GAME NOTES: Coming off their first loss of the season, the 13th-ranked West Virginia Mountaineers now head to the Carrier Dome, where they will take on the Syracuse Orange in Big East play this Saturday. The Mountaineers were not only considered a contender for the Big East title coming into the season, but they were also expected to compete for a national championship. Last week however, both those goals took a big hit, as WVU was knocked off by nationally-ranked South Florida, 21-13, in its conference-opener on September 28th. It was the first loss in five games this season by the Mountaineers, who dropped out of the Top 10 rankings to the 13th spot. Despite the loss, WVU has been one of the most successful teams around the past few seasons, going 26-4 over its last 30 outings. During that stretch, the team has posted a solid 12-3 ledger in Big East play. As for Syracuse, it is coming off another strong effort, although it was on the short end of a 17-14 decision at Miami-Ohio last weekend. The loss came on the heels of a shocking 38-35 upset of then nationally-ranked Louisville in the Orange's only Big East game of the season. Now at 1-4 overall, the team returns home, where it is set to play three straight games. As far as the all-time series goes, Syracuse owns a 30-24 edge over WVU. The Mountaineers however, have won the last five meetings, including a 41-17 triumph a year ago.

Stopping the dynamic duo of tailback Steve Slaton and quarterback Patrick White is no easy feat, but it was one that was accomplished by South Florida in its 21-13 win over WVU last week. Both players put forth their worst performances of the year in the loss, as Slaton was held to just 54 rushing yards on 13 attempts and White to only 100 yards passing and 36 rushing on nine carries. Slaton even fumbled twice in the game, while White threw his first interception of the season and that was returned for a touchdown. Those were three of the team's season-high six turnovers. Despite the poor effort, Slaton is still in the midst of another tremendous season and he currently leads the team with 556 rushing yards and nine scores. White ranks second to him with 322 yards and six touchdowns, and he has also completed 70.1 percent of his throws for 717 yards and six touchdowns. White unfortunately, suffered a bruised thigh last game and he is listed as questionable for this weekend. Jarrett Brown stepped in when White went down last game and despite throwing a pair of interceptions, he fared pretty well. Brown threw for 149 yards and a score on 11-of-20 pass attempts and he also led the team in rushing with 61 yards on 15 totes. He is set to start if White can't give it a go this weekend and he will surely be looking the way of Darius Reynaud, who pulled down five balls for 47 yards and a score against South Florida. Reynaud has clearly been the team's most productive wide out this season, grabbing 28 balls for 382 yards and five touchdowns. As a team, though, WVU has thrived on the ground, where it is averaging a whopping 323.2 ypg. The team has scored 20 rushing touchdowns and is averaging 6.6 yards per carry.

Defensively, the Mountaineers did all that they could to keep their themselves in the game last week, limiting South Florida to a mere 274 yards of total offense. The defense, which is giving up just 273.4 total ypg on the season, also forced four turnovers in the contest, pushing its season total in that department to 12. Just 13 first downs were surrendered by WVU, which is allowing only 15.2 first downs per game this season. Quinton Andrews paced the team in defeat with nine tackles, while Johnny Dingle registered his team-best fifth sack of the year.

After racking up nearly 500 yards of total offense in a win over Louisville the previous week, the Orange' offense came back down to reality last weekend, gaining a decent 302 yards in a 17-14 setback to Miami-Ohio. Andrew Robinson, who threw four touchdowns against Louisville, continued his hot play last weekend, completing 17-of-36 tosses for 236 yards and a pair of scores. The gritty gunslinger has now thrown for 1,145 yards, with seven touchdowns against just one interception. His main target has been Taj Smith, who leads the team with 19 catches, 342 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Last weekend, Smith pulled down six balls for 81 yards and score, while teammate Mike Williams grabbed five passes for an even better 97 yards and a touchdown. Tailback Curtis Brinkley however, was limited to just 36 yards on 12 carries and that isn't really a big surprise considering he has rushed for just 183 yards in five games. As a team, the Orange has really struggled on the ground, where it is averaging a mere 40.6 rushing ypg thus far. The team is averaging a dismal 1.3 yards per carry and that is certainly an area that needs improvement.

On the defensive side of the ball, Syracuse was burned for 436 total yards, including 286 on the ground, in its loss to Miami-OH last weekend. The Orange, which is giving up 231.4 rushing ypg on the year, only allowed 17 points to Miami-OH, though, thanks to three interceptions. For the season, Syracuse has forced 10 total turnovers, including seven on interceptions. Joe Fields picked off two passes last weekend, giving him a team-high three interceptions for the season. He also leads the team in tackles with 42.

Although the Mountaineers are a bit banged up and their confidence may be shaken a bit, they are still the far superior team here. WVU, behind its dominant ground attack, should be able to control the game from start to finish, as it gets back into the win column.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: West Virginia 40, Syracuse 16