Three words you never want to hear from a coach.

“I don#'t know.”

Those are the words of Greg Robinson in response to a question about what went wrong during Saturday's epic disaster against the Akron Zips.

“There's not an instant answer.”

Also, not promising words to hear from a man with his job squarely on the line.

After Syracuse's 42-28 loss to Akron, Robinson finally looked like a man resigned to his fate. He made no excuses, took full blame, admitted he didn't possess any immediate solutions and acknowledged the right of every Orange fan to be angry.

In effect, Robinson was delivering his own eulogy.

It's not often we've seen the Syracuse head coach so dejected.

Even with a total of seven wins in three-plus seasons, Robinson always finds a silver lining. He always finds something to be encouraged by.

But in the Akron post-game presser, he looked like a man that just went 10 rounds with Holyfield.

He looked beaten.

Greg Robinson will not be the head coach of the Syracuse University football team in 2009. The Orange aren't running the table. They're not winning the Big East and they're not making a bowl game.

That is certain.

What isn't certain is whether the Orange can beat Northeastern, a Division I-AA team.

This, right now, isn't the low point.

A loss to Northeastern, that would be.

It's hard to fathom that this is the state of Syracuse football.

Fans aren't excited about a home date with Penn State this Saturday, that game will be a blowout by halftime.

Instead, they're mentally preparing themselves for a home loss to Northeastern.

There wouldn't be a darker day in the dome.

So the attention now turns to the job search.

Who are the candidates? Who is Dr. Daryl Gross going after?

The talk of Robinson's replacement has already begun, and we're two games into the season.

If it isn't a distraction now, it will be soon.

And it's a shame. Syracuse has talent - Curtis Brinkley, Cam Dantley, Delone Carter, Arthur Jones. This should not be a winless team.

Do I think the Orange can go .500?

No.

But could they pick off a few Big East teams?

Absolutely.

But it won't happen if the coaching carousel is in motion.

Players pay attention to this stuff.

They hear the talk. They read the papers.

They're asked weekly about their coach's job security. It has to be a distraction.

When Nick Lepak told me during preseason that the team is 100 percent committed to Robinson, I believed him.

And I still do.

Whether he's a lame duck or not, Robinson needs the backing of his players and vice versa.

The players need to believe what their coach is preaching.

They need to be inspired by the Penn State pre-game pep talk.

When Robinson tells them they can beat West Virginia, they have to agree.

This won't happen if the fans and media are calling for his head every day.

And if the losses continue to pile up, that backlash will have no end.

To be fair, Robinson brought this upon himself. He hasn't produced, plain and simple.

Syracuse University has honored his contract and lived up to its end of the bargain. Robinson hasn't.

Right now, there's no happy ending.

If Robinson finishes out the season, Syracuse will be a distracted, chaotic football team that is focused more on their head coach than on their next opponent.

If Gross cans him, the Orange will struggle with a regime change in the middle of a season, something no college team can successfully adjust to.

Either way, the end result is one win, two if they're lucky.

If I were Gross, what would I do?

I'll have to steal a few words from Robinson to answer that question.

“I don't know.”

Sports Editor Ryan Day can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 258 or Ryan.Day@lee.net