Syracuse tried to match speed with speed against West Virginia. Inexperience left the Orange defenders in the dust.

Facing a West Virginia offense with lightning-swift speed at every skill position, Syracuse came out in a revamped defense devised to slow the Mountaineers’ quickness. The scheme did little to stop the high-powered West Virginia offense from piling on the points in the Orange’s 55-14 loss in the Carrier Dome on Saturday afternoon.

Syracuse moved its best playmaker on defense, Jameel McClain, to linebacker. Speedy rookie Max Suter joined McClain in the linebacker corps as a quasi-defensive back. Mike Holmes, another freshman, also earned major playing time as the Orange put three cornerbacks out on the field and one less safety.

The extra speed prevented the Mountaineers from scoring on long runs after they broke into the secondary run after run. But it didn’t stop the points from mounting up.

The West Virginia running game sprinted to 251 total rushing yards. The Mountaineers averaged a massive 4.6 yards per carry, using options, reverses and fake handoffs to befuddle the defense.

‘West Virginia hurts people with that all the time,’ Suter said. ‘I don’t know if you can really say it was because of the inexperience of the defense, but they got us on it.’

After the game, SU head coach Greg Robinson prevalently referred to the ‘young guys’ on defense when discussing the mistakes Syracuse defenders made.

Still, Robinson did not back down from his decision to compensate speed for experience.

‘You know what, you have to give to get,’ he said.

The defensive tactic ended up looking like a pseudo-prevent defense. There were no scores on huge gains, but West Virginia scored all seven times it moved inside the 20, including four touchdowns of 11 yards or less.

Syracuse finished with nine drives of four plays or less. In contrast, West Virginia put together nine drives of at least five plays. Two WVU possessions lasted 13 plays as the Mountaineers wore down Orange defense.

‘They still were getting too far down the field,’ McClain said. ‘They were still taking time off the clock. They would get down there, and we would stop them, but you’d rather have three-and-out than 12-and-out.’

The numerous three-and-outs by the SU offense also left the Syracuse defenders with little time to rest during an unseasonably hot day in Syracuse.

West Virginia had too many weapons for an Orange defense that played 77 plays, which WVU head coach Rich Rodriguez utilized fully to keep Syracuse guessing who would receive the ball next.

Heisman Trophy candidates quarterback Pat White and running back Steve Slaton both put up strong stats, along with versatile receiver Darius Reynaud. Robinson mentioned Mountaineers took advantage of the SU inexperience at defensive back on some of the lengthier pass plays.

But the most surprising performance came from fullback Owen Schmitt, who in the past was primarily used as a blocker.

With Syracuse focused on West Virginia’s speed, the Mountaineers utilized the stocky Schmitt to batter the Orange defense with his tough running style. He rushed eight times for 39 yards and two touchdowns, and Schmitt caught one pass for 31 yards. It was another curveball thrown that seemed to catch a raw SU defense off guard.

‘(Syracuse) was playing us a certain way that gave us a chance to get it to him,’ said WVU head coach Rodriguez. ‘(Syracuse was) trying to make sure that Pat (White) didn’t hurt them on the perimeter and that opened things open for Owen.’

West Virginia tore off double-digit yards drive after drive. The speed on defense also did not remedy Syracuse’s tackling difficulties. The Mountaineers’ agility allowed the players to slip away from tackles for bigger gains.

The strategy might’ve looked sound on paper, but the 55 points on the scoreboard left the Syracuse defense appearing disgusted.

‘Sickening,’ said Suter, when asked about the final score. ‘That’s all really all I can say. It’s pretty much embarrassing.’

Published on October 7, 2007 at 12:00 pm