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West Virginia tries to rebound at Syracuse

Oct 6, 2007 - 10:46 AM No. 13 West Virginia (4-1) at Syracuse (1-4) 12:00 pm EDT

SYRACUSE, New York (Ticker) -- For a second straight year, West Virginia and coach Rich Rodriguez have to rebound from an unexpected loss to South Florida.

The 13th-ranked Mountaineers look to bounce back Saturday when they visit Syracuse in a Big East Conference matchup.

Last Friday, then-No. 5 West Virginia came up short at South Florida, 21-13, denying Rodriguez his 100th career coaching victory.

Star tailback Steve Slaton mustered just 54 yards on 13 carries as he again was stymied by the Bulls, while quarterback Pat White threw for 100 yards with an interception before exiting the game late in the second quarter with a deep thigh bruise.

White's backup, Jarrett Brown, threw for 149 yards and a TD with two interceptions for West Virginia (4-1, 0-1 Big East), which collected 437 yards but committed six turnovers.

Syracuse (1-4, 1-0) produced one of the biggest upsets of the season with a 38-35 triumph at Louisville two weeks ago, but the Orange reverted to their losing ways with a 17-14 setback at Miami of Ohio last Saturday.

Andrew Robinson threw for 236 yards and two TDS for the Orange, who were outgained on the ground, 286-66.

West Virginia has won the last five meetings after dropping six of the previous seven. Last year, the Mountaineers posted a 41-17 triumph.

The winner receives the Ben Schwartzwaler Trophy, named after Syracuse's all-time winningest coach and a former West Virginia center.