Something pretty special must happen when the Syracuse football team sits down to watch film.

It seems that one magical VHS tape holds all of the elusive answers as to why Syracuse humiliated itself in a 48-24 loss to Pittsburgh on Saturday at the Carrier Dome.

“After such a disappointing game,” Syracuse head coach Paul Pasqualoni said, “I don’t want to make any comments. I want to watch the film.”

“We’ll watch the film on Monday and try to find some answers,” defensive end Josh Thomas said. “It’s kind of embarrassing.”

Agreed. In fact, it was so obviously embarrassing that we can safely make a couple of suggestions without subjecting ourselves to a replay of that so-called game.

Consider that to reach a bowl game Syracuse must go at least 6-6 — which means it needs a win against Miami, Virginia Tech or at Boston College. It would have to close the year no worse than 5-2. So let’s be honest: If we’re not in garbage time already, we’re close.

With that in mind, two suggestions for SU to salvage what’s left of its season:

(BULLET) Last week, I wrote that Pasqualoni would make the wrong decision by starting R.J. Anderson at quarterback on Saturday. I was right.

However, I also suggested Pasqualoni should have instead started backup Troy Nunes. I was wrong.

Before leaving with a shoulder injury, Anderson completed just 3 of 10 passes for 11 yards. In relief, Nunes tossed for 120 yards on 11-of-19 passing.

Although Nunes ran onto the field in the second quarter to a hero’s welcome, he looked nothing like the Superman who led the Orangemen on a seven-minute march to the endzone at Auburn last week. And in the third quarter, Nunes caught his own deflected pass only to fumble and have Pittsburgh return it for a touchdown. That debacle epitomized Syracuse’s day.

So clearly, emergency quarterback Xzavier Gaines is the man who should lead the Orangemen when they face Temple in Philadelphia on Saturday.

“We’re in a situation,” Nunes said, “where Syracuse fans don’t like the starter.”

Right. And considering the applause the backup Nunes received when he stepped on the field, Gaines, the third-stringer, would probably garner a ticker-tape parade.

But fan appeasement aside, Gaines looked sharp on that center-quarterback exchange he took with 19 seconds remaining in the game. Then he made a perfect, four-yard pitch to running back Barry Baker.

And since that play went forward, it accomplished more than many of Syracuse’s plays in the first half. At halftime, Nunes and Anderson had combined for 28 plays that led to 49 yards, an average of 1.7.

Give the ball to Gaines.

(BULLET) Lost in the avalanche of Panthers’ points and Syracuse poor plays was the performance of walk-on long-snapper Dave DeAmato.

DeAmato snapped flawlessly on Syracuse’s punts, extra points and field goal, atoning for his overtime botched snap last weekend.

While some long-snappers jog, DeAmato hustled downfield, making a solo tackle and downing a punt.

Why not give a 5-foot-11, 215-pound walk-on a chance to complete his Rudy-like story and enjoy an expanded role? He can even — gasp! — tackle. So that should at least put him in the running for a spot on a defense that allowed Lousaka Polite to scamper 34 yards into the endzone by missing two tackles.

(BULLET) Most important, let these two suggestions serve as mere starting points. Surely no one can solve all of SU’s problems in a single column.

Besides, I haven’t even watched the film.

Pete Iorizzo is an assistant sports editor at The Daily Orange, where his columns appear regularly. E-mail him at pniorizz@syr.edu.

Published on October 6, 2002 at 12:00 pm