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Post by elp525 on Jul 19, 2011 4:56:43 GMT -5
July 18, 2011
By Dave Hickman The Charleston Gazette
EDITOR'S NOTE: This is a series of previews on West Virginia football opponents.
Date with WVU: Friday, Oct. 21, 8 p.m. (ESPN or ESPN2)
Site: Carrier Dome (49,262, FieldTurf), Syracuse, N.Y.
Coach: Doug Marrone (3rd year, 12-13)
Checking them out
It's hard to imagine that Syracuse could have gotten more out of the 2010 season than the Orange did. With a group picked by the league's coaches to finish seventh (and just one vote away from last) prior to the season, SU won four league road games - including at WVU and South Florida - played in a bowl for the first time in six years and won it, beating Kansas State in the Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium.
There could be some issues with repeating that, however. Were it not for wins over Maine and Colgate (really, on the same schedule?) Syracuse wouldn't even have had a winning record. And what's up with going 0-3 in Big East home games?
Most significantly, though, the Orange must replace 1,000-yard rusher Delone Carter and more than half of the starting defense. But third-year coach Doug Marrone likes to keep things pretty basic, so perhaps plugging in replacements won't be that big a deal.
The best thing going for Syracuse is probably 6-foot-2, 227-pound junior quarterback Ryan Nassib, who isn't going to wow anyone with his throws (although he did pass for more than 2,300 yards and 22 touchdowns), but proved a year ago that he is a more than capable leader of a few-frills offense. He also has four starting offensive linemen returning to protect him and open holes for the running game.
This is an offense, however, that needs a dependable back. Attempting to replace Carter will be 5-7, 197-pound Antwon Bailey, who rushed for 554 yards and caught 35 passes a year ago. He'll have fullback Adam Harris in front of him again, so pounding the ball is probably still the way the Orange will go. It won't be one-dimensional, though, because five returning players - including backs and tight ends - caught at least 25 passes last year, led by wideout Van Chew's 41.
On defense, there are some big holes to fill on a unit that ranked in the Top 20 last season, including two departed starters at every level - the line, linebackers and secondary. Ends Chandler Jones and Mikhail Marinovich anchor the front and there is a group of safeties that match up with anyone's. But All-Big East linebackers Doug Hogue and Derrell Smith are gone, as are both corners from the country's No. 7 pass defense, one that intercepted WVU QB Geno Smith three times last year, his only game with more than one pick.
All-conference candidates
Offense: OT Justin Pugh, QB Ryan Nassib
Defense: DE Chandler Jones, S Phillip Thomas, S Shamarko Thomas
Notes
Four of Syracuse's first five games are at home, but the one road trip is a doozy: at Southern California. ... The Orange lost four-year starting punter Rob Long and the best punter on the roster in the spring was sophomore Shane Raupers, a javelin thrower on the track team and a former scholarship kicker who quit the team shortly after arriving in 2009. He's back now as a walk-on. ... At least one member of the Syracuse team had knee surgery in June. No big deal, though. It was Marrone.
2011 schedule
Date Opponent 2010
Sept. 1 (Th.) Wake Forest DNP
Sept. 10 Rhode Island DNP
Sept. 17 at Southern Cal DNP
Sept. 24 Toledo DNP
Oct. 1 Rutgers* W 13-10
Oct. 8 at Tulane DNP
Oct. 21 (Fri.) West Virginia* W 19-14
Oct. 29 at Louisville* L 20-28
Nov. 5 at Connecticut* L 6-23
Nov. 11 (Fri.) South Florida* W 13-9
Nov. 26 Cincinnati* W 31-7
Dec. 3 at Pitt* L 14-45
* Big East Conference games
2010 record: 8-5 overall, 4-3 Big East (won 36-34 over Kansas State in the Pinstripe Bowl)
Dropped: Akron (W 29-3), Washington (L 20-41), Maine (W 38-14), Colgate (W 42-7), Boston College (L 7-16)
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Post by elp525 on Jul 19, 2011 4:54:05 GMT -5
July 18, 2011
By Ryan Pritt The Charleston Gazette
Back in December, soon after West Virginia athletic director Oliver Luck named Dana Holgorsen the football coach-in-waiting and announced his plans to replace then-coach Bill Stewart after the 2011 season, one reason he gave for the move was simple economics.
