Rockets looks to stay high after upset
Greg Burghardt
Tom Amstutz’s life has gotten a bit more hectic since Toledo’s momentous upset of No. 9 Pittsburgh Saturday.
“It’s been pretty crazy around here,” the Toledo coach said. “There have been lots of phone calls and interviews. There are all these things to deal with.”
That is what happens when a team is down 10 points in the fourth quarter, and pull off an impressive late-game comeback to secure a 34-31 victory at the Glass Bowl. The win came on the heels of a previous week victory at Marshall, the perennial MAC powerhouse.
“It’s overwhelming,” Amstutz said. “It’s not much different than a hangover.”
A hangover is exactly what Toledo (3-1) is looking to avoid when the team heads to the Carrier Dome to face its third consecutive tough opponent — Syracuse.
“It will be tough playing in a dome,” Amstutz said. “We are going to have to communicate and be sharp, get on the same page and run our plays.”
The Orangemen also are coming off a major victory, a 38-14 rout of Central Florida last week. Tailback Walter Reyes, the NCAA’s leading rusher, ran over the Golden Knight defense for 241 yards and three touchdowns. The performance places him alongside Jim Brown and Joe Morris as the greatest single-game performance in Syracuse history.
“That’s what I came to Syracuse for,” Reyes said. “To be one of those guys you can give the ball to and depend on.”
In addition to Reyes, the Orangemen have talent at the skill positions with quarterback R.J. Anderson and wide receiver Johnnie Morant.
The Rockets also boast similar all-around talent. Quarterback Bruce Gradkowski engineered the late-game rally, and has thrown 10 touchdowns compared to just one interception this season. Just four games into his career, Amstutz is beginning to scare opposing coaches.
“(Gradkowski’s) been hot,” said Syracuse Coach Paul Pasqualoni. “He throws the ball very well. He runs the ball very well. He runs the offense well. I would say that he is a good player.”
A number of targets have benefited from Gradkowski’s development, including wideouts Steve Odom, Lance Moore, Terrance Hudson and tight end Andrew Clarke, all of whom came up large against the Panthers.
Tailback Trinity Dawson also leads a stable of strong running backs that benefit from one of the nation’s largest offense lines.
- QB Bruce Gradkowski set a MAC record with 49 completions
- WR Lance Moore broke a Toledo record for receptions with 15 catches for 162 yards.
- In five of the Toledo’s last eight wins the Rockets have come from 10 points behind to win
Pasqualoni is mindful of the Rockets ability to defeat a major-conference school.
“In the history of the Toledo program, this is not the first time they have stepped up to the plate and beat somebody,” Pasqualoni said. “They have an excellent team and they create a bunch of problems for you.”
The Rockets head into Syracuse as the No. 26 team in the country, looking to join No. 20 Northern Illinois in the Top 25. A win against the Orangemen Saturday would do it.
“It has been an amazing week,” Amstutz said. “We knew on Sunday that it was time to focus on Syracuse. It was wonderful for our program, but we can’t dwell on it long. Hopefully, there are bigger things in store for us.”
