Countdown to Kickoff
November 21, 2003 05:41 PM | General
November 21, 2003
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia (6-4, 4-1) visits Syracuse (5-4, 2-3) on Saturday, Nov. 22, for a noon Big East game at the Carrier Dome (49,500) in Syracuse, N.Y. The game will be televised by ESPN2.
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| Quarterback Rasheed Mashall loosens up his arm during Friday's walkthrough at the Carrier Dome. (All-Pro Photography/Dale Sparks) |
The winner of the WVU-Syracuse game receives the Floyd “Ben” Schwartzwalder Trophy, started in 1993 to honor the memory of the former West Virginia letterman (1931-33) and great Syracuse football coach (1949-73). The actual Scwartzwalder Trophy, sculpted by Jim Ridlon, was presented for the first time in 1995.
West Virginia departed from Clarksburg Friday morning in time for an afternoon workout at the Carrier Dome.
The Mountaineers are still in the hunt for a share of the Big East regular season title while Syracuse is looking to become bowl eligible with its sixth victory.
Here is Saturday’s Countdown to Kickoff:
10 – West Virginia running back Quincy Wilson is ranked TENTH in the country in rushing this week with an average of 122.6 yards per game.
9 – Wilson has rushed for more than 100 yards in a game NINE times for his career, including five this season. Wilson had a season-high 208 yards with four touchdowns last Saturday against Pitt.
8 – West Virginia completed just EIGHT passes in last year’s game against Syracuse for 105 yards. The Mountaineers were able to rush 57 times for 279 yards and three touchdowns.
7 – In six of the last 10 West Virginia-Syracuse games, the losing team has been held to SEVEN points or less.
6 – Syracuse has won SIX of the last eight games though West Virginia snapped the Orangemen’s winning streak at three games last year in Morgantown, 34-7. WVU is looking for its first win in the Carrier Dome since 1993.
5 – Syracuse wide receiver Johnnie Morant has caught at least one pass in 26 straight games, tied with Pitt’s Dietrich Jells as the FIFTH-longest streak in Big East history.
4 – Syracuse quarterback R.J. Anderson has only thrown FOUR interceptions this season. He will be playing against a West Virginia secondary that leads the Big East with 18 picks so far this year.
3 – West Virginia quarterback Rasheed Marshall has had THREE multi-touchdown passing games this year. He fired two TD passes each against Cincinnati and Pitt and a career-high four touchdown passes against East Carolina.
2 – West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez is now TWO games above .500 as a Mountaineer coach. His record heading into Saturday’s game against Syracuse is 18-16.
1 – West Virginia ranks FIRST in the Big East in turnover margin at plus 1.50. That figure ranks the Mountaineers second nationally.
Enjoy Saturday’s game and be sure to stop back afterward for MSNsportsNET.com’s complete post-game coverage.
