Every year, it seems, any Big East team has a chance to win the conference title.

Every team, that is, except Temple and Rutgers.

Since 1979, Temple has two winning football seasons. The last year the Owls finished over .500 was 1990. Rutgers’ last winning season came in 1992. In that regard, Rutgers has fared a little better than its Big East basement brethren, but the Scarlet Knights have won only 12 games in the last seven seasons.

Still, as it prepares to play Temple during a bye week, the Syracuse football team knows the Owls can’t be taken lightly. After all, SU was upended by Temple, 17-16, last year in Philadelphia.

‘Ain’t nobody an automatic win anymore,’ Syracuse fullback Thump Belton said. ‘Just look at Northwestern. They beat Wisconsin last week. They were supposed to be a pushover, too.’

The Orangemen now have an extra week to prepare for the Owls. SU cornerback Steve Gregory said Syracuse would acquaint itself with the Owls this week, then have a tough next week in preparation for the game. The shot at redemption should carry the Orangemen through the week.

‘Anytime you play against a team that beat you, there’s going to be fire,’ Gregory said.

Big East bruisers

Four Big East tailbacks – SU’s Walter Reyes, Boston College’s Derrick Knight, Virginia Tech’s Kevin Jones and West Virginia’s Quincy Wilson – are ranked in the top 20 nationally in rushing. For years, Big East basketball has been known for a tough, bruising style of play. Now, football may be following suit.

‘Big East is smashmouth,’ Belton said. ‘We’ve got some impressive guys.’

Reyes leads the Big East pack in rushing with 124.7 yards per game, ranking him No. 6 in the nation. Knight is No. 7, Wilson No. 12 and Jones is No. 20.

‘The Big East has got some great tailbacks,’ Reyes said. ‘We’re getting (that reputation), but I don’t think we’re there quite yet. But we’re establishing that.’

Take it easy

Most Syracuse players anxiously awaited the bye week to get healthy, or maybe to catch up on sleep. Reyes, on the other hand, can’t wait to watch some of the best college football players in the country.

‘I’ve gotta watch college football,’ he said. ‘I’m going to get two pizzas, sit by the TV and watch the other great players in the nation. There are a lot of good games on Saturday.’

Some of the top games Saturday: Nebraska at Texas, Michigan at Michigan State, Oklahoma State at Oklahoma and Georgia at Florida.

Injury Report

The status of two injured Orangemen – running back Damien Rhodes and linebacker Jameel Dumas – is still unclear.

Coaches are hoping the bye week allows each a chance to recover from their injuries. Rhodes has sat out the last two games after injuring his left ankle against Virginia Tech. Dumas has been out of the lineup since injuring his leg in the first game against North Carolina.

‘It’s really week to week,’ SU running backs coach David Walker said about Rhodes. ‘We’ll see where he’s at next week. We don’t want to put him out there in a situation where he’s not 100 percent. We want him to be able to play like he did in the first couple of game when he was healthy.’

This and that

Before last season, Temple last beat Syracuse in 1983. … SU plays Temple in two weeks during Parent’s Weekend. For the event last year, the Orangemen knocked off No. 8 Virginia Tech, 50-42, in triple-overtime.

Published on October 29, 2003 at 12:00 pm