First Stop In The BIG EAST: Louisville
9/22/2007 9:26:29 AM | Football
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The Orange begins BIG EAST Conference competition when it faces nationally-ranked Louisville today at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium. The game will be televised live on ESPN regional as part of the conference's Game of the Week package.
The Orange begins BIG EAST Conference competition when it faces nationally-ranked Louisville today at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium. The game will be televised live on ESPN regional as part of the conference's Game of the Week package.
Kickoff is set for noon and fans can listen to the game on the Syracuse ISP Sports Network, TK-99.5 FM. Fans can also hear the broadcast through Orange All-Access and on Sirus Satellite Radio.
Syracuse-Louisville Series
In a series that dates back to 1985, each team has won three games. SU won the first contest between the two schools, 48-0. At the time it was the widest margin of victory for SU since beating Richmond, 50-0, in 1963. The two teams squared off in the Coca-Cola Bowl in Tokyo during the 1989 season. The Orange prevailed 24-13 in its first contest outside of the United States. Syracuse improved to 3-0 against Louisville in 1992 with a 15-9 victory. After an 11 year hiatus, the two teams met again in 2003; the Cardinals won, 30-20. The game began a three-game series winning streak for Louisville.
Syracuse in BIG EAST Openers
Since the BIG EAST football league formed in 1991, the Orange is 10-6 in conference-opening games, including a 3-2 record when those contests are on the road. The Orange is 7-4 in BIG EAST openers played in the Carrier Dome. SU has never started its league schedule against the Cardinals, who are in their third season as a conference member. The Orange won four straight BIG EAST openers from 1998-2001, its longest winning streak in league starters.
Ball Security
For the second straight year, the Orange has taken excellent care of the football. Last season, Syracuse was tied 11th nationally in turnovers lost with 17 (1.4 per game), including just five interceptions which matched the school’s fewest picks since 1949. Through its first three games the Orange has only turned the ball over twice (1 lost fumble, 1 INT) and didn’t have any miscues against Illinois on Sept. 15. SU’s two turnovers are tied for the third-fewest in the nation. Only Georgia Tech (0) and Ball State (1) have done a better job of handling the football. The Illini also didn’t have a turnover in Saturday's game. It was the first time since the Orange played at Virginia in 2004 that neither SU or its opponent turned the ball over.
Brinkley on the Move
Junior running back Curtis Brinkley is a threat out of the backfield as a runner and a receiver. Through three games he leads the team with 152 receiving yards on eight catches and second with 246 all-purpose yards. Against Illinois, he led the team with a career-best 89 receiving yards on a career-high tying four catches. He sparked the SU offense when he broke two tackles and went for a career-long 62 yards on a screen pass, allowing Jeremy Sellers to score SU's first touchdown. The play was the Orange's longest from the line of scrimmage this season.
Nagurski, Hendricks, McClain…
Senior defensive end and team captain Jameel McClain led all Syracuse down linemen with seven tackles, including three solo stops, against Illinois. He increased his career sack total to 11 with one half sack at Iowa. The 2007 All-America, Nagurski Award (Best Defensive Player) and Ted Hendricks Award (Best Defensive End) candidate also had eight tackles, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery against the Hawkeyes. He led all defensive down-linemen with six tackles, including 0.5 TFL.
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