MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – With two weeks to gameplan for West Virginia’s high-octane, spread offense, Greg Robinson had plenty of time to concoct a defensive scheme. Ultimately, his philosophy wasn’t too complicated.

‘We just got every guy out there that had a lot of speed on the field,’ Syracuse safety Max Suter said. ‘They got some fast guys and we threw out our fast guys.’

Suter was just one of the new personnel the Syracuse head coach shuffled into his defense to stymie the Mountaineers. The Orange employed a 4-2-5 formation during Saturday’s 17-6 defeat, stacking its defense with fleeter players to counter WVU’s speedy threats, such as tailback Noel Devine and wide receiver Jock Sanders.

Robinson’s ploy worked. Syracuse put forth its best defensive effort of the season, holding West Virginia – without injured quarterback Pat White (concussion) – to 177 total yards before Devine’s clinching 92-yard touchdown late in the fourth.Not bad for a team that came into the contest allowing an average of 36.4 points and 462.4 yards per game.

‘I just think our guys played well,’ Robinson said. ‘They tackled well. For the most part, I was very impressed with our tackling. (Devine and Sanders) have made a whole lot of people miss. … I just wish we would have gotten some turnovers in there.’Robinson’s defensive lineup has changed plenty during parts of the season, especially in the secondary. But Saturday’s lineup was radically different. Linebacker Derrell Smith shifted to defensive end.

Cornerback Mike Holmes shifted to safety alongside A.J. Brown. Kevyn Scott came into the game at corner, while Suter roamed around, seemingly playing a hybrid of safety and linebacker.

Those moves paid off. Smith was the star, tallying a team-high eight tackles (three-and-a-half for loss) and a sack. Holmes and Suter racked up seven and six tackles, respectively. With the exception of Sanders’ 12-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter, there weren’t many blips for SU.

‘When you’re playing a team like West Virginia with so many offensive weapons,’ Scott said, ‘you have to put your speed on the field because when the other team has speed on the field, there’s more room for errors.’

West Virginia didn’t have quite as much speed with White sidelined. The senior quarterback’s absence came as a surprise to the Orange, which prepared all week to face the playmaking senior. WVU junior Jarrett Brown struggled to replace White, going 14-for-20 for 52 yards. Most of the Mountaineers’ pass plays were swing passes and wide-receiver screens, calls the Orange’s speedy defense were usually able to snuff out.

As the game progressed, West Virginia’s frustrations mounted. The Mountaineers lost six yards on their first three possession of the second half. With each three-and-out, the boos emanating from the 58,133 at Mountaineer Field grew louder. West Virginia managed one first down in the quarter. Meanwhile, Syracuse built a time of possession advantage of more than 10 minutes.

‘The possession time really makes me sick,’ WVU head coach Bill Stewart said. ‘I’m really disappointed with our offensive production today. Jarrett (Brown) was struggling, but he will get better.’

But as good as the Orange defense played, its outing was marred by Devine’s fourth-quarter outburst. On a 3rd-and-7 from the WVU eight, Devine took a handoff left and looked like he might be stopped in the backfield. Instead, he broke free, impossible for even SU’s new, faster defense to catch.

Robinson called the play ‘sickening.’ It was certainly a heartbreaking end for a unit that had played so well for 55 minutes.

‘It’s real tough,’ the sophomore Scott said. ‘You play a great ball game hands down, and that goes to the defense and coach Robinson for his calls. You practice for it all week and then one play, one play you come up short. It just hurts.’

jsclayto@syr.edu

Published on October 12, 2008 at 12:00 pm