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Connecticut cruises past Syracuse

Nov 17, 2007 - 10:09 PM EAST HARTFORD, Connecticut (Ticker) -- Connecticut continues to hold down first place in the Big East Conference.

Donald Brown scored a touchdown and rushed for 99 yards as No. 25 UConn easily disposed of lowly Syracuse, 30-7, on Saturday.

Quarterback Tyler Lorenzen added a touchdown pass for the Huskies (9-2, 5-1 Big East). UConn holds a one-game lead in the conference over West Virginia (8-1, 3-1), which plays at Cincinnati later Saturday.

"Who would have ever thought that after 11 games, being 9-2, that this team would be playing for the right for the Big East championship next week?" said UConn coach Randy Edsall, referring to his team's final game on November 24 against West Virginia. "Probably nobody in America ever thought that except for the guys in that locker room."

Coming off last weekend's disappointing 27-3 loss at Cincinnati, the Huskies wasted no time opening up a lead on the Orange (2-9, 1-5 Big East).

Just over five minutes into the game, Lorenzen and wide receiver Terence Jeffers hooked up for a 63-yard touchdown.

Lorenzen finished 16-of-24 for 213 yards and did not throw an interception. The 6-5 junior has thrown 12 touchdowns this season while being intercepted just five times.

A fumble by Syracuse quarterback Andrew Robinson later in the quarter was recovered by defensive tackle Rob Lunn at the Orange 35. Eight plays later, running back Andre Dixon scored from a yard out to give Connecticut a 14-0 cushion.

The rout was on midway through the second quarter as Brown capped a seven-play, 77-yard drive with a 21-yard touchdown run.

Dixon, who finished with 63 yards on the ground, and Brown have combined for 1,444 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns this season for the Huskies, who joined West Virginia (1993) as the only Big East team to go 7-0 at home in a single season.

"They were running the ball and we were there, but leaking yardage," Syracuse defensive end Jameel McClain said. "They have two good running backs that they can rotate in, so I guess their running game did wear us down a little bit."

Robinson had a forgettable return to the Syracuse lineup after missing last week's loss to South Florida due to a rib injury.

In addition to losing a fumble, the sophomore finished 8-of-21 for 59 yards and had a pass intercepted in the end zone during the third quarter.

"(Andrew Robinson) was forcing it in, trying to make something happen," Syracuse coach Greg Robinson said. "It was unfortunate ... that was a disappointing play. Big time. There was still a good amount of time left ... just a shame to get down there like that and then throw that ball away."

The interception ended up being Andrew Robinson's last pass of the day. Cameron Dantley - son of former NBA player Adrian Dantley - stepped in to play the fourth quarter.

Dantley didn't fare much better, as his third pass was intercepted by UConn senior linebacker Danny Lansanah and returned 49 yards for a touchdown.

"I'll be truthful with you. I thought we'd be a better football team this year, but I didn't know where it was going to go," Lansanah said. "I didn't know how many wins we would get or where we would be.

"But I've been around long enough I've been on teams as a player and as a coach where I don't know if you call it magical, chemistry, camaraderie, people are just going to do things you never expected them to do."