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The Daily OrangeFB | BULLDOZED: USF's Grothe torches Orange in blowout loss
By Jared Diamond
Posted: 10/20/08, 4:15 AM EST Section: Sports
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"Grothe's Grothe, man," said Robinson, Syracuse's head coach. "He's a good football player."
Talk about an understatement.
South Florida's junior quarterback tore through the Orange's beleaguered defense in No. 19 South Florida's 45-13 victory in front of 51,384 fans here at Raymond James Stadium Saturday. The Bulls' quarterback scored four touchdowns - three through the air, one on the ground - and finished the game 19-of-26 for 248 yards. He also led USF with 72 rushing yards on 10 carries.
Syracuse's defense, coming off its strongest outing of the season against West Virginia, struggled throughout the game and had no answer for Grothe, who was stellar from the opening drive until he exited with about seven minutes left in the fourth quarter. South Florida (6-1, 1-1 Big East) spread the field and let its best player find open receivers downfield or tuck it under and scramble.
Even when the Orange (1-6, 0-3 Big East) managed to hold containment and maintain coverage, Grothe found a way to make a play with his legs or draw the defense forward before lobbing it over the linebackers' heads.
"He's tricky because when he gets out of the pocket, he can throw, too, which is tough to defend," SU linebacker Jake Flaherty said. "So you're coming up sometimes out of your coverage, and then he can hit stuff behind you, so you have to be aware of that, too."
The offensive onslaught started right away. On South Florida's first drive after a Syracuse punt, Grothe drove his team down the field, gaining 62 yards on seven plays before Ben Williams plowed into the endzone from a yard out.
In the first half alone, Grothe went 9-of-11 for 147 yards and a touchdown strike.
Syracuse had its opportunities, though, playing with South Florida for much of the first half. In fact, SU out-gained the Bulls, 221-212, in the game's first 30 minutes. Tailback Curtis Brinkley rushed for 106 yards and a touchdown in the half, and SU trailed by only eight points at halftime.
But everything fell apart after the break. The Orange did not earn another first down the rest of the way, gaining nine yards in the second half. USF exploded for another 24 points and controlled the ball for 23:20 in the second half, making Saturday the second consecutive contest Syracuse failed to score after the intermission. The Orange has one touchdown in almost its last 10 quarters, dating back to early in the second half against Pittsburgh Sept. 27.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
JupiterBull
posted 10/20/08 @ 12:42 PM EST
Syracuse played better than the score indicates. Your tailback is very good, so we keyed on him the 2nd half and tried to make Dantley beat us...which he couldn't. (Continued…)
John Moran
posted 10/21/08 @ 12:43 PM EST
www.giantsfree.com tells you the story will never change, so who needs change
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