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Mauk helps Cincinnati cap regular season with win at Syracuse

Nov 25, 2007 - 6:04 AM SYRACUSE, New York (Ticker) -- Ben Mauk helped put the finishing touches to one of Cincinnati's best regular seasons in over 50 years.

Mauk completed 29-of-42 passes for a career-high 431 yards and four touchdowns - while running for a fifth - as the 24th-ranked Bearcats posted a 52-31 Big East Conference victory over Syracuse on Saturday.

"Ben Mauk was just outstanding, accounting for five touchdowns, and we needed every one of them," Cincinnati coach Brian Kelly. "He was the difference today because Syracuse gave us some problems."

With the win, the Bearcats (9-3, 4-3 Big East) finished with at least nine victories for the first time since 1953 and all but assured themselves of finishing the season with a top-25 ranking for the first time in school history.

"This is a great win for the program, and we want to keep it on the rise," Mauk said. "The defense has been our biggest asset this year, so tonight we knew we had to score. We were just trying to get the win and to get the big bowl game."

Cincinnati's season point total of 441 also broke the school record, as the Bearcats will be headed to a bowl game for the second consecutive season.

Marcus Barnett had 11 receptions for 127 yards and three touchdowns for the Bearcats, who also recorded 11 sacks on defense.

"I felt we matched up well on the front line on defense and it was pretty evident that there was not going to be much of a running game that we had to account for, so we could line up and go after the quarterback," Kelly said.

The Bearcats also held Syracuse to minus-15 yards on the ground, as Mauk marched the offense down the field early and often.

Cincinnati immediately jumped on the Orange when Mauk hit Barnett for a 33-yard touchdown just 1:33 into the game. Cincinnati also scored on its second possession when Bradley Glatthaar plowed in for a two-yard score for a 14-0 lead with 10:36 left in the first quarter.

After Syracuse cut the Bearcats' lead to 14-10, Mauk answered with two consecutive touchdown passes to Barnett and Earnest Jackson, respectively, before Mike Williams hauled in an 11-yard touchdown from Andrew Robinson, cutting Cincinnati's lead to 28-17 at the half.

Robinson threw a 78-yard touchdown pass to Taj Smith on the first play of the second half as the teams traded touchdowns in the third quarter.

"With all of our seniors going out, it's just tough because for awhile there it looked like we were going to get something going and it slipped away from us late in the third quarter and early fourth quarter," Syracuse coach Greg Robinson said. "You could feel that we just couldn't get back on it. I was proud of the team. I thought they competed."

Angelo Craig's 16-yard fumble return after a sack of Robinson gave the Bearcats a 42-31 lead with 6:13 left in the third.

"The sack and the fumble we recovered for a touchdown was a big momentum thing," Kelly said. "But we were really starting to settle down in the third quarter."

Robinson also finished with a career high, throwing for 419 yards on 29-of-47 passing for Syracuse (2-10, 1-6), which finished the season with 10 losses for the second time in three years.

Williams had nine catches for 160 yards and a touchdown, which marked the ninth straight game with a score, breaking the school record.

"This was something to build on for the future," Williams said. "I mean, we scored 31 points as an offense. That's good, we're usually scoring six points, 10 points a game."