South Florida vs. Syracuse Football 2009
Undefeated Bulls Beat Mistake-Prone Orangemen, 34-20
Oct 3, 2009
Syracuse committed a total of seven turnovers, and South Florida broke away to a 34-20 victory over the Orangemen in a Big East football opener Saturday at Syracuse, N.Y.
South Florida (5-0) intercepted Greg Paulus five times, with linebacker Nate Allen coming up with two picks. Coach Jim Leavitt's Bulls led just 14-13 at halftime, but broke the game open with a 20-point third quarter.
The victory kept South Florida undefeated entering its conference showdown vs. No. 10 Cincinnati on Thursday, Oct. 17 at Tampa, Fla. The Bearcats (5-0 overall, 1-0 Big East) remained perfect with a 37-13 non-conference win over Miami of Ohio on Saturday.
South Florida's B.J. Daniels completed 12 of 20 passes for 208 yards, including two touchdowns to Carlton Mitchell. The second one, an 85-yarder in the third quarter, ignited the Bulls' 20-0 scoring blitz.
Mitchell had six receptions for 139 yards, and teammate Mike Ford ran 13 times for 68 yards and two touchdowns.
Syracuse's Mike Williams came up with 13 catches for 186 yards and both of his team's TD receptions. Paulus was 25-for-46 passing for 269 yards, but his three third quarter interceptions were ruinous for the Orangemen. Syracuse (2-3) had just seven turnovers combined over its first four games.
Pierre-Paul's Pick of Paulus Proves Pivotal
The Orangemen trailed by just a point at half despite four turnovers. But on the first play of the third quarter, Daniels went deep to Mitchell for the 85-yard score, and South Florida led 21-13.
Paulus was intercepted by Kenyon Webster on the ensuing possession, and that set up a 48-yard Bulls drive capped by Ford's 5-yard TD.
Three plays later, Paulus was picked off by defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul, who returned it 18 yards for a back-breaking touchdown. That put South Florida up 34-13 with 2 minutes, 52 seconds left in the third quarter.
Paulus drove Syracuse to the Bulls 39 on the next drive, but that ended when Paulus came up with his second interception of the game. The senior safety, who led South Florida with eight tackles, also had a pick in the first quarter.
The Orangemen finally got on the board again when Paulus hit Williams with a 29-yard TD with 10:02 left in the game. But South Florida ate 7:10 off the clock with a drive that ended in a missed field goal.
Ford Touchdown Puts Bulls in Front to Stay
Ford's 26-yard TD run with 7:08 left in the first quarter gave South Florida a 7-0 lead, and despite some trying moments, the Bulls would never trail.
Two Ryan Lichtenstein field goals brought Syracuse within a point, but a 33-yard TD pass from Daniels to Mitchell made it 14-6 with 6:06 left in the half. The Orangemen pulled within 14-13 on an 11-yard scoring toss from Paulus to Williams.
Syracuse gained 344 yards of total offense – 101 more than South Florida had been allowing per game. The Bulls had 333 yards.
Jerome Murphy also had an interception for South Florida, which had three sacks in addition to five picks. Derrell Smith led Syracuse with 11 tackles, recorded one of his team's two sacks, and forced a fumble.
South Florida 5-0 for 3rd Consecutive Season
The Bulls, who successfully followed up on their upset of Florida State a week earlier, are 5-0 for the third consecutive season for the fourth time in school history. South Florida's best start ever is 6-0, in 2007.
In addition, South Florida moved to 5-0 all-time vs. Syracuse, and is 3-0 in the Carrier Dome.