Season ticket sales dropped off by 1,501 after the 2008 season and an additional 1,936 following the 2009 season. Despite respectable 9-4 records from 2008-10, the lack of an exciting offense as well as a dropoff in wins from the Rich Rodriguez era were pointed out as factors for the decline in season ticket sales.
Now, with Holgorsen stepping in a year early and implementing one of the top offenses in the country over the past handful of years, the WVU ticket office should be seeing a correlating spike in season ticket sales, right?
Well, kind of.
"We're on a good pace this year," Matt Wells, WVU's sports marketing director said. "We're right around the same number of ticket sales as last year, so we're on a good solid pace."
In other words, last year a total of 34,754 season tickets were sold. According to Wells, a little over 34,000 have already been sold this year with a good six weeks left until the season begins.
On one hand, this year's sales are well ahead of last year's pace but by the same token, there's no guaranteeing what will happen with the figures in the next month and a half.
Wells, however, is optimistic.
"I think anytime you have positive things going on around the program, it's a good thing," Wells said. "There's a lot of hype with the new coaching staff and the new offense, people are excited to see what [defensive coordinator Jeff] Casteel will do to retool the defense, and I certainly hope it will help the season ticket effort. There's a lot of buzz around the program and we hope the pace will continue."
Even with a decline in sales over the past two seasons, the numbers are still high when compared to seasons less than 10 years ago. The number of season tickets sold during the seasons between 2002-2005 varied between 25,000-29,000.
But after West Virginia's 11-1 season in 2005, which concluded in a Sugar Bowl win over Georgia, ticket sales spiked. Over the past five seasons, season-ticket figures look like this:
2006 - 37,283
2007 - 38,037 (sold out)
2008 - 38,191 (sold out)
2009 - 36,690
2010 - 34,754
"Sales have taken a pretty significant jump into the mid 30,000s since the '06 season started," Wells said. "I think that's a positive sign about the health of the program and excitement among the fan base for WVU football."
Renovations to the South end zone allowed for more season tickets to be sold in 2008, but both '07 and '08 were considered season-ticket sellouts.
While the recent decline in season tickets are a little discerning, it's not like Mountaineer fans have abandoned Milan Puskar Stadium altogether. WVU was still tops in the Big East in terms of total average attendance last season, pulling in an average home crowd of 56,325 - over 11,000 better than the league average.
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7/18/11
Jul 18, 2011 5:32:33 GMT -5
Post by elp525 on Jul 18, 2011 5:32:33 GMT -5
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Post by elp525 on Jul 18, 2011 5:30:51 GMT -5
Monday, July 18 2011
Garrett Cullen Morgantown
The new-look Mountaineer basketball team is back to the practice court. The team has five practices set for the month of July and five more coming up during the first week of August prior to heading overseas for play in Italy.
The practices will be important for the large group incoming players that are new to the program.
“Everybody did really well as far as bringing intensity and enthusiasm to practice,” said senior Kevin Jones. “And that’s all Coach (Huggins) is looking for from these young guys so far. He doesn’t expect them to get everything right in a day, but he expects them to play hard.”
The Mountaineers get 10 practices in total for the summer prior to that trip overseas – competition that Jones said will be key to get a feel one another and how they play.
“It’s going to be a big bonding experience,” Jones said. “Hopefully we can go out there and learn each other’s games better. To go out and play against other competition will be a great experience for us.”
There will also be time for more practices overseas as well.
“We’ll learn enough,” said Mountaineer head coach Bob Huggins. “We’ll get to go play games and practice over there too. I think we’re going to play six or seven games over there, which leaves probably another four or five days to practice.
Regardless, the make-up of this year’s team is quite different than Mountaineer teams in the past, bringing a different style of play to the floor.
“Expect it to be a more fast-paced team – not so much of a grind it out team where we’ve got to win by scoring 60 points,” Jones said.
“I just want us to get better everyday,” he continued. “As long as everybody’s going out there and coming in the gym and getting shots up, working hard in the weight room, working hard in conditioning – we should get better. There’s no reason we can’t get better.
To see all of the interviews from practice, click on the related story link below.
