NEW ERA PINSTRIPE BOWL
SYRACUSE ORANGE
vs.
WEST VIRGINIA MOUNTAINEERS

Saturday, Dec. 29 • 3:15 p.m.
Yankee Stadium (50,285/Natural Grass)
Bronx, N.Y.
 

Television - WATCH LIVE
ESPN
Chris Fowler, Jesse Palmer and Tom Rinaldi

National Radio
ESPN Radio
Marc Kestecher, Jack Ford and C.J. Papa
SiriusXM Channel 84
 

Syracuse Radio
WTKW-FM 99.5 (flagship)

THE GAME
The New Era Pinstripe Bowl will be played for the third time in 2012 … The game pairs teams from the BIG EAST and Big 12 conferences at Yankee Stadium … The BIG EAST is 2-0 in the Pinstripe Bowl with wins by Syracuse in 2010 and Rutgers in 2011 … In addition to playing in the first Pinstripe Bowl in the existing stadium, Syracuse played six games at the original Yankee Stadium, including a 3-0 win against Pittsburgh Oct. 20, 1923, in the first college football game at that facility … Syracuse head coach Doug Marrone grew up in the Bronx, and his grandfather, Robert Thompson, worked as an usher at Yankee Stadium for nearly 20 years … Syracuse and West Virginia have a history on the gridiron that dates to the 1945 season … Syracuse holds a 32-27 series lead … West Virginia was a member of the BIG EAST from 1991 to 2011 and was 11-10 against the Orange in conference games … Syracuse won the last two matchups, including a 49-23 victory last season at the Carrier Dome.
 

NEW ERA PINSTRIPE BOWL HISTORY
12-30-10 SYRACUSE 36, Kansas State 34
12-30-11 RUTGERS 27, Iowa State 13
 

SYRACUSE (7-5)
Head Coach
Doug Marrone (Syracuse ’91)
24-25, fourth season

 

NOTES
Syracuse is making its 23rd appearance in a bowl game and has reached the postseason — specifically, the New Era Pinstripe Bowl — for the second time in three years … Syracuse is 13-9 all-time in bowl games and has won three of its last four … The Orange began the season with two wins in their first six games, but won five of their last six to earn a share of he BIG EAST title … Syracuse shared the conference title with Louisville, Rutgers and Cincinnati … The championship is Syracuse’s fifth BIG EAST title — the second-most in league history behind West Virginia’s seven … Syracuse last won the BIG EAST championship in 2004, when it also finished in a four-way tie (with Boston College, Pittsburgh and West Virginia) … The Orange finished the regular season ranked 21st nationally in both total offense (473.4 yards per game) and passing offense (301.6 ypg) … The key man is WR Alec Lemon, who was the only unanimous All-BIG EAST First Team selection on offense … Lemon leads the BIG EAST in receptions (70) and receiving yards (1,063) and had seven touchdown catches … QB Ryan Nassib, an All-BIG EAST Second Team choice, threw for a league-leading 3,619 yards with 24 touchdowns … Nassib holds the BIG EAST career record with 780 completions and ranks third in conference history with 68 career touchdown passes … WR Marcus Sales has 63 receptions for 863 yards and a team-high eight touchdowns … RB Jerome Smith enters the Pinstripe Bowl ranked fifth in the BIG EAST in rushing (84.9 ypg) … OT Justin Pugh and S Shamarko Thomas joined Lemon as All-BIG EAST First Team selections … Thomas led the Orange with 84 tackles and two interceptions … DE Brandon Sharpe earned All-BIG EAST Second Team honors after he had six sacks and 13.5 tackles for loss in the regular season.

2012 RESULTS

September
1 Northwestern L 41-42
8 vs. Southern California L 29-42
15 Stony Brook W 28-17
22 at Minnesota L 10-17

October
5 PITTSBURGH W 14-13
13 at RUTGERS L 15-23
19 CONNECTICUT W 40-10
27 at USF W 37-36

November
3 at CINCINNATI L 24-35
10 LOUISVILLE W 45-26
17 at Missouri W 31-27
28 at TEMPLE W 38-20

December
29 vs. West Virginia  3:15 p.m.

BIG EAST games in CAPS

WEST VIRGINIA (7-5)
Head Coach
Dana Holgorsen (Iowa Wesleyan ’93)
17-8, second season

NOTES
West Virginia opened the 2012 season with five consecutive wins and was ranked as high as No. 4 in the USA Today coaches’ poll in early October, but the Mountaineers dropped five of their last seven games of the regular season … West Virginia takes a two-game winning streak into the postseason after closing with wins against Iowa State and Kansas … The Mountaineers will play in a bowl game for the 11th straight year … West Virginia is 14-17 all-time in bowl games … West Virginia played as a member of the BIG EAST from 1991 to 2011 and has won a record seven BIG EAST titles … The Mountaineers boast one of the nation’s most prolific offenses — West Virginia ranks eighth nationally in total offense (518.5 yards per game), sixth in passing (340.9 ypg) and seventh in scoring (41.6 ppg) … QB Geno Smith, who last year set BIG EAST single-season records for completions, attempts, and passing yards, earned All-Big 12 Second Team honors this season … Smith has thrown for 4,004 yards and 40 touchdowns with six interceptions this season and is projected as a top-10 pick in the NFL Draft … The Mountaineers list two All-America selections at wide receiver … WR Tavon Austin finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting and earned Walter Camp Football Foundation second team All-America honors … Austin was an AFCA All-America choice as an all-purpose player … Austin is second nationally in receptions (9.1 per game) and seventh in receiving yards (104.9 ypg) … WR Stedman Bailey was a Football Writers’ All-America First Team selection …Bailey is third nationally in receiving yards (125.1 ypg) and fourth in receptions (8.8 rpg) … Defensively, the Mountaineers rank 114th nationally in points allowed (38.1 ppg) and 119th in pass defense (327.1 ypg).

2012 RESULTS

September
1 Marshall W 69-34
15 vs. James Madison W 42-12
22 Maryland W 31-21
29 BAYLOR W 70-63

October
6 at TEXAS W 48-45
13 at TEXAS TECH L 14-49
20 KANSAS STATE L 14-55

November
3 TCU L ot 38-39
10 at OKLAHOMA STATE L 34-55
17 OKLAHOMA L 49-50
23 at IOWA STATE W 31-24

December
1 KANSAS W 59-10
29 vs. Syracuse  3:15 p.m.

Big 12 games in CAPS