With a four-game losing streak, Syracuse head football coach Greg Robinson must choose among sticking with his upperclassmen, letting underclassmen play or a mix of both.

The Orange visits South Florida at noon on Saturday. SU (3-6, 0-4 Big East) must beat the Bulls (6-3, 2-2) and win the next two games against Connecticut and Rutgers in order to make a bowl.

Backup quarterback Andrew Robinson and wide receiver Donte Davis are two freshmen likely to earn more playing time in the final three games.

Andrew Robinson

1. Move up in the pocket more

2. Get up in the fight

3. Get up on top of the ball when you’re throwing

SU quarterbacks coach Phil Earley wrote those suggestions on a board before Wednesday’s practice. Most of Earley’s weekly suggestions to Perry Patterson and Robinson emphasize physical expectations so it’s easier to see marked improvement.

In Robinson’s case, Earley said the freshman understands the big picture of fulfilling the quarterback position.

Greg Robinson acknowledged this week Andrew Robinson fielded 30 percent more snaps during the bye week. The freshman previously played only one snap against Miami (Ohio) on Sept. 23 and one series against West Virginia on Oct. 14.

‘I’ve been going into practices and games with the mindset that I’m going to get playing time,’ Andrew Robinson said. ‘Obviously if Perry goes down, then I have to be the guy. I have to be ready at all times. That’s not going to change these next three weeks.’

Even with Andrew Robinson lacking game experience, Earley said he has benefited from ‘stealing reps’ from Patterson by watching him outside of the huddle at practice. Greg Robinson notices improved footwork and mechanics.

If Andrew Robinson fields snaps, Earley said specific areas are valuable along with game experience. Those areas include his drops, reads and how he responds to the offensive line’s protection.

‘It’s hard to stand there play after play and really be focused,’ Earley said. ‘But he does a nice job of trying to do that. That being said, trying to see the protection, reads or adjustments that need to be made and making them (while) standing behind the huddle, as opposed to being under center, are drastically different. The more we can get him under the center in those situations, the better.’

Donte Davis

Davis labels No.1 receiver Mike Williams and himself as the ‘freshmen duo.’ But Davis’ track record makes Williams really the ‘freshman solo.’

Davis has had some noticeable performances, such as his five-catch, 53-yard effort against Pittsburgh on Oct. 7. But against West Virginia, he didn’t make a catch. Overall, Davis has caught nine passes for 84 yards.

‘It’s not breaks, it’s concentration,’ Davis said. ‘For me I had a catch (against Cincinnati) and then on the next play I dropped a pass. That’s just a lack of focus. I should’ve caught that.’

Davis admits his biggest improvement points to consistency. The bye week was a better opportunity to reach toward that goal.

Davis said his reps stayed the same during the bye week as it did all season. But he also said that overall the freshmen saw more practice time to give the older players a rest.

He described this week’s practice as more laid back and said it lasted only an hour. Practices normally last two hours. Nonetheless, he worked to perfect the fundamentals.

‘That’s part of football,’ Davis said. ‘You can’t do everything right. Even the pros make mistakes. You just have to overcome it. It’s tough. A lot of people let things get to them. Since camp started, they said if something happens just flush and let it go.’

Published on November 8, 2006 at 12:00 pm