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Post by elp525 on Jul 18, 2011 5:27:34 GMT -5
Monday July 18, 2011 by Mike Casazza Charleston Daily Mail MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- There are two ways to look at Pat McAfee's longevity as a punter in the National Football League. It could be he's in perhaps the position that poses the least amount of risk, though McAfee does add a little danger by pulling double duty as the kickoff specialist for the Indianapolis Colts. Still, if he navigates a career of punts properly and doesn't have to make the special teams tackles that were often required of him when he played for West Virginia, McAfee could play for many more years. Conversely, it could also be that McAfee holds one of the most tenuous, least certain positions in his profession. For the purpose of practice and perspective, McAfee leans toward the latter. "Kickers and punters get fired more than any other position," said McAfee, who will begin his third season whenever the NFL lockout ends and who was in town last week for a football camp and celebrity basketball game to benefit the family of the late Mountaineers receiver Chris Henry. "I'm one slump away from being jobless. I know that. I work at my craft. I punt three times a week and work out. I take it very seriously." Whenever the end arrives for McAfee, he's already started preparing in a predictably unique way. McAfee has built a massive following on Twitter, hosted his own online talk show and committed himself to regular oddball radio appearances in Indianapolis. It's all part of his plan to stay busy and successful after football. "I enjoy the entertianment thing," he said. "I enjoy the radio stuff. Twitter opened me up to pretty much every opportunity I could ever want, so I jump on it every chance I get." McAfee has more than 9,300 tweets and 20,900 followers on Twitter (@patmcafeeshow). A local radio station has him on regularly for a segment called "Ask Pat That." He turned out 15 episodes of "The Pat McAfee" show and drew almost 3,000 viewers online at Ustream.tv. He's even peddling T-shirts at www.thepatmcafeeshow.com that highlight the reason for his fame. For $15 shoppers can buy a blue or pink T-shirt with a graphic of McAfee in sunglasses and long hair flashing a thumbs-up to endorse a message that reads "I swam with Pat McAfee." McAfee, of course, was arrested in October for public intoxication after he went for a swim in a canal and then tried to get a ride home from a woman stopped at a red light after 5 a.m. "I messed up, but I'm not a bad person," the 24-year-old McAfee said. He was suspended for one game, which brought to life the idea his job isn't guaranteed, but also sent him on his way to being a surprisingly popular player. "That canal thing changed it for me," he said. "Absolutely. I was on TMZ and it was one of those things where everyone made me look like the worst human on the planet." McAfee knows who said what about him and said he took offense to ESPN radio hosts calling him a scumbag. "People were calling me the worst human being on the planet, but I think a lot of people in Indiana said, 'Listen, he didn't drive. He didn't do anything to hurt anybody,'" said McAfee, who remains WVU's leader in career points. "They kind of accepted me as one of their own and that's where I think things took off." McAfee had been a guest host for a Monday night radio show in Indianapolis called "Huddle up, Indy," before the arrest and he took a few weeks of after. He also went silent on Twitter and wanted to assure people he was taking his arrest and the embarrassment he caused himself, his family and his team seriously. Slowly, though, he was drawn back in by the support of others. "The people on Twitter really, really helped me," he said. McAfee ended his silence with some apologies and by acknowledging his mistake. He then got back to being himself, though with more eyes on him and what he said than ever before. "Before Twitter, individual players who weren't starting quarterbacks or wide receivers or big-time players never really had a voice," he said. "I'm the Indianapolis Colts punter. I'm Peyton Manning's punter. That's pretty much the bottom of the bottom. "Before the incident, I'd go out on the field and get booed because Peyton had just failed and the fans weren't happy. I'd run off the field and get booed on my way off. It's not a glorious position. When I got in trouble, people on Twitter were sending me messages: 'Hey, man, we've got your back.'" People spotted a personality. The radio offers arrived. Early in the offseason he came up with the idea to host his online talk show. He had a variety of guests, including a pro wrestler, a newspaper columnist and a list of Colts players, like tight end Dallas Clark, receiver Austin Collie and linebackers Gary Brackett and Clint Session. "It was just for fun," he said. "A lot of guys on the team don't have Twitter, but they're absolutely hilarious. I wanted to show Indiana we have guys who are funny and we have a good team. Basically everything I did was for the people off Indiana to understand our team had a bunch of good guys." McAfee has two years remaining on his contract with the Colts, who actually traded up in the seventh round to get their punter in the 2009 draft. He averaged 42 yards on 65 punts last season and had 21 inside the 20-yard line. Twenty-two of his punts forced a fair catch and only 25 were returned, a number just three full-time punters could beat. He averaged 44.3 yards per punt as a rookie in 2009 (37.8 net) and 21 of his 64 punts were inside the 20. "I'm trying to build a nice little following, but I'm in a very lucky position right now for a punter to be in," he said. "I've got fans and a city that like mine, I'm on a great team that likes me. I'm trying to make the most of it on and off the field and do my job and also try to get some business ventures so later on I can make those things happen."
