After the Syracuse wide receiver corps had its breakout performance last week in Louisville, a couple of receivers have added an extra motivational tool to keep the momentum rolling.

A free dinner will be put on the line between Taj Smith and Mike Williams this weekend at Miami (Ohio), Smith said.

The junior wide receiver Smith said the Orange receivers hope to build off last week’s breakout game, when quarterback Andrew Robinson completed 17 passes for 423 yards in the 38-35 upset over then-No. 18 Louisville.

The passing attack will try to follow up that performance against Miami (Ohio) on Saturday afternoon in Oxford, Ohio.

Smith believes a little friendly competition can’t hurt the team.

‘We (are) so much of a competitive offense that Mike (Williams)’s going to try to show me up this week,’ Smith said.

The wide receivers looked phenomenal last Saturday, exploiting a porous Cardinals secondary for big play after big play. Smith led the receivers with 173 yards and two touchdowns on four catches. Four players had catches of more than 40 yards.

‘(SU head coach Greg Robinson said) it every day: ‘The offense is ready to explode,” said SU tight end Jawad Nesheiwat, who finished with three catches for 85 yards. ‘And hopefully (the Louisville game) was the day that we turned it around, and we’ll sustain it.’

The game against the RedHawks should bring back unsettling memories for Smith. Last year in Syracuse’s 34-14 win over Miami (Ohio) at the Carrier Dome, Smith broke his collarbone and SU lost its top playmaker for the rest of the 2007 season.

‘I don’t really think about the injury – what happened, that was last year,’ Smith said. ‘I’m healthy right now. I’m much better than I was last year, bigger in size.’

In 2006, after four games Smith had 12 catches for 227 yards and three touchdowns. Until last week, Smith seemed unable to pick up from where he left off midway though last year.

Following the U of L game, Smith was nominated as one of the AT&T All-Americans of the week and ESPN analyst Lou Holtz named Smith a player of the week. (‘That’s the man, right there,’ Smith said of Holtz.)

The offense has found its swagger after the accolades it has received during the past week, Smith said.

‘It boosted our confidence overall,’ Smith said, ”cause as a team, (the wide receivers) are playmakers of the team.’

Avoiding the trap

The Syracuse football team’s win over Louisville last week served as the most significant win during the tenure of SU head coach Greg Robinson.

With the victory providing a huge confidence boost to the team, it’s possible to imagine the Orange looking past this week’s game at Miami (Ohio) to the next major upset opportunity in two weeks against No. 5 West Virginia.

However, SU cornerback Dowayne Davis emphasized that although the victory in Louisville was an important win, it was still only one win.

‘We have one of the toughest schedules in the country,’ Davis said. ‘That means everybody we play, they’re going to be good. We’re 1-3. How are we going to overlook anybody? We’re trying to get as much wins as we can. I don’t think that’s (overlooking teams) even a factor right now.’

Syracuse defeated Miami by 20 points last year. The RedHawks will enter this game with the same record as the Orange, but Miami is coming off a 42-0 loss to Colorado.

SU head coach Greg Robinson admitted at his Tuesday press conference that the upcoming contest against Miami looks like a ‘trap game,’ adding he’s determined not to let the Orange fall into the trap.

‘I know this,’ Robinson said. ‘If I’m a football player right now at Syracuse University, I’m excited to get my fanny out to football practice and get going again and get better. If somebody has lost focus, then it’s my job to find him and let him know that is wrong.’

Published on September 26, 2007 at 12:00 pm