BLACKSBURG, Va. – A blowout loss to Virginia Tech was tough to bear for SU quarterback R.J. Anderson. Genuine dislike for Tech spewed from his mouth, but perhaps a little envy fueled his postgame remarks following the 51-7 drubbing.

‘Man, I just hate losing here,’ Anderson said. ‘I don’t like losing to these fans. They think they play, too. That’s what’s good about playing for Virginia Tech, that’s great. I’m not so sure we have that in the Dome.’

In three home games this season, the Orangemen are drawing a little more than 36,000 fans per game. That ranks them sixth in the Big East, only ahead of perennial bottom-feeders Temple and Rutgers. The attendance this season has been consistently under the 49,500 maximum capacity for the stadium.

‘I like Virginia Tech fans,’ Anderson added Monday. ‘If I had played for Virginia Tech, it’s an awesome atmosphere. Because no matter what, they’re for your team. If a kid makes a bad play, they’re still on your side. If you lose a game, they’re still on your side. It’s like they’re a part of you. I don’t feel that sometimes here. I think when stuff is going good, yeah, they’re with us. When stuff is going bad, they’re definitely not with us. And then people wonder why we don’t get top recruits sometimes. People dogging them for no reason.’

Back in the swing

It didn’t take SU tight end Joe Donnelly long to regain his usual feistiness after sitting out the season’s first five games. Anderson threw a sharp pass to Donnelly on the second play of the game. A Tech defender who appeared to be draped all over him deflected the ball away.

‘That was pass interference,’ Anderson said. ‘Everyone knows that.’

Apparently, the officials didn’t get the memo. After the play, which was ruled an incomplete pass, Donnelly popped up from the turf and threw both of his hands into the air. He proceeded to jaw with an official until he was pulled back into the huddle.

‘It was a little tough to make my return from an injury against Virginia Tech,’ Donnelly said. ‘It was like throwing fresh meat to the dogs, sometimes.’

Anderson called his number again on that first drive, but overthrew him on a deep ball over the middle.

Donnelly, who had no receptions Saturday, said the play was identical to the one which he injured his shoulder on in preseason practice.

‘It was good to see if I would still play the same way,’ Donnelly said. ‘I landed on my chest this time.’

Still hurtin’

Running back Damien Rhodes reinjured his left ankle Saturday after fumbling with 6:10 left in the third quarter. Rhodes laid on the ground and was eventually carried off the field.

SU head coach Paul Pasqualoni said he would find out Rhodes’s status Monday afternoon. He missed SU’s game two weeks ago against Central Florida because of a sprained ankle.

‘It’s very questionable (if he will play next week),’ Pasqualoni said.

Syracuse wide receiver Johnnie Morant was also banged up Saturday. He has struggled with an injured ankle all season and appeared to aggravate it against Tech.

Morant was injured when he caught a 7-yard slant pass with 8:00 left in the fourth quarter. He limped off the field after writhing on the ground.

Punter Brendan Carney said he hyper-extended his left, non-kicking knee Saturday in the first quarter. He stayed in the game and punted 12 times total. After the game, he said his knee felt fine. Carney will play Saturday against Boston College.

Look out below

After a miserable all-around performance by Syracuse on Saturday, one would think it would be beneficial for the Orangemen to keep the game tape around to learn from their mistakes.

No way. Pasqualoni had different plans for the footage. The Orangemen studied the film at 7 a.m. on Monday. But that was the last anyone wanted to see of it.

‘It was one of those tapes where you want to take it on the way home and throw it out the airplane,’ Pasqualoni said. ‘We won’t discuss or mention the Virginia Tech game again.’

This and that

Tech had its homecoming over the weekend. As part of the festivities, two F-14’s flew over Lane Stadium after the national anthem. … A raucous version of the ‘Hokie Pokey’ broke out at halftime and at the beginning of the fourth quarter on Saturday. Band members performed the dance on the field while many fans in the stadium danced in the aisles. … With an attendance of 65,115, Lane Stadium has sold out for all five home games this season. … When No. 3 Ohio State lost to Wisconsin, 17-10, on Saturday night – meaning Tech would rise to No. 3 in the polls – a resounding ‘Let’s Go Hokies!’ chant resonated inside Sharkey’s, a popular local watering hole.

Published on October 13, 2003 at 12:00 pm