Rushing into a new era at the Carrier Dome

Sporting News, The, Oct 10, 1994 by Ivan Maisel

Syracuse brought back power football to the Hill and it looked as much at home as Hendricks Chapel and the chilly rain. The school that produced Jim Brown and Larry Csonka beat Virginia Tech the old-fashioned way, pounding inside for most of 278 rushing yards in a 28-20 victory.

Sorry, wrong icons. The school that produced dynamos Floyd Little and Joe Morris found a pair of run-alikes. Fifth-year senior Kirby Dar Dar -- at 5 feet 10, 188 pounds, the behemoth of the tandem -- rushed for 108 yards and three scores. Sophomore Malcolm Thomas, all 5-8, 196 pounds of him, rushed for 145 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries.

Other parts of the Syracuse offense produced. Kevin Mason threw for 183 yards. The Orangemen converted eight of 14 third downs. They even led at the half, 14-9, which they haven't done all season.

All of the above keyed off the ground game. Syracuse hadn't had a pair of 100-yard rushers in one game in 14 seasons. Dar Dar and Thomas got their yards between tackles with basic football -- the coaching adjective is "smashmouth."

Virginia Tech swaggered into the Carrier Dome with a defensive resume that makes offensive coordinators cower: second in Division I-A in total defense (200.5 yard average, only 81.5 per game on the ground). The theory is simple. Put seven or eight guys on the line of scrimmage and challenge the opponent to run.

The defensive theory relies on intimidation. But it's also a gamble. If the running back or the receiver breaks through the line, there's no one in the secondary to stop him. That's what happened for Dar Dar and Thomas in the fourth quarter. They scored on rushes of 34 and 42 yards, respectively, that became sprints the minute each crossed the line of scrimmage.

"We just thought if we tried to run screens and draws and drop back, it would give them the chance to tip the ball, to sack us, to deflect it into an interception," Syracuse Coach Paul Pasqualoni said.

The Syracuse offense had been concentrating on the silky skills of quarterbacks Don McPherson and Marvin Graves for several seasons. That philosophy came unglued last season. When defenses bottled up Graves, the Orangemen had no response.

"The only chance we had was to reestablish the run," offensive coordinator George DeLeone says. "... We forced them to make the commitment, physically and mentally."

Pasqualoni says the team spent much of the spring working on blocking fundamentals. DeLeone called Saturday's performance "the crowning achievement so far."

For Dar Dar, last Saturday took five years to arrive. A fan favorite (a banner in the Carrier Dome read, "Kirby Kirby Dar Dar Fan Fan Club Club), he had shown flashes of brilliance but had never rushed for 100 yards before Saturday.

"I kind of sat back and thought about all that after the game," Dar Dar says. "It's been a long time. This is my fifth year. I've been expecting to do things like I did tonight."

The Orangemen began to shine as well with a move into first place in the Big East Conference. The Hokies, meanwhile, lost the chance to win eight consecutive games for the first time in 76 years.

McCartneyism

Colorado must be losing its touch. Neil Voskeritchian kicked a 24-yard field goal to win at Texas, 34-31, and left one second on the clock. Tsk, tsk.

That makes six victories and a tie for the Buffaloes in the final minute of games in the 1990s. Coach Bill McCartney was asked if he had an explanation for the Buffaloes' consistent ability to come back.

"I know what you want me to say," McCartney says. "I have some personal opinions on why we have good fortune. A year ago, we had four games that we didn't win that all came down right to the end. Somehow, over a period of time, it all evens out."

Apparently he thought the question had set a trap, one it wasn't meant to set. McCartney has taken heat -- here and elsewhere -- for using his position to proselytize his religious beliefs. In Ann Arbor, a plane carried a banner over Michigan Stadium deriding one of McCartney's highly publicized convictions.

You can't blame McCartney for being sensitive. But there's a difference between believing something and asking others to believe it.

Smith set free

No need to call in the FBI. Alabama offensive coordinator Homer Smith no longer is being held hostage.

The Crimson Tide continued to use the same whitebread offense until Georgia raced to a 21-7 lead last Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium. That's when Coach Gene Stallings discovered Smith, the best passing coach in college football, right there in his own press box.

Senior Jay Barker, never confused with the Alabama passing greats, threw for 396 yards, the second-highest total in Crimson Tide history. Michael Proctor kicked his third field goal of the night in the waning seconds to give Alabama a 29-28 victory.

Masonry

Kansas Coach Glen Mason, whose Jayhawks beat Division I-AA Alabama-Birmingham, 72-0, at home September 24, attempts to defend playing a team of such meager resources.

"Would we like to play a I-A team instead of a I-AA team?" Mason says. "Nebraska played the University of the Pacific and paid $465,000. We're not going to pay a school $465,000 to come in and play. ... We spent a lot of time trying to fill that date. If I had had six home games, we would have gone away. Tulsa wanted to play at home, and we wanted to play here."