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7/17/11
Jul 17, 2011 7:38:44 GMT -5
Post by elp525 on Jul 17, 2011 7:38:44 GMT -5
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Post by elp525 on Jul 17, 2011 7:37:17 GMT -5
07/16/2011 MetroNews Sports
Mountaineer quarterback Geno Smith is named to the annual Davey O'Brien Award watch list. The award goes each year to the nation's to collegiate quarterback.
Appearing on the Watch List is not a requirement for a player to be awarded The O'Brien. Quarterbacks from all 120 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) schools are eligible for the award until the field is narrowed to 16 semifinalists on Monday, Oct. 24. The Foundation and the Selection Committee will announce three finalists on Monday, Nov. 21. The 2011 Davey O'Brien winner will be announced on The Home Depot College Football Awards on Thursday, Dec. 8.
The 35th Annual Davey O'Brien Awards Dinner will be held Feb. 20, 2012 in Fort Worth, Texas.
2011 Davey O'Brien Watch List
Matt Barkley, USC, Pac-12
Tyler Bray, Tennessee, SEC
Alex Carder, Western Michigan, MAC
Zach Collaros, Cincinnati, Big East
Kirk Cousins, Michigan State, Big Ten
Dayne Crist, Notre Dame, Independent
Austin Davis, Southern Miss, C-USA
Dominique Davis, East Carolina, C-USA
Nick Foles, Arizona, Pac-12
Jeff Godfrey, UCF, C-USA
Robert Griffin III, Baylor, Big 12
Chandler Harnish, Northern Illinois, MAC
Jake Heaps, BYU, Independent
Landry Jones, Oklahoma, Big 12
Case Keenum, Houston, C-USA
G.J. Kinne, Tulsa, C-USA
Ryan Lindley, San Diego State, MWC
Andrew Luck, Stanford, Pac-12
EJ Manuel, Florida State, ACC
Taylor Martinez, Nebraska, Big Ten
Bryant Moniz, Hawaii, WAC
Kellen Moore, Boise State, MWC
Aaron Murray, Georgia, SEC
Danny O'Brien, Maryland, ACC
Kyle Padron, SMU, C-USA
Dan Persa, Northwestern, Big Ten
Chris Relf, Mississippi State, SEC
Sean Renfree, Duke, ACC
Corey Robinson, Troy, Sun Belt
Denard Robinson, Michigan, Big Ten
Nathan Scheelhaase, Illinois, Big Ten
Geno Smith, West Virginia, Big East
Tino Sunseri, Pittsburgh, Big East
Ryan Tannehill, Texas A&M, Big 12
Darron Thomas, Oregon, Pac-12
Brandon Weeden, Oklahoma State, Big 12
Russell Wilson, Wisconsin, Big Ten
Jordan Wynn, Utah, Pac-12
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Post by elp525 on Jul 17, 2011 7:33:35 GMT -5
July 16, 2011 By Mitch Vingle The Charleston Gazette
Oklahoma State wide receiver Justin Blackmon is this coming season's odds-on-favorite to win the Biletnikoff Award, which goes to college football's best receiver.
The reason is simple to understand: He won it last year. So, when that award's version of a (useless) "watch list" came out a week ago, Blackmon was the headliner.
However, the author of Blackmon's headlines of last season, ex-OSU offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen, is now in charge of West Virginia's program. And Mountaineer receiver Tavon Austin, one of 74 on the aforementioned "watch list," is hoping to get a charge out of that move.
