SYRACUSE - Syracuse's Greg Robinson has mastered at least one thing in his first stint as a head football coach - he sees a lot of positives where only negatives seem to appear.
Less than a day after his Orange stumbled to a 20-10 season-opening loss at Wake Forest, Syracuse's 10th straight since Robinson took over before last season, he was resolute in defending his team.
“Frustrated? Yes. Discouraged? No, no, no, no,” Robinson said Sunday afternoon. “They're trying like all get-out. I could go on and on with things that were very encouraging, and I'll stand by that. I know because I've studied it closely and I see a lot of good things.”
The question is, where?
In 2005, Syracuse ranked last among the 117 schools in Division I-A at converting third downs, with a minuscule 21 percent (34-for-165). Against Wake Forest, the Orange were 1-for-11, the only conversion coming on Tony Fiammetta's 7-yard run on third-and-3 early in the fourth quarter.
Of Syracuse's 12 drives in the game, there were five three-and-outs. The longest lasted just over 3.5 minutes and netted 15 yards in six plays. Two others also made it past 3 minutes, and four drives netted negative yardage (minus-33 yards in all).
Take away the six-play, 86-yard scoring drive in the first quarter that ended with a game-tying, 20-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Perry Patterson to Rice Moss, and the Orange ran 42 other plays for 65 yards. Syracuse never made it beyond its own 36 in the second half.
“I see what maybe are weaknesses here and there, but we make sure that we try not to highlight that area,” Robinson said. “My intent is to look and evaluate, and when I see things that look (better) - and you know by your eye what is improvement, what looks better - I dwell on that.”
Not much to dwell on - yet.
Patterson, a fifth-year senior, attempted only one pass in the third quarter - it was incomplete - and finished 5-of-18 for 45 yards. He was 1-for-5 in the second half for no yards, suffered three sacks and fumbled two snaps from center. One was costly, coming early in the third quarter after Tanard Jackson made the Orange's first interception of the season. Patterson fumbled the first-down snap at the Wake Forest 30.
Robinson said Patterson would remain the starter Saturday in the Carrier Dome against No. 16 Iowa, which opened its season by beating Division I-AA Montana 41-7.
“I was real proud of him. It's exciting to watch,” Robinson said. “Good things are going to happen. All of a sudden, he's going to have a real game and everybody's going to be pretty darned excited about it.”
Early injuries to three wideouts plagued the Orange last season, but the team began this season with five solid players at the position, including speedy Taj Smith, a junior college transfer touted as a real deep threat. Against the Demon Deacons, Smith had two runs for 24 yards but did not catch a pass.
“This offense right now is so much further along than last year at this time,” Robinson said. “This guy (Patterson) made three or four throws ... that were NFL throws. I see those things, and we just have to keep working. I tell our offensive coaches, 'Stay the course. I like what you're doing. You guys have it going in the right direction.' ”
Defensively, Syracuse was hurt by the graduation of three standout players - defensive ends Ryan LaCasse and James Wyche and fiery safety Anthony Smith - and it showed early and late.
Facing a third-and-12 on their first drive, the Demon Deacons converted a 17-yard pass play, then capped a 15-play, 96-yard march with a 14-yard touchdown pass on a third-and-10 play.
And in the waning moments, when the Orange still had a shot at winning, Wake scored again. With starting quarterback Ben Mauk suffering a broken arm late in the third quarter and starting tailback Micah Andrews on the sidelines with severe cramps, the Demon Deacons went to backup tailback DeAngelo Bryant, and Syracuse couldn't stop him.
Wake Forest ran 10 straight running plays and Bryant carried the load. He rushed eight times for 51 yards and scored on an 18-yard run with 80 seconds left.
“Frustrated? Yes. Discouraged? No, no, no, no,” Robinson said Sunday afternoon. “They're trying like all get-out. I could go on and on with things that were very encouraging, and I'll stand by that. I know because I've studied it closely and I see a lot of good things.”
The question is, where?
In 2005, Syracuse ranked last among the 117 schools in Division I-A at converting third downs, with a minuscule 21 percent (34-for-165). Against Wake Forest, the Orange were 1-for-11, the only conversion coming on Tony Fiammetta's 7-yard run on third-and-3 early in the fourth quarter.
Of Syracuse's 12 drives in the game, there were five three-and-outs. The longest lasted just over 3.5 minutes and netted 15 yards in six plays. Two others also made it past 3 minutes, and four drives netted negative yardage (minus-33 yards in all).
Take away the six-play, 86-yard scoring drive in the first quarter that ended with a game-tying, 20-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Perry Patterson to Rice Moss, and the Orange ran 42 other plays for 65 yards. Syracuse never made it beyond its own 36 in the second half.
“I see what maybe are weaknesses here and there, but we make sure that we try not to highlight that area,” Robinson said. “My intent is to look and evaluate, and when I see things that look (better) - and you know by your eye what is improvement, what looks better - I dwell on that.”
Not much to dwell on - yet.
Patterson, a fifth-year senior, attempted only one pass in the third quarter - it was incomplete - and finished 5-of-18 for 45 yards. He was 1-for-5 in the second half for no yards, suffered three sacks and fumbled two snaps from center. One was costly, coming early in the third quarter after Tanard Jackson made the Orange's first interception of the season. Patterson fumbled the first-down snap at the Wake Forest 30.
Robinson said Patterson would remain the starter Saturday in the Carrier Dome against No. 16 Iowa, which opened its season by beating Division I-AA Montana 41-7.
“I was real proud of him. It's exciting to watch,” Robinson said. “Good things are going to happen. All of a sudden, he's going to have a real game and everybody's going to be pretty darned excited about it.”
Early injuries to three wideouts plagued the Orange last season, but the team began this season with five solid players at the position, including speedy Taj Smith, a junior college transfer touted as a real deep threat. Against the Demon Deacons, Smith had two runs for 24 yards but did not catch a pass.
“This offense right now is so much further along than last year at this time,” Robinson said. “This guy (Patterson) made three or four throws ... that were NFL throws. I see those things, and we just have to keep working. I tell our offensive coaches, 'Stay the course. I like what you're doing. You guys have it going in the right direction.' ”
Defensively, Syracuse was hurt by the graduation of three standout players - defensive ends Ryan LaCasse and James Wyche and fiery safety Anthony Smith - and it showed early and late.
Facing a third-and-12 on their first drive, the Demon Deacons converted a 17-yard pass play, then capped a 15-play, 96-yard march with a 14-yard touchdown pass on a third-and-10 play.
And in the waning moments, when the Orange still had a shot at winning, Wake scored again. With starting quarterback Ben Mauk suffering a broken arm late in the third quarter and starting tailback Micah Andrews on the sidelines with severe cramps, the Demon Deacons went to backup tailback DeAngelo Bryant, and Syracuse couldn't stop him.
Wake Forest ran 10 straight running plays and Bryant carried the load. He rushed eight times for 51 yards and scored on an 18-yard run with 80 seconds left.
Citizen
Hot Jobs
New! Off the Menu
The Citizens' Say
Post your comment - click hereThere are No comments posted.