Three weeks ago, Thomas Whitfield’s name didn’t even belong on the Syracuse football team’s first-string depth chart. Now, it belongs on a plaque.

In his second start since replacing Terrell Lemon at SU’s starting right-cornerback spot, Whitfield earned Big East Defensive Player of the Week honors. The sophomore from Windsor, Ontario, tied a career-high with eight tackles against Toledo in the Orangemen’s 34-7 win Saturday. Whitfield also assisted on SU’s first sack of the year with Kellen Pruitt and deflected a pass.

‘Tommy had a solid game,’ Syracuse head coach Paul Pasqualoni said. ‘He played better fundamentally than the week before. We’ve been here for three years with Tommy, hoping he would grow and mature, start to get a feel for things. I think this is the first breakthrough for Tommy Whitfield.’

Last season, Whitfield, who ran a 4.22 40-yard dash before the season, saw limited action at cornerback and played a large role on kickoff coverage as a redshirt freshman.

Despite Whitfield’s emergence, Pasqualoni said Lemon, a redshirt freshman, and true freshman Tanard Jackson will still receive playing time opposite Steve Gregory.

But the heaviest workload will still fall on Whitfield.

‘He’s very fast and physical,’ Pasqualoni said. ‘He’s a tough kid. He has responded.’

Out … and over?

Jamel Riddle will not play in SU’s next game against Virginia Tech on Oct. 11, Pasqualoni said.

Riddle, a senior wide receiver, has been declared ineligible by the NCAA. SU is looking into appealing the decision, Pasqualoni said. If the appeal is not made or not granted, Riddle’s career at Syracuse will be over.

‘If it’s realistic, then we’ll do it,’ Pasqualoni said of appealing. ‘If not, then Jamel will not be able to play this regular season, but he’ll stay affiliated with the program.’

There have been ongoing attempts to get Riddle on the field since the summer. Originally, Pasqualoni hoped Riddle’s grades from summer courses at Onondaga Community College would be processed in time for the Orangemen’s season opener at North Carolina.

As the season wears, its seems Riddle could be running out of time.

‘(The end of the process) could be very, very shortly,’ Pasqualoni said. ‘We just want to make sure, for Jamel and the program, that we’re exhausting all avenues and possibilities.’

Good bye

With a different player clutching an injury or limping away after seemingly every play, Syracuse’s bye week couldn’t have come at a better time.

Wide receiver Johnnie Morant, defensive end Josh Thomas, running back Damien Rhodes, kicker Justin Sujansky, tight end Joe Donnelly and linebacker Jameel Dumas have all missed time with injuries. But that’s only scratching the surface. After eight straight weeks – including preseason – of going full-speed, most Orangemen are or have been dinged up.

‘We’re gonna give the kids a little time off,’ Pasqualoni said. ‘We’re kind of bumped up. We’ve got some guys hurt. We’re hoping that we can get a few guys back. They’ve been going hard since August. We’ve played four games – all good teams, all games that we had to be emotionally ready to play.’

To grant his team a respite, Syracuse will practice only three times this week before preparing for Virginia Tech.

‘Man, we really need this bye week,’ fullback Thump Belton said.

On the defensive

For three quarters in its opener against North Carolina, SU’s defense played like it was the 13th game of 2002 and surrendered 47 points. The next game, it allowed 30 points to Louisville.

Since then, SU’s defense has improved, allowing just 10.5 points a game in its last two contests.

‘We suffered growing pains,’ Pasqualoni said. ‘We’ve got a bunch of inexperienced guys in the back end of the defense. It’s taken some time. It’s a matter of those kids getting a feel for each other, gaining some confidence in what they’re doing. Just maturing a little bit.’

Whitfield replacing Lemon gave Syracuse more experience in the secondary, and Kelvin Smith has become more comfortable starting in the place of Dumas.

‘We’re not where we want to be yet,’ Pasqualoni said. ‘But the good news is we’re moving in the right direction. I think we got the right kids on the bus. I think we got them sitting in the right seat.’

This and that

The Associated Press Top 25 is officially on SU’s radar. Syracuse received three votes in this week’s AP poll, released yesterday, making the Orangemen the No. 40 team in the country, unofficially. Louisville, which beat SU, 30-20, stands one spot outside the Top 25 with 89 votes and Toledo is six spots ahead of SU with 10 votes. … Syracuse held Toledo to its lowest point total since Eastern Michigan downed the Rockets, 10-7, in 1998.

Published on September 29, 2003 at 12:00 pm