This past week, Austin, a junior, was asked about his expectations overall and within Holgorsen's newest version of the "Air Raid" offense.
"I think I can come [into camp] and be a leader," he said. "I'm not a vocal guy, but I try to lead by example. When the team is down, I try to pick it up. I try to make a play.
"Individually, I just want to go out and be the best player I can be. Hopefully, I can win that award. Just go from there."
Austin couldn't remember the name of the award, which honors former Florida State and Oakland Raiders wide receiver Fred Biletnikoff. That's understandable, since ol' Fred's NFL career ended in 1978, way before the Mountaineer was born.
Anyway, it will be interest-
ing to see how Holgorsen's offensive scheme will impact Austin. All Blackmon did last season was grab 111 catches for 1,782 yards (an average of 148.5 yards) and lead the nation with 20 touchdowns in 12 games. He also was second with 9.3 catches per game. He was third nationally in scoring at 11 points per game.
"Coach Holgorsen got the ball to Blackmon and those boys a lot," Austin said. "They had a lot of catches. So hopefully I'll get a lot of catches and, with my athletic ability, hopefully I can climb the charts."
He undoubtedly meant the WVU charts. A year ago, West Virginia threw the football 382 times - the third-highest total in school history. That's expected to be shattered this season. And so too might the school pass receiving records.
David Saunders and Shawn Foreman share the WVU record with 77 receptions - Saunders hit the mark in 1998 and Foreman the season before. Jock Sanders led WVU receivers with 69 catches last season.
Now, Austin is taking over Sanders' role.
"The 'H' position is the wide receiver position they throw to a lot [in Holgorsen's offense]," Austin said. "And I'll get reverses and stuff like that. Hopefully, I'll be the go-to guy.
"I have to read the defenses more. Me and the 'Y' position. We have to do most of the reading of the defenses, sitting in holes, stuff like that."
Blackmon, by the way, caught 20 passes the year before Holgorsen installed his offense at Oklahoma State. It's the latest of a string of successes for the coach. When he was with Mike Leach at Texas Tech, Wes Welker caught 86 and 97 passes his last two seasons and Michael Crabtree caught 134 as a redshirt freshman.
Austin caught 58 passes last season for 787 yards. Compare that to Blackmon and consider the possibilities.
"In the beginning, in the spring, Coach Holgorsen told me it was going to be hard," Austin said of the setup. "I wasn't saying much about it. Then, as camp started going along, I was seeing the ball way more. So now I feel real comfortable.
"When first got here, I'd never played a down at receiver in my life. Now, I feel more comfortable. Stedman [Bailey] and Bradley [Starks] and those guys helped me with the position. Now I feel way more comfortable."
Indeed, the offense seems to be all about Tavon Austin.
"I hope," he said. "And hopefully I'll be a big part of it. I hope I get 100 catches this year."
And subsequently learn more about Fred Biletnikoff.
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Post by elp525 on Jul 16, 2011 7:08:12 GMT -5
50 bottles of beer on the wall 50 bottles of beer.. Take one down pass it around, 49 bottles of beer on the wall.
Today's beer is ice cold Budweiser. Have a cold one or two Mountaineer fans!
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7/13/11
Jul 16, 2011 7:01:42 GMT -5
Post by elp525 on Jul 16, 2011 7:01:42 GMT -5
Now I know why I work and never get to see a dime of it.
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7/12/11
Jul 16, 2011 6:59:42 GMT -5
Post by elp525 on Jul 16, 2011 6:59:42 GMT -5
Pimps diversify their ladies in this tough economy.
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7/10/11
Jul 16, 2011 6:56:26 GMT -5
Post by elp525 on Jul 16, 2011 6:56:26 GMT -5
I keep getting stuck in the mud and can't figure it out. (sPitt student owner)
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7/16/11
Jul 16, 2011 6:51:53 GMT -5
Post by elp525 on Jul 16, 2011 6:51:53 GMT -5
New signs have been installed at sPitts stadium.
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7/16/11
Jul 16, 2011 6:51:06 GMT -5
Post by elp525 on Jul 16, 2011 6:51:06 GMT -5
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Post by elp525 on Jul 16, 2011 6:47:35 GMT -5
July 15, 2011
EDITOR'S NOTE: This is a series of previews on West Virginia football opponents.
