Here’s the second part of the e-mail Q&A I did with Matt from Syracuse :: 44 :: Orange. Part 1 is here. He will likely have the 2nd part of my answers to his questions later in the day.

What are the keys for Syracuse? What will you be looking for in the game? Especially early, to make you think: hey, we’re going to win this game.

The key for Syracuse, as always, is to establish Rhodes early. If Rhodes can carry the ball about 4.4 a carry early in the game, Syracuse would have put itself in a very competitive position.

All season, Syracuse has just been pitiful on creating long, time-consuming drives. The ability to run the ball effectively both early in the game and early on drives has been the primary culprit for the offense’s inefficiency. Should Rhodes/Jones/Washington effectively pound the ball through Pittsburgh’s 8 and 9 man fronts, Perry Patterson and the receiving corps would have a terrific opportunity to exploit the playaction pass.

It’s all about drive efficiency for Syracuse this season, and if they can run effectively early, good things should follow.

Defensively, it’s very important for the Orange front four to play effectively. This isn’t to say that LaCasse and Wyche need to put Palko on his back every snap he takes, it simply means that the front four needs to employ some fundamental line play. Control the upfield rush, knock down some passes, eat up Pittsburgh’s interior lineman so as to let the linebacking corps set up, use their speed, and make some plays. Should the front four establish themselves early on, I have much more confidence in the secondary to make some plays because of the heat put on the quarterback to release the ball quickly.

The other major “thing” to look for in this game is the play of Tanard Jackson. Steve Gregory will likely get the assignment to cover Greg Lee on Saturday, and I think he should perform adequately at that task. The big question mark is whether Jackson can hang with whomever is lining up across from him. It is likely that Jackson will be forced to play a lot of single coverage on his man, as there will be extra attention paid to Lee. Thus, Jackson, spotty as he may be, will ultimately determine the fate of the secondary on Saturday.

If Pittsburgh can exploit Jackson’s inconsistency, which they should be able to do, Palko could have a monster day.

Right now, the weather is predicted to be wet and in the 40s-50s (and I get to sit in that). How do you think those conditions will affect Syracuse?

Shouldn’t affect the the Orange too much. There are two reasons for this assumption.

First, Syracuse practices outside in that kind of weather anyway. It’s not like Syracuse, New York has suddenly become the newest member of the Florida Keys. So, the shock and awe of raw weather shouldn’t create a circumstance where the Orange is playing so far out of their element they won’t know what to do. Plus, Syracuse just played in similar conditions in East Hartford just two weeks ago.

The other reason is simply that weather won’t affect the physical attributes of this team. Syracuse can’t throw the ball consistently anyway, so having a hard time gripping the pigsking and receiving it shouldn’t materially affect how Syracuse loses on Saturday. The game plan, consequently, won’t need to be altered signficiantly. Additionally, Syracuse has little advantage over its competitor in this game with regard to team-speed. Everyone is going to be slopping around a little bit, and I don’t think that will sufficiently add to Syracuse’s inability to move the football.

What 3 players don’t Pitt fans know on Syracuse who could be key difference makers?

Three obscure difference makers, eh? Try these on for size:

1. Brendan Carney (P)
Punter extraordinaire. Great at flipping field-position and garnering those Bob Greise “hidden yards.” Carney does a great job at giving the defense the opportunity to play some bend-don’t-break, and may just be this year’s MVP.

This partly explains my Graessle question earlier. I’m a sucker for solid punters.

2. Joe Kowalewski (TE)
Maybe not as obscure as he should be, Kowalewski (pronounced Ko-va-less-ki) may be the most reliable target Patterson can throw to. As a tight end, JoeK does a pretty good job at creating space and does a terrific job finding holes when breaking free on playaction. Against Virginia he was dynamic, and I fully expect him to have a 4-50 type game on Saturday.

3. Nick Chestnut (WR)
I think Syracuse fans may be just as familiar with Chestnut as Panther Nation. Chestnut has become, over the last two weeks, Syracuse’s lone deep threat at the receiver. He’s a hyper-athlete with great wheels and adequate hands. He very well could be the Orange’s “X-Factor” come Saturday afternoon.

What is most impressive is that Chestnut has gone from reserve corner at the start of the season all the way to “starting” receiver by week seven. That’s a rapid progression, and when you see him run around the field it becomes apparent that he does have some worthwhile potential.

Final predictions, final score?

I have no faith in Syracuse to win another game this season. After watching the egg they laid Saturday against Rutgers, there is no chance that they can slip by any one left on the schedule, including Cincinnati and South Florida. Rhodes is a nice player and will probably put together a respectable game, but you can’t win football games with a running back that can’t run between the tackles.

With that said, I think the Panthers drop the axe on the Orange Saturday in a laugher.

Pitt: 38
‘Cuse: 10

Thanks again for Matt for doing this, and be sure to check out his blog the rest of the season.