SYRACUSE - Want an idea of how far Syracuse football has plummeted? Check the line for Saturday's game in the Carrier Dome.

Rutgers was a 17.5-point favorite at midweek, and the Scarlet Knights are 8-28-1 all-time against the Orange and playing their first road game of the season.

The losses Rutgers (3-2, 0-1 Big East) suffered to Maryland and No. 15 Cincinnati in its last two outings sent the Scarlet Knights out of the national rankings for the first time since last season and left head coach Greg Schiano in a foul mood.

“Every inch, when you're playing at the top level, every inch matters,” Schiano said. “You keep adding up that hidden yardage. There's a lot of things. We had zero big plays against us on defense in the first three weeks and now we've given up eight or nine.

“Young guys are making the mistakes,” said Schiano, who has played 11 freshmen so far. “Eventually, they're going to get it. Until they do, it's going to be a little bit of a struggle. We haven't been our best yet. We're putting it back on ourselves. We've got to cut those mistakes out.”

Which means Schiano isn't taking anything for granted, even if Syracuse (1-5, 1-1) has been downright awful at home, losing to Washington, No. 18 Illinois and No. 8 West Virginia by a combined 138-46.

It doesn't matter that the Orange are coming off a 55-14 loss to the Mountaineers, who totaled 486 yards of offense and scored more points than any visiting team since Syracuse began competing in football in 1889.

“Syracuse is a dangerous team right now,” Schiano said. “They've shown that they can play at a very high level. Yet they've also stubbed their toe like we did. We're a team coming off two straight losses going on the road for the first time.”

It's an important game for the Orange, who have reverted to their losing ways after their impressive win at Louisville, a game they entered as six-touchdown underdogs and won 38-35.

“You know what, it's the same-old, same-old. It's not so much about them as it is about us,” said Greg Robinson, who is 6-23 in his two-plus years as head coach of the Orange. “We're 1-1 in the Big East and we are going to have to win to stay in the fight. They are coming up to our place and we have to make the most of it.”

If anybody is looking forward to this game, it should be Rutgers tailback Ray Rice, who leads the Big East in rushing at 124.4 yards per game despite two straight lackluster outings behind an offensive line that's still searching for some consistency, Rice, in the running for the Heisman Trophy, rushed for 431 yards and eight touchdowns in his first three games but was held to 191 yards and two scores against Cincinnati and Maryland combined.

Rice should get better against the Orange - Syracuse is allowing 234.7 yards rushing per game and 5.3 yards per carry. Since their big win over the Cardinals, the Orange have been seemingly helpless against the run.

“We'll bounce back,” Rice promised.

Syracuse quarterback Andrew Robinson isn't so sure.

“You never know how a team is going to react after they lose two straight games like that,” said Robinson, who threw his first career TD pass in a loss last fall at Rutgers. “Some teams might bounce back and crush the next person they play. Some teams might be living in the past a little bit and haven't really gotten over the two straight losses.”

Notes:Rutgers is the last team in the 119-team Football Bowl Subdivision to play on the road this year. ... The Orange kickoff return team is ranked 14th nationally and first in the Big East at 25.9 yards per return and is on pace to set a school record. ... Rutgers quarterback Mike Teel injured the thumb on his right throwing hand against Cincinnati but is expected to start against Syracuse.