Date with WVU: Saturday, Oct. 8, time TBA
Site: Mountaineer Field (60,000, FieldTurf), Morgantown
Coach: Paul Pasqualoni (1st year, 0-0; 20th year overall, 141-76-1)
Checking them out
No one is picking Connecticut to win the Big East again this season, not with Big East coach of the year Randy Edsall gone to Maryland, Big East offensive player of the year Jordan Todman gone to the NFL and Big East tackles leader Lawrence Wilson graduated.
Then again, no one picked the Huskies to do much of anything a year ago, either. And for a while they didn't, starting the season 3-4 with awful losses to Michigan and Temple and a whitewashing at Louisville. Somehow, though, this team that was 2-4 on the road managed to beat WVU, Pitt and South Florida by a hair and earn a Fiesta Bowl berth, where it was pummeled by an Oklahoma team that had lost five of its previous seven bowl games.
All of which probably says more about the sorry state of the Big East in 2010 than anything else. So it will be interesting to see how Paul Pasqualoni fares with a team that, despite those obvious personnel losses listed above, still has the makings of a typical UConn team - strong on defense and middling on offense.
And the 2011 Huskies epitomize that stereotype. There is plenty to be excited about on defense and even more to be concerned with on offense.
First, the defense. That's where three superb linebackers were lost, but there is so much talent on the front and back ends that it may not matter. Kendall Reyes, a 6-4, 298-pound senior tackle, is NFL caliber now, junior end Jesse Joseph had 8.5 sacks, 292-pound tackle Twyon Martin is a fourth-year starter and there are eight lettermen on the line, making this perhaps the deepest position on any team in the league. A secondary that had more interceptions (20) than all but seven teams in the country has all four starters back, led by cornerback Blidi Wreh-Wilson, who returned two picks for touchdowns. And even at linebacker there's experience with junior Sio Moore.
On the other side, well, this could be the same type of offense the Huskies have struggled with for years - no standout quarterback and a running game that has to move the ball when everyone knows the run is coming. That's going to be harder without Todman, but there are pieces with which to work. The line has three starters back, including 6-5, 333-pound left tackle Mike Ryan, but not only did UConn lose Todman, two of his backups transferred when Edsall left. The new feature back could be D.J. Shoemate, a transfer who was originally at USC.
Five of the top six receivers are back this season, but the problem is no one has stepped up at quarterback. The favorite is 6-3, 210-pound sophomore Michael Box, who started one game last year before suffering a concussion. But three others competed for the job in spring and no one came out a clear leader.
All-conference candidates
Offense: C Ben Bojicic, WR Kamar Jorden
Defense: LB Dwayne Woods
Special teams: PR Eugene Cooper
Notes
UConn should have little trouble on special teams. Dave Teggart is back to kick after making 25-of-31 field goal attempts, including virtually every clutch kick needed. And the Huskies returned three kickoffs for touchdowns last season, two of them by Nick Williams, who led the nation averaging 35.3 yards per return ... Connecticut native Pasqualoni, 61, was the head coach at Division II Western Connecticut in the 1980s. That was before he made a name for himself as the coach at Syracuse.
2011 schedule
Date Opponent 2010
Sept. 1 Fordham (Thur.) DNP
Sept. 10 at Vanderbilt W, 40-21
Sept. 16 Iowa State (Fri.) DNP
Sept. 24 at Buffalo W, 45-21
Oct. 1 Western Michigan DNP
Oct. 8 at West Virginia* W, 16-13 (ot)
Oct. 15 South Florida* W, 19-16
Oct. 26 at Pitt* (Wed.) W, 30-28
Nov. 5 Syracuse* W, 23-6
Nov. 19 Louisville* L, 0-26
Nov. 26 Rutgers* L, 24-27
Dec. 3 at Cincinnati* W, 38-17
*Big East Conference games
2010 record: 8-5 overall, 5-2 Big East (tied for first; lost 20-48 to Oklahoma in Fiesta Bowl)
Dropped: Michigan (L, 10-30), Texas Southern (W, 62-3), at Temple (L, 16-30)
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