Some reasons for Walter Reyes’s 241-yard, four-touchdown performance Saturday stand out. The Syracuse football team’s offensive line’s dominance. Central Florida’s fatigue. Reyes’s own speed and power.

One cause, though, could be overlooked: Damien Rhodes’s ankle.

Because of that injured ankle, which the sophomore running back hurt in preseason, Rhodes didn’t play a down in SU’s 38-14 win over UCF, meaning Reyes received a full compliment of 31 carries.

Rhodes didn’t practice last week until Wednesday, when Syracuse practices only non-contact drills. In SU’s previous game against Louisville, a 30-20 loss, Rhodes rushed for 71 yards on 11 carries before pulling himself out of the game.

Saturday, Rhodes performed nicely in his role as a cheerleader. He waved a white towel over his head when Reyes scored his final, 58-yard touchdown and jogged more than 50 yards to the end zone to congratulate his teammate.

‘If Damien had to go in the game, he could have gone in the game,’ SU head coach Paul Pasqualoni said. ‘The objective today, and all week, was to rest Damien. He got some work and some plays in during the week, but we thought that we would go with Walter (Reyes) and Timmy (Washington).’

Because Rhodes did not play, he preserved the chance of to receive a redshirt for this year. If a player plays in one-fourth of his team’s games, he can’t redshirt. Rhodes has played in two games, and SU has 12 games on its schedule.

Be right back

Johnnie Morant, SU’s leading receiver this season, left the game because of an injured right ankle at the end of third quarter and did not return.

Morant caught a quick swing pass from quarterback R.J. Anderson and gained 10 yards after a series of jukes. After he was tackled, Morant limped off the field.

The injury didn’t appear too serious, and Pasqualoni seems confident in a swift Morant return.

‘Johnnie Morant might be all right,’ Pasqualoni said. ‘We think he’s got a twisted ankle. We’re going to try to get him ready for Monday.’

Morant caught four passes for 40 yards Saturday, by far his lowest output this year. Before Saturday, he averaged 151 yards and had scored two touchdowns.

A new home

Sophomore wide receiver Rashard Williams, who left the team because of homesickness at the end of preseason, returned to the Orangemen this Tuesday and made his 2003 debut Saturday.

Williams caught two passes – the first two of his career – for 22 yards. His first grab, an 18-yarder over the middle, came on a crucial third-and-13 and was the pivotal play in SU’s second touchdown drive.

‘I was tired because I hadn’t run for a while,’ said the 5-foot-7 Williams, whose teammates affectionately call him Shorty. ‘It feels real good to be playing with the kids I came in with. I just had to go home and think about a couple things.’

Special interest

Many fans use special teams to take a break from the game. Saturday, that would have been a bad idea.

A three-and-out on SU’s first possession brought punter Brendan Carney onto the field. After UCF receiver Tavaris Capers fielded his punt, long snapper Dave DeAmato stripped him off the ball. SU’s Darryl Kennedy recovered at the UCF 42-yard line. Reyes would score four plays later.

Later in the first quarter, UCF’s Ryan Beal blocked Carney’s second punt, allowing UCF to take over at midfield. But UCF failed to take advantage and punted four plays later. The blocked punt was SU’s first since it played Temple in 2000.

At the end of the second half, the Golden Knights lined up for a 31-yard field goal. But holder Al Peterson, a wide receiver, took the snap and ran 11 yards for a first down. Three plays later, Ryan Schneider hit fullback Dee Brown in the flat for a touchdown, making the score 14-7 at halftime.

Something different

Syracuse debuted a new option run Saturday. Anderson and Reyes started running an option one way, then reversed fields and optioned around the other corner.

Syracuse ran the play three times, twice with success. The first attempt, Anderson faked a pitch and picked up 18 yards. A holding penalty negated the second try, and on the third, Anderson pitched to Reyes for 33 yards.

‘They schemed with a counter and a reverse option,’ UCF head coach Mike Kruczek said. ‘It was a clever play.’

‘That’s the misdirection play,’ Reyes said. ‘If it works – you can see – it can make big chunks of yards.’

This and that

Thomas Whitfield started in place of Terrell Lemon at cornerback. Lemon, who earned the starting spot with strong spring and preseason practices, saw his role lessened but still platooned with Whitfield. … Quarterback Perry Patterson and running back Tim Washington, a pair of redshirt freshmen, made their career debuts at the end of Saturday’s game. Quarterback Xzavier Gaines also appeared in mop-up duty and ran for 16 yards. … Marcus Clayton, a freshman who’s returned punts all season, made his kick-returning debut alongside Morant on Saturday. Clayton returned one kickoff for 11 yards. … Jamel Riddle did not play because he is still waiting to resolve academic issues. The situation is expected to be resolved this week. … Reyes on the role SU’s offensive line played in his memorable day: ‘My 81-year-old grandmother could run with them blocking.’

Published on September 21, 2003 at 12:00 pm