CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – After Syracuse’s 31-10 loss Saturday, quarterback Perry Patterson sat in front of reporters, trying to make sense of what happened. Showered and dressed in a full suit, he gave the first real thoughts to how his best game turned out to be a disaster for the team as a whole.

‘We really didn’t give ourselves a chance,’ Patterson said. ‘When they went 96 yards, the game was pretty much over by then.’

Patterson was referring to Virginia’s final scoring drive, in which Cavalier quarterback Marques Hagans hit a diving Michael McGrew in the end zone for a touchdown.

The play was just one example of how Virginia’s offense dominated Syracuse. While the Cavaliers’ 3-4 defense occupied the minds of Syracuse coaches leading up to the game, it was the superb Virginia ball control that never allowed the Orange a chance.

‘Marques did a terrific job leading his team,’ Virginia head coach Al Groh said. ‘He’s been that way for four games now. We’d like to think this is his break-in time frame. The best is yet to come.’

If Hagans hasn’t reached his peak yet, the Orange should be thankful it was saved from further embarrassment. The Cavalier’s masterfully orchestrated scoring drives kept the Syracuse offense itching for the ball.

Cavalier punter Sean Johnson only had to take the field twice thanks to five scoring drives that elapsed 13:47. Running backs Wali Lundy and Michael Johnson combined for 128 yards on 26 carries, and Hagans chipped in 81 more on six carries.

‘The problem in the second half was that we couldn’t get the ball back,’ SU head coach Paul Pasqualoni said. ‘They’ve got an excellent offensive line. They have excellent backs, and they have a quarterback who is just simply a ball of dynamite.’

Before the season started, Syracuse knew it would have trouble keeping defenses in check without a deep threat. In search of a big-play receiver, last season’s best cornerback, Steve Gregory, converted to this season’s No. 2 receiver.

But the result has not yet been achieved in part because Gregory hasn’t played. For the second straight game, Gregory sat out with a thigh injury.

On Saturday, he stayed home in Syracuse instead of traveling with SU.

‘He has a very sore thigh, and we’ll take it day by day,’ Pasqualoni said.

Though the Orange moved the ball well with a mix of different plays, the deep ball was visibly lacking.

‘We need everybody we can get,’ Patterson said. ‘Steve Gregory gives us more speed going down the field. People would have to pay more attention to him.’

SU’s longest completion of the game was an 18-yard pass to Jared Jones in the third quarter.

‘You always miss a guy with that kind of speed and athleticism,’ Pasqualoni said. ‘I thought the guys did a pretty good job today. I think we did the best job with what we had today.’

Syracuse needed all the help it could get Saturday against Virginia.

Minor ailments limited the roles of two key players, though. Cramps in Walter Reyes’ right leg forced him off the field at one point, and linebacker Kellen Pruitt was visibly limping at times after the second quarter.

After a 5-yard run by Reyes, he remained on the field with 2:28 on the clock in the third quarter. Trainers came out to check on him before Reyes limped off the field under his own power.

Pruitt missed a tackle on Virginia quarterback Marques Hagans in the second quarter near the SU sideline. He remained down on the field momentarily but continued to play.

He missed several key tackles later in the game before leaving the field with 9:49 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Coach Steve Dunlap said Pruitt was ‘banged up.’

Syracuse’s first-quarter field goal marked the first time this season the Cavaliers have trailed. … The game took two hours and 26 minutes to play. It was the shortest Cavaliers game since a 1993 loss at North Carolina State, also not televised.

Published on September 26, 2004 at 12:00 pm