This time, the Syracuse offense clicked from the start. The Orange rolled down the field on its first drive, mixing four rushes and four passing plays to score the game’s first touchdown.

“We were ready to go. We’ve had two weeks to prepare for this and we were just ready to go,” quarterback Ryan Nassib said. “We were anxious to get out there and start playing.”

The eight-play, 70-yard drive was an impressive start as Nassib went 4-for-4 for 51 yards, and running back Adonis Ameen-Moore punched it across the goal line from 1 yard out. It was a stark contrast to SU’s first four games when it struggled to find its rhythm in the first half. The uncharacteristic fast start proved to be enough offense for SU in its 14-13 victory over Pittsburgh on Friday night, thanks to a stellar performance by the defense.

Running back Jerome Smith took two straight carries 14 yards to get the offense going on the drive. Smith nodded his head as he walked confidently back to the huddle after his second carry, feeding off the energy generated by a three-and-out forced by the defense to open the game.

Then Nassib went to work, moving SU to the 18 yard line with three completions. Three plays later, Ameen-Moore capped it with his first career touchdown.

“I think when you come off a bye week, you want to go out early and have some success,” SU head coach Doug Marrone said. “Now, we didn’t maintain it during that game offensively. But to come out early and do that, I would have expected more.”

But as Marrone said, the SU offense sputtered for the remainder of the game. The team marched inside the 10 in the second quarter, but ended in disappointment when Nassib’s pass for Marcus Sales in the end zone was picked off.

Nassib said the team was too hyped up throughout the game and never found its focus. And Marrone said the unit is still searching for consistency.

“You work on a bye week, you work on those things, you get the ball, you do a nice job and then bam, you want to get it again and keep going,” Marrone said. “We have a lot of work to do.”

Syracuse ends Pittsburgh’s streak of dominance

Justin Pugh and the rest of the Syracuse seniors had yet to defeat Pittsburgh in their careers heading into Friday night’s matchup. They were part of a seven-game losing streak to the Panthers dating back to 2005.

The Orange ended that streak with its victory over Pitt in the team’s Big East opener at the Carrier Dome.

“It’s amazing. I looked back. We haven’t beaten them in eight years,” Pugh said. “So to go out there and beat that team and win it in like, a gritty way that we did, we kind of put the game on the offense’s hands and we feel good to come out and get that win.”

The win also ended a five-game losing streak in the Big East. It was a much-needed victory for a team that appeared to be on its way to another losing season after a 1-3 start.

Nassib said he hadn’t thought about the building pressure on the team to earn its first conference and Football Bowl Subdivision win since it defeated West Virginia on a Friday night last October.

His focus was on the Panthers.

“The only thing I wanted to do was come in today and beat Pitt,” Nassib said. “That was one of my personal goals this year and I’m glad I achieved it.”

Broyld watches from the sidelines

After seeing time in each of Syracuse’s first four games, freshman running back Ashton Broyld wasn’t in the team’s plans on Friday night.

“Our philosophy is that we play the best players that we feel give us the best chance to win,” Marrone said. “And that’s not just only Ashton Broyld, that’s a lot of other players on this team too.”

The freshman remained on the sidelines for the duration of the Orange’s victory over Pittsburgh. Though he arrived as a talented playmaker after a year at Milford Academy, Broyld is still trying to carve out his role with SU in his first season.

He was used as a receiver against Northwestern, making four catches for 28 yards. Against Stony Brook, he formed part of an efficient three-player rushing attack and finished with 61 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. But Broyld was used sparingly against Minnesota and lost a fumble in the red zone.

Published on October 7, 2012 at 11:57 pm

Contact Ryne: rjgery@syr.edu