A talented freshman stepped onto one of the biggest stages imaginable. Marvin Graves stood front and center inside the Meadowlands in East Rutherford, N.J., as Syracuse’s starting quarterback for the 1990 season.

Graves and the Orangemen were a part of the Kickoff Classic and about to take on the No. 9 team in the country — Southern California — to open the season Aug. 31, 1990.

And by the time the second quarter rolled around, Graves was already laying the foundation for what would become the most prolific career ever by an SU quarterback.

‘He did exactly what we thought he would do as a quarterback — and that’s make things happen,’ SU left guard Gary McCummings told The Daily Orange after the game. ‘He broke some big plays.’

In fact, Graves was the only player that made things happen that day. His 191 yards and a touchdown on 15-for-30 passing dazzled fans. And his 59 rushing yards out of the option offense, not counting yards lost on sacks, were hugely impressive.

But the freshman Graves couldn’t keep up with USC’s ‘Robo-QB,’ Todd Marinovich. The Trojans’ sophomore gunslinger torched the SU defense for a then-career-high 337 yards and three touchdowns en route to a 34-16 win in front of 57,293 spectators.

‘We have a great quarterback here, and if he keeps passing like that, he’s going to win the Heisman (Trophy),’ USC tailback Rickey Ervins said after the game.

Marinovich, though just a sophomore, was the seasoned veteran. He was a Heisman hopeful entering his sophomore season in 1990.

Graves, the freshman, was the future at the quarterback position for the Orangemen. He would leave SU as the program’s all-time leader in career passing yards (8,466), passing yards in a single game (425) and passing yards in a single season (2,547).

He still holds those three marks today.

‘Marvin Graves? I think Marvin Graves was marvelous,’ SU head coach Dick MacPherson said.

Graves and SU hung in there with the highly ranked Trojans for the first 30 minutes of play. The quarterback made plays with his feet, juking his way through the defense to lead the Orangemen into halftime trailing only 14-10.

But the second half was a different story. Graves continued to play well, but the Orangemen’s special teams floundered. A blocked punt and a fumble on a punt return led to two USC touchdowns.

Marinovich made SU pay, leading the Trojans on four scoring drives in the second half to pull away for the win.

Nonetheless, ‘Marvelous Marvin’ was born. And during the next four years, he would blossom to lead the Orangemen to three bowl wins in his career.

‘Marvin played above and beyond the call of duty,’ SU wide receiver Qadry Ismail said. ‘Marvin is a leader. Marvin knew what he was doing. Marvin, Marvin, Marvin, Marvin. He had great poise, and he’s going to get better. That’s the great thing about it.’

— Compiled by Michael Cohen, sports editor, mjcohe02@syr.edu

Published on September 14, 2011 at 12:00 pm