Trying to delegate responsibility for such an offensive outburst would only leave one side slighted.

Credit belongs to Syracuse for amassing 63 points, 629 yards of total offense and two touchdowns right before halftime that sealed the team’s first victory of the season.

Credit — or blame, more appropriately — also belongs to Rhode Island for fielding an overmatched defense that gave a pedestrian SU offense its first opportunity to break from a season of ineffectiveness.

In Syracuse’s 63-17 victory Saturday at the Carrier Dome, the SU offense and the URI defense seemingly had the same purpose — with one unit routinely driving toward the end zone and the other, like a police escort, leading the way.

‘It’s not going to be this easy week in and week out,’ wide receiver David Tyree said, ‘but it did feel tremendous. I can’t remember the last time our offense was truly responsible for a win.’

It came at a prudent time, because the Orangemen’s defense had difficulty for much of the first half containing the Rhode Island option attack. The Rams helped make the first two quarters a playground game of scoring, narrowing the deficit to 28-17 just over three minutes before halftime.

Rhode Island averaged nine yards per play in the first half, with 145 yards passing from quarterback Jayson Davis and a combined 187 yards on the ground.

‘Their wishbone (offense), you just can’t duplicate it in practice no matter what you do,’ defensive coordinator Chris Rippon said. ‘So we came out and I think the defense was a little surprised. We gave up four very big plays and a lot of big yardage. That can’t happen.’

Rippon’s defense got an assist from offensive coordinator George DeLeone’s unit. During the week, Syracuse made a goal of jumping to a quick, multi-touchdown lead, minimizing the effectiveness of Rhode Island’s running attack.

Syracuse’s first touchdown came on the opening possession when the Orangemen strung a methodical, seven-play, 64-yard touchdown drive that showcased a running game that finished with 280 yards. Had Damien Rhodes not backpedaled for a 15-yard loss on the first play of the second quarter, both he and Walter Reyes would have surpassed 100 yards.

‘Walter and I have been a pretty good combo,’ said Rhodes, who finished with 94 yards to Reyes’ 128. ‘We have fun out there together.

‘The passing game took a lot of pressure off us running backs today. We hadn’t had that yet, but we knew (quarterback R.J. Anderson) and the guys could do it the whole time. It makes a big difference.’

Anderson enjoyed the most efficient game of his career, completing 13 of 18 passes for 306 yards. An 87-yard chunk of that came one minute into the second quarter when Anderson connected with wideout Jamel Riddle on a fly pattern down the left sideline — a spot left open from Rhode Island’s persistence to play single coverage on the outside.

The touchdown pass tied for the third-longest in school history and lifted Syracuse to a 21-0 lead.

Facing a game of catch-up, Rhode Island was forced to turn to the passing game, akin to apostasy in the Rams’ three-back offense. Yet once more, a Syracuse secondary that had been belittled the previous two weeks showed little ability to stop the pass.

‘To give up that many yards in the first half is simply unacceptable,’ Rippon said of his defense, which allowed URI back in the game with 17 second-quarter points. ‘We are not going to be happy until we get to the point where we win games on defense.’

Not the case on Saturday, SU’s offense responded with two quick touchdowns — including one just five seconds before halftime — to finish off the Rams.

Each of those scoring drives resulted in big scoring plays, one a 46-yard run from Reyes and later a 29-yard touchdown pass to Riddle.

The junior receiver, starting because of Johnnie Morant’s suspension, ransacked the Rhode Island secondary for a career-high 176 receiving yards. His second touchdown came on a perfectly-thrown ball from Anderson, directly into the right corner of the end zone.

Suddenly, Syracuse had a 42-17 halftime lead.

‘The offense was fun to watch today,’ cornerback Will Hunter said. ‘We could just go to the sideline and watch them move the ball. It wasn’t going to be stopped. R.J. had his thing going and so did Walter and Damien. Those are the days when you want to get something to drink and just sit back and watch.’

Said Anderson: ‘Something clicked between myself and the receiving corps this week. Hopefully we can use this game as a building block for the rest of the season.’

Published on September 16, 2002 at 12:00 pm