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Syracuse posts first back-to-back wins in nearly two years

Sep 24, 2006 - 3:53 AM SYRACUSE, New York (Ticker) -- The last two years, wins have been hard to come by for Syracuse. Until Saturday, consecutive victories have been practically unheard of.

Perry Patterson threw two touchdown passes and Curtis Brinkley rushed for a score as the Orange recorded a comfortable 34-14 triumph against Miami of Ohio.

Taj Smith and J.J. Nesheiwat each caught TD passes for Syracuse (2-2), which was coming off last week's 31-21 victory at Illinois that snapped a school-record 11-game losing streak. The Orange had not won consecutive games since October 30-November 6, 2004.

Patterson completed 14-of-20 passes for 163 yards. He found Smith for a 52-yard scoring strike to give Syracuse a 10-0 lead midway through the first quarter and hooked up with Nesheiwat early in the fourth for a 24-7 advantage.

Brinkley opened the scoring with a one-yard TD plunge less than five minutes into the contest. He finished with 108 yards on 15 carries.

Mike Kokal and Daniel Raudabaugh both saw time under center for the RedHawks, combining to go 25-of-39 for 241 yards with two touchdowns and an interception.

Ryne Robinson had touchdown catches of nine and three yards for Miami (0-4), which finished with just 31 yards on 29 carries.