This weekend is a new experience for many players on the Syracuse football team.

Some of them will be on their longest flight. Some of them will travel to the West Coast for the first time. And all will experience 70,000-plus people cheering wildly against them at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the first time.

That last experience is one that many on Syracuse are craving.

‘The thing I like about playing on the road is it’s 60 guys against a whole town, a whole stadium,’ quarterback Ryan Nassib said. ‘It’s just fun. When you’re in a situation like that, you get pushed into a corner, all you can do is fight your way out.’

SU will go to battle against Southern California at 8 p.m. Saturday in the Coliseum, the first time the schools have met since 1990. Although both teams enter with 2-0 records, Syracuse is a 17-point underdog. The Orange hasn’t won on the West Coast since 1967 and has never defeated USC, but SU has a lot of confidence.

The Orange’s undefeated start to this year and 5-1 away record last year provide SU with reason to be fearless.

‘I love (being) the underdog because it’s a shock when we have pulled out some good wins versus some good teams,’ linebackers coach Dan Conley said. ‘I believe that we’re going into this game with the same attitude.’

If SU is going to pull off another road upset, it’s going to have to contain the Trojans’ passing attack, led by star quarterback Matt Barkley and wide receiver Robert Woods.

Cornerback Keon Lyn has the job of covering Woods, who is tied for the lead in the country with 25 catches in just two games. The sophomore cornerback may have the toughest matchup for the Orange, but he is looking forward to the challenge.

Lyn said he will follow Woods all over the field unless he moves into the slot. And he won’t have help from the rest of the secondary.

Just straight up, bump-and-run man coverage.

‘It’s a great opportunity,’ Lyn said. ‘The coaches have trust in a young corner like me. It’s a wonderful thing. We’re just looking to do something different with me attacking Robert Woods.’

If Lyn’s physical coverage can limit Woods, it could go a long way toward quieting the USC faithful. And that could be big, as playing at the Coliseum poses a much bigger obstacle for the Orange than any of the stadiums it will travel to in Big East play. South Florida has the biggest stadium in the conference, and it still has just under 28,000 fewer seats than USC’s. And last year SU left Raymond James Stadium with a win.

That translates to much more noise from the Trojan faithful, but SU has prepared for that all week. Head coach Doug Marrone has blasted the USC fight song through speakers throughout offensive practices this week.

Wide receiver Alec Lemon said the song has been played so much he can probably recite the entire song. And both he and Nassib said they were tired of hearing it.

‘Apparently, they play that fight song a lot, so I guess we’re getting ready for it,’ Nassib said. ‘To tell you the truth, I’m sick of it already.’

With this weekend’s obstacles ranging from USC’s potentially potent offense to the hordes of screaming Trojan fans, Syracuse’s task to come home with a win seems daunting.

But SU has embraced the road underdog status since most of the current players arrived. Last year’s five road wins included some surprises as the Orange pulled off upsets at West Virginia and South Florida.

There may be plenty of firsts for SU’s players when they travel to USC this weekend. But they plan on ending this road trip with another upset victory.

Only this time, it would be in front of 70,000-plus fans.

‘We’re the underdogs,’ Lyn said. ‘People are looking for USC to put up big numbers on us. I love being the underdog. We’re just looking to shock the world.’

zjbrown@syr.edu

 

Published on September 14, 2011 at 12:00 pm