TAMPA, Fla. – Greg Robinson didn’t try to pinpoint or explain why Matt Grothe was so dominant against Syracuse. Frankly, he didn’t have to.

‘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 right with South Florida for much of the first half. In fact, SU had out-gained the Bulls, 221-212, in the game’s first 30 minutes. Tailback Curtis Brinkley had already rushed for 106 yards and a touchdown and SU trailed by just eight points.

But everything fell apart after halftime. 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. Syracuse has one touchdown in its last 10 quarters.

As SU’s defense stayed on the field, Grothe and co. grew stronger. When it finally looked like the Orange would make a stop, USF made a play, finishing the game 5-of-9 on third-down conversions.

‘There were a couple of third situations that, doggonnit, we needed to convert,’ Robinson said. ‘Last week we converted. I give Grothe credit. A couple of them were him, making throws and making a couple of runs that were tough on us.’

As expected, Syracuse did not return to the 4-2-5 nickel hybrid package that held the powerful West Virginia offense to just 17 points last week, instead using its usual 4-3 base defense. Kevyn Scott, who is still listed as a safety, took a considerable number of snaps at left cornerback opposite Nico Scott, with Mike Holmes moving to safety. For the second straight game, senior Bruce Williams was not a primary contributor.

During the week, SU co-defensive coordinator Derrick Jackson said the alternative formation was so effective against the Mountaineers because it put Syracuse’s fastest players against WVU’s speedy, run-first attack. South Florida, conversely, runs a more balanced offense.

Indeed, the Bulls gained 248 yards with the pass and 239 with the run for a total of 487.

Any chance Syracuse had to steal a victory disappeared midway through the third quarter when quarterback Cameron Dantley fumbled and the Bulls’ Craig Marshall picked the ball up and rumbled to the one-yard line. On the very next play, Grothe found A.J. Love for a touchdown.

Upset watch, over.

‘I thought we were in it for a while,’ SU nose tackle Arthur Jones said. ‘We’re all flying around, trying to take the positive. But they’re a good football team, obviously the better football team and they came out on top.’

jediamon@syr.edu

Published on October 17, 2008 at 12:00 pm