing 0-3 start exists if the
Orange can't get by the Demon Deacons..
2005 Fun
Stats:
- Third down
conversions: Opponents 55 of 169 (33%) - Syracuse 34 of 165 (21%)
- Rushing yards per game: Opponents 187.3 yards per game - Syracuse
106.5 yards per game
- Fourth down conversions: Opponents 9 of 12 (75%) - Syracuse 8 of 19
(42%)
The Last Time Syracuse…
…played in a bowl game…2004 (Champs Sports Bowl vs. Georgia Tech)
…missed a bowl game…2005
…pitched a shutout…2005 (Buffalo)
…was shutout…2005 (South Florida)
…scored 50 points…2002 (Virginia Tech)
…went undefeated…1997
…won a conference title…2004 (share, Big East)
…had a 3,000-yard passer…never
…had a 1,000-yard rusher…2003 (Walter Reyes)
…had a 1,000-yard receiver…1995 (Marvin Harrison)
…had a first-round draft choice…2002 (DE Dwight Freeney)
