Sports

’Cuse in control with big Pinstripe victory over ex-rival West Virginia

The sign in left field at snow-covered Yankee Stadium read: “Syracuse: New York’s College Team.” For at least one day, that was true. The Orange routed longtime-rival West Virginia yesterday, 38-14, winning their second Pinstripe Bowl in three years and rolling to victory in their final game as a member of the beleaguered Big East Conference.

Smothering defense and MVP Prince-Tyson Gulley’s running led the Orange (8-5) to an easy win before 39,098 — a victory that marked the end of one of Eastern football’s oldest rivalries and underscored what realignment and the never-ending chase for TV money has done to a sport that once valued history and tradition.

These teams first played in 1945, and had met every year since 1955. They were founding members of Big East football, but West Virginia left for the Big 12 this season with Syracuse heading to the ACC next season. Gulley’s career-high 264 total yards and three touchdowns ensured the Orange will make their exit on a winning note.

“It’s special. Winning the second one, it’s become a special place for all of us,’’ said Syracuse coach Doug Marrone, a Bronx native who rebuilt this once-moribund program into one that physically dominated the Mountaineers. “People wanna make things about the field, but it’s football. … I challenged the defense, and [they] came up big.

“[Running] was part of our game that was able to take over and be very successful for us. … When you get into environments or elements, you can stick to either running or throwing. Whatever we had to do to win, we were going to do.’’

After a 2-4 start this season, the Orange won six of their last seven. Yesterday, Orange quarterback Ryan Nassib threw for just 134 yards and was intercepted, but he had two TD passes. Syracuse rushed for 369 yards, with Jerome Smith getting 157 yards and Gulley running for 208 while catching five passes for 56 more.

“I just want to thank the coaches for believing in me; keep on believing in me,’’ said Gulley. “Our linemen came out and played; they opened up a lot of holes. [Playing in snow] was definitely fun. … In Pee-Wees, I played in something like this, but not in high school or college.’’

Syracuse made West Virginia (7-6) look like a Pee Wee team at times, sacking Geno Smith four times and holding the Mountaineers’ Top 10 offense, which came in averaging 518.5 yards, to 285 yards and 0-for-14 on third- and fourth-down conversions.

“You want to win them all. I wanted to win this one, especially for all of the seniors that’ve been battling with me for four years. But unfortunately we didn’t get the job done,’’ said Smith, the Mountaineers’ senior quarterback and a projected first-round pick, who was 16-of-24 for 197 yards but was tackled in the end zone for a safety, penalized in the end zone for a second safety, and lost a fumble. “[The snow] had zero effect on my game. There were situations we didn’t capitalize as an offense.’’

Situations such as when Syracuse was clinging to a 12-7 halftime lead, but took the second-half kickoff and marched for a score when Nassib’s pass was deflected and caught by Beckett Wales for a 10-yard TD.

After Syracuse forced Smith into a fumble, Gulley bounced outside for a 67-yard TD that put the Orange ahead 26-7. Smith found Stedman Bailey for score, but Gulley took a swing pass for a 10-yard TD — to push the lead back to 33-14.

Brandon Sharpe managed to trip Smith in the end zone and he was signaled for intentional grounding for a safety and a 35-14 Syracuse cushion with 1:08 left in the third. A field goal accounted for the final margin.