SYRACUSE - Syracuse coach Doug Marrone could only grin while delivering the latest bad news for the Orange.

Marrone said Monday the Orange, who have had their roster thinned by injuries and suspensions, would be without two more players for Saturday's home finale against No. 25 Rutgers (7-2, 2-2 Big East).

Freshman kick returner Mike Jones and reserve tight end/snapper Dalton Phillips will miss the final two games of the season.

“The injuries don't stop for us,” Marrone said. “We have a lot of players that we've lost. We keep talking about it, but you need to move on. No one's going to feel sorry.”

Marrone said Phillips was hospitalized from an injury suffered in Saturday's 10-9 loss at Louisville. Phillips was hurt in a violent collision while blocking during a Syracuse kick return in the third quarter and appeared to be unconscious on the field. He changed and watched the remainder of the game from the sideline and traveled with the team back to Syracuse.

Marrone said he would reveal the extent and details of the injuries to both players later Monday. They are the eighth and ninth players lost to season-ending injuries, and six have been hurt in the past two games.

Syracuse, winless in five Big East games to drop its conference record to 3-30 since 2005, has lost three in a row - including a 10-9 setback against Louisville on Saturday - and five of six since posting consecutive wins over Northwestern and Maine.

Marrone also has lost 20 scholarship players since he was hired last December and standout receiver Mike Williams quit the team two weeks ago. Marrone also suspended tailback Antwon Bailey, defensive end Torrey Ball and offensive guard Andrew Tiller for one game for violating team rules. Still, Marrone has made gains in getting the program turned back in the right direction. Despite the losses, the players have not shown any signs of giving up as they did under previous coach Greg Robinson.

“There's a lot of plays we could have made. We didn't make those plays,” Marrone said. “We have to keep building this team. We have a lot of players that we've lost. We keep talking about it, but you need to move on. No one's going to feel sorry.”

Marrone again said former Duke point guard Greg Paulus, a graduate student here for only one year, would remain the starting quarterback with Ryan Nassib the backup. Paulus has completed 65.8 percent of his passes - 156 of 237 for 1,586 yards and 10 TDs with 14 interceptions - and remains on pace to finish the season with a school record. Bill Scharr holds the top spot at 63.3 percent (107 of 169 in 1989).

Nassib has played in seven games and has seen his playing time increase since the start of the season. But he's just 25 of 53 (47.2 percent) for 289 yards and two scores and one interception, both TDs coming in the second half of a 34-13 loss to West Virginia. Marrone hasn't given up hope of a couple more victories.

“We're still going out there to win games, not to give people experience for next year,” said Marrone, an offensive lineman at Syracuse in the mid-1980s. “It's not next year until the last game is over. The way people are getting experience now on this team is through injury. We always played to win. I think that's what you do at Syracuse.”

Syracuse owns a commanding 28-10 margin since its series with the Scarlet Knights began with a 14-14 tie in 1914. But Rutgers has won five of the past six under Schiano, who has molded them into a consistent contender for the conference title and strengthened the school's recruiting prowess in an area where Syracuse once was very successful. The loss of tailback Ray Rice, who initially committed to Syracuse before becoming a star at Rutgers, still smarts.

“It's a game that we have to win,” Marrone said. “It's no different than the other games we've played during the year. I don't look at it as a hostile situation. I worry about our football team. I don't worry about what the other team does recruiting or goes through.”