The Ben Schwartzwalder Trophy is coming back to Syracuse.
Ryan Nassib threw a touchdown pass, Ross Krautman kicked four field goals and Syracuse scored nine points off turnovers in shocking No. 20 West Virginia 19-14 on Saturday.
Syracuse (5-2, 2-1 Big East) snapped an eight-game losing streak to West Virginia (5-2, 1-1). The Orange made a remarkable turnaround on defense after being throttled at home by Pittsburgh 45-14 last week.
West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith threw three first-half interceptions and was sacked five times. He entered the game completing 68 percent of his passes, but looked confused by Syracuse's blitz.
Syracuse failed to reach the end zone four times after moving inside the West Virginia 15 in the first half. But those ensuing field goals turned out to be enough.
No points were scored in the second half.
Niko Tamurian will have more on the big win coming up on the News at 6, 10 and 11.
Earlier:
If you turned on the SU game at noon today, you certainly didn't see football--Nascar was still on the air. Time Warner Cable tells CNY Central that the event ran a little over its scheduled time. The company then switched over to the SU-West Virginia football game around 12:05.
Time Warner doesn't expect to have any problems with the remainder of the game.
The Syracuse Orange (4-2, 1-1) will look to bounce back from a loss against Pitt when it goes on the road to face West Virginia (5-1, 1-0) this afternoon.
There's a little more on the line than just a win or loss: this game is for the Ben Schwartzwalder Trophy. Coach Schwartzwalder lead the Orange to a 153-91-3 overall record in 25 seasons. He played for the Mountaineers as the team's starting center.
Syracuse and West Virginia have played every year since 1955. The Orange leads the series, 30-27. The Mountaineers have managed to control the Orange in Morgantown and own an 18-12 mark.
The last time SU started 5-2 was in 2001. Kickoff is scheduled for noon on ESPN2.
Some information from SUathletics.com and the Associated Press was used in this report.
