PISCATAWAY — When Syracuse kicker Ross Krautman’s last-minute, game-winning field goal split the uprights, it didn’t just hand the Orange a 13-10 come-from-behind win at Rutgers. It handed Syracuse a leg up in their battle for New York, and may have ended the Scarlet Knights’ dreams of a sixth straight bowl.
Rutgers (4-5, 1-3 Big East) has lost three straight since the Oct. 16 spinal cord injury that left Eric LeGrand paralyzed. After melting down the next weekend in Pittsburgh, the Scarlet Knight fell by a point at South Florida; and yesterday it was by three in front of 49,911 to Syracuse (7-3, 4-2), their oldest and most bitter rival.
“I’d be naive not to think [grieving] doesn’t have some factor,” said Rutgers coach Greg Schiano. “But as I’ve said to the players, life is messy, and you don’t have a choice, men. You can either keep living or you can feel sorry for yourself. We’ve got to keep living, keep getting better. Tough losses, all the things that have gone on this year, that’s life — figure a way to get through it and overcome it.”
Schiano saw a car accident leave defensive back Dondre Asberry with head injuries and a fractured spine back in 2004, with a solid 4-2 start proceeding to close with five straight losses. Yesterday, it was a series of curious decisions by offensive co-coordinator and play-caller Kirk Ciarrocca that left the ‘Cuse celebrating.
With the score knotted at 10-all midway through the fourth quarter, RU drove for a first-and-10 on the ‘Cuse 17. But instead of going to Wildcat quarternack Jeremy Deering — who had 29 carries for 166 yards and a TD in relief of injured Mohamed Sanu — RU called a sweep for running back Kordell Young, who came into the day having had just four carries this year and a combined three surgeries on both knees.
He fumbled for a loss of eight, and two plays later quarterback Tom Savage — inserted at halftime for ineffective Chas Dodd — took an eight-yard sack by linebacker Derrell Smith to the 27. San San Tee missed a 45-yard kick with 3:51 left, and Syracuse drove 66 yards in 11 plays. Krautman, a freshman from Franklin Lakes who starred at Ramapo, kicked the 24-yard game-winner with 1:06 left.
“It’s a very big win, to come down here and beat Rutgers on the road,” Smith said. “A lot of screaming and yelling, and a lot of arms up in the air.”
There was a representative from the Champs Sports Bowl on hand. Only Syracuse can dream of Orlando while RU must win two of its last three or face the nightmare of its first bowl-less winter since that 2004 collapse. Doug Marrone has the ‘Cuse bowl-eligible for the first time since that same year.
“That felt great,” said nose tackle Anthony Perkins. “It’s a feeling you can’t explain, because of all the stuff the senior class has been through, all the talk we’re not that good, we’re this and that, to finally have a bowl game, that’s a feeling that cannot be reproduced.”
Delone Carter ran for 88 yards, and Antwon Bailey, who had runs of 14 and 15 yards on the game-winning drive.
Savage, who’d lost his starting job to Dodd due to injury, was 6-of-12 for 76 yards and reaffirmed his determination to win at RU.