Things rarely seem to change throughout Big East men’s soccer.

Players come and go, but the results are seemingly all too familiar from year to year. That’s mainly because as much as the players can change in a given season, the coaching staffs remain the same, leading to static playing styles and a sense of familiarity throughout the conference.

When Syracuse travels to Pittsburgh for Saturday’s 1 p.m. game, both teams will find little surprises in each other’s game plans.

‘Syracuse is always a tough team with a few special players,’ Pittsburgh head coach Joe Luxbacher said. ‘We’re expecting a very good game.’

Luxbacher is a symbol of consistency in the Big East. He’s in his 21st season as head coach of the Panthers, and for the last 14 years, he has faced Syracuse head coach Dean Foti.

Normally teams exchange videos on Big East opponents throughout the season. As of Thursday, Luxbacher had yet to receive the video on Syracuse. Neither his players nor he have seen any footage of Syracuse (2-3-0) this year.

That doesn’t change what he expects to face.

‘I haven’t seen them on tape yet,’ Luxbacher said. ‘They’re always a very skillful team, with one or two players that can change a game.’

In last year’s only meeting between the two teams, Pittsburgh (2-0-2, 0-0-1 Big East) defeated Syracuse at home, 3-2. It was a see-saw game which the Orange led twice, only to surrender two goals in a seven-minute span to Pittsburgh’s Billy Brush.

Pittsburgh can largely expect to see the same Syracuse team that continues struggling to score as it did last year. In its win over Oneonta on Tuesday, Syracuse scored just once. Through its first five games, the Orange has scored just five times.

Luckily, the Orange has been able to squeak out two wins, but the problem remains on offense.

Syracuse has counted on its freshmen immensely for those few goals. Four of the five have come from three different freshmen. Brad Peetoom registered the only goal in Tuesday’s game, while forward Pete Rowley has scored twice and James Goodwin once.

‘The teams don’t change that much,’ Luxbacher said. ‘The style doesn’t change much. None of us change our philosophy from year to year.’

Pittsburgh has struggled early in the season as well, according to Luxbacher, but the Panthers have an unbeaten record to show for it, including two ties.

‘Traveling takes a lot out of you,’ SU junior Mike McCallion said at the beginning of the season. ‘When you go away people hate you, but no matter where you are you have to come out and play. You can’t use being away as a reason for losing.’

Published on September 16, 2004 at 12:00 pm