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Backfield Chews Up Yardage

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By LINDSAY KRAMER, Tribune correspondent

Published: November 11, 2007

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - University of South Florida freshman running back Aston Samuels got a harder time from his teammates on Saturday afternoon than he did from Syracuse University's wanna-be tacklers.

The Bulls had a lot to smile about after routing Syracuse 41-10 at the Carrier Dome, the most amusing of which was how Samuels, perhaps the fastest player on the team, was caught from behind by defensive back Dowayne Davis on what should have been a 78-yard touchdown run.

"I got caught in the moment and I slowed down," said Samuels, who wound up with 75 yards on his second-quarter saunter. "Some of my teammates are clowning me."

That's OK. The way that Samuels and his teammates ground up SU, he'll be getting a lot more chances to finish off his runs.
Samuels (two carries, 101 yards) and freshman Mike Ford (28-134) each hit the century mark for the first time in their careers to help the Bulls ride to a season-high 346 yards on the ground. It was just the fourth time in school history that two players had hit 100 yards rushing in the same game, but a fairly predictable outcome against the Orange.

SU went into the contest ranked 102nd nationally against the run (205.6 yards allowed per game).

"What is there to say? There's not really much that I can say," Orange defensive end Jameel McClain said. "They executed their plays perfectly."

USF's utter dominance on the ground spoke to the effort of its offensive line and the plug-in talent of its backs. Starter Ben Williams was out with what Bulls coach Jim Leavitt termed a foot or ankle ailment and Ford was coming off a battle with sore ribs.
Samuels went into the game with 42 yards on six carries and Ford had 300 on 64. But the USF workhorses plowed through open holes on the line.

"We rotated eight or nine guys in today. You can't miss a beat when you go in," Bulls center Nick Capogna said. "We had some success early, and that was the key. And we have some great backs. They make it a lot easier on us."

Ford found the end zone twice, the first time on a 1-yard run just 1:20 into the game. On a third-quarter drive, he added another 1-yard score. The Bulls ran on nine of the 10 plays on the 76-yard drive, and Ford lugged the ball on six of those attempts.

Ford said his 28 carries were the most he had since high school.

"Oh man, it felt good. I get stronger and stronger when I run it. I felt even better today," Ford said. "I just had to be patient awaiting his chances. That's part of the running back thing, to have patience."

Samuels, conversely, is a man in a hurry to get more playing time. His 75-yard near-score on the first play of the second quarter set up a 42-yard field goal from Delbert Alvarado; his second carry netted 26 on the first play of a USF touchdown drive later in the quarter.

"We've been wanting to get him in all year," Leavitt said. "He's got some serious speed. We have to get him on the field somehow."

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