WINSTON SALEM, N.C. – Perry Patterson faced his first third down of the season.

Given Syracuse converted just a little more than 20 percent of its third downs last year, the SU quarterback wanted to make sure it would be different this time.

It wasn’t.

Before Patterson lined up at center, he barked orders to receivers Tim Lane and Taj Smith to make sure they were in the proper set. After Patterson directed Lane and Smith, it seemed like they realized where they needed to be.

Lane and Smith changed motion and marched toward the left side of the field. When Syracuse snapped the ball, both receivers found themselves open after running a slant route. Patterson fed the ball to Smith but he dropped the pass, one he easily could’ve grabbed. A similar scenario had happened on an earlier play.

The West Coast offense has changed all right. But not the way SU coaches and players pledged it would.

In Syracuse’s 20-10 loss to Wake Forest in front of 34,121 at Groves Stadium on Saturday, the Orange receivers caught five passes for a total of 45 yards against a team that allowed its opponents to churn out 252 passing yards per game last year.

The loss was SU’s tenth in a row dating back to last season, marking the longest losing streak in the school’s 117-year football history.

The Orange completed 1-of-11 third-down conversions, eerily resembling last year’s performance where the offense finished last in the league on third downs.

Meanwhile, Wake Forest ran over Syracuse’s defense with 245 rushing yards, backed by Micah Andrews’ 142-yard rushing effort. Even though Syracuse constantly missed tackles, the consequences would have been minimal if SU could have completed a pass.

‘I see a difference in Perry in the football game,’ said SU head coach Greg Robinson. ‘I think he just needs to get his crew working with him better.’

On Saturday, Patterson’s passes were very accurate and hit receiving corps dead-on. If all went according to plan, Patterson arguably could’ve completed half of his 18 passes.

No matter how well-placed Patterson’s passes seemed, the receivers found creative ways not to catch the ball, even ones well within their reaches. In the second quarter, Lane slipped on the ground before completing his route.

‘We made too many mistakes,’ said Lane, who caught three passes for 20 yards. ‘It’s on us. It’s not on anybody else. We’ll come out next week and try to do better.’

After Wake Forest opened with a 7-0 lead, spending six minutes of possession time, Syracuse answered back at the 2:59 mark in the first quarter when Patterson threw a 20-yard slant pass to Moss.

After that play, nothing hit the mark. Patterson threw only five more passes in the second half. The only completion resulted from a screen pass to Lane in the third quarter but he was immediately tackled for no gain.

To combat the problem with Syracuse’s passing offense, Robinson decided to focus more on the running component in hopes that it would later open up the passing game. Tailbacks Curtis Brinkley, Paul Chiara and Delone Carter contributed a modest effort with 91 total yards. The successful runs mostly came in the first half when Wake Forest’s defense knew Syracuse planned to mix up its offense.

When Syracuse resorted solely to the passing game, its secondary left SU’s receiving corps with at least 10 yards of breathing room before every snap.

Meanwhile, Wake Forest used its time well on offense. Kicker Sam Swank nailed a 22-yard field goal in the second quarter to make the score 10-7, capping a five-minute drive. Patrick Shadle’s 46-yard field goal just before halftime evened the score at 10-10.

Swank’s third-quarter 40-yard field goal only made the score 13-10, but SU never looked like it had a chance throughout the rest of the game — not with the offense it had. To make things worse, Wake Forest ended any chance of a sudden spark when De’Angelo Bryant ran for a 19-yard touchdown to increase the lead, 20-10, with 1:20 remaining in the game.

‘It’s on both ends,’ Patterson said. ‘If they’re dropping a ball, it’s something I can easily adjust to so it’s a more catchable ball. I’m real confident in this receiving corps. They can make the plays. But this is the first time they’ve played together.’

Published on September 4, 2006 at 12:00 pm