Hogue gets national recognition for play versus WVU, Carter to practice
Just like old times, Doug Hogue followed his blockers and hightailed toward the end zone. But this time, the running back-turned-linebacker was returning his second interception of the first half Saturday against West Virginia.
‘It felt great,’ Hogue said with a smile Saturday. ‘Coach Shafer put us in the right situation. Our D-line did a great job rushing the quarterback, and I kind of felt like I was a running back again. I’m not sure how good my ball security was, though.’
Hogue’s 49-yard scamper set up a Syracuse field goal with just 37 seconds remaining in the first half and gave SU a 19-14 lead it would never relinquish.
On Monday, Hogue, who was honored as the Walter Camp Football Foundation National Defensive Player of the Week, was named Big East Defensive Player of the Week for his performance. Hogue led a stingy defensive effort Saturday, as Syracuse held then-No. 20 West Virginia scoreless for the game’s final three quarters.
With a team-high 10 tackles — 1.5 for loss — and two interceptions, Hogue’s play highlighted just how dominant the SU defense was against what was considered one of the best offenses in the league.
‘My background has been when you play well as a unit, people will get awards,’ SU head coach Doug Marrone said at his weekly press conference Monday. ‘It’s great for Doug and Syracuse University. It’s great for our defensive coaches and our football team. But when people receive individual awards in this sport, it’s because of what’s going on around them. Our players would tell you that.’
On the game’s first possession, Hogue snagged his first interception and put the Orange in position to get on the board early. Ross Krautman’s 28-yard field goal gave the Orange the game’s first points. It was the start of building a halftime lead. Syracuse eventually improved its record to 4-0 on the season when leading at halftime.
This is the second year in a row in which Hogue, a converted running back, has been named the Defensive Player of the Week. He also earned the distinction last season when the Orange upset Rutgers. Hogue had 6.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and a forced fumble in that game.
In addition, Hogue is the third different SU defensive player to receive Big East Player of the Week honors this season. With his standout performance, he joins teammates Mike Holmes and Max Suter, who earned the honor on Sept. 6 and Oct. 11, respectively.
‘Doug would be the first to tell you that you don’t gain that without 10 other guys on the football field helping you achieve the ability to make those plays,’ Marrone said. ‘We are very excited about that. We had a lot of people play well in the game.’
Carter to practice this week
Senior running back Delone Carter is expected to practice this week after missing the second half against West Virginia with what was described as a bruise to his right hip, Marrone said Monday.
Carter limped off the field early in the second quarter Saturday. He had gained 75 yards on just nine carries, including a 46-yard run just before the injury occurred. At his weekly press conference Monday, Marrone confirmed that ‘everyone is practicing today’ when asked about Carter specifically.
‘The only people who I know may not practice are people with a flu or virus, because we are still evaluating a couple people,’ Marrone said. ‘And it’s been going around. I had it right before the game, (secondary) Coach (John) Anselmo had it, and a couple of players had it.’
The injury was to the same hip Carter dislocated in 2007, which kept Carter out for the season. Though he returned to the sideline following the halftime break Saturday, Carter did not make it onto the field. Instead, Antwon Bailey carried the bulk of the load for the Orange.
‘I felt bad for Delone because I really thought early on that he was going to have a big day,’ Marrone said Saturday. ‘Just by the way he was running. He had a look like no one person was going to take him down.’
Syracuse receives votes in AP Top 25
Just a day after beating a team it hadn’t in quite some time, Syracuse experienced another feat it hadn’t in awhile: receiving votes in the Associated Press Top 25 poll.
SU is outside the Top 25, but it received eight votes in the AP poll. A win this weekend at Cincinnati could catapult the Orange into the rankings for the first time since 2001.
Perhaps more importantly, Syracuse is the top-ranked team from the Big East, garnering more votes than any other team league-wide.
This is the same program that won just 14 games during a five-season span, from 2005-09, entering the season. The Orange (5-2, 2-1 Big East) has also won more conference road games this season (2) than it did during the entire four years Greg Robinson was head coach (from 2005-08).
