DATE: Tuesday, November 4, 1997             TAG: 9711040463

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C3   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE:  - STEVE CARLSON

                                            LENGTH:   83 lines

BIG EAST REPORT

Hokies can simplify

Big East picture

just by winning

Virginia Tech-Miami at one time looked like a game to circle on the calendar as a potential Big East title game.

In a sense, it still may be.

The Hokies' destiny was returned to their hands Saturday when Syracuse defeated West Virginia. Tech leads the league at 4-1, while Syracuse is 3-1 and West Virginia, Pittsburgh and Miami all have two losses. If the Hokies win their remaining three games - beginning Saturday at home against Miami (6 p.m., ESPN2) - they almost certainly will be the league's Bowl Alliance entrant in the Fiesta Bowl.

The only thing that could derail that is if Syracuse somehow jumps five spots ahead of the Hokies in the combined Associated Press and USA Today/ESPN polls. Right now in the combined poll, Tech is 19th (20th AP, 18th USA Today/ESPN) while Syracuse is 20 1/2 (22nd AP, 19th USA Today/ESPN).

``Against the quality of competition we'll be playing - Miami, Pittsburgh and Virginia - I feel like if we win out, we would be the Alliance team,'' Tech coach Frank Beamer said during Monday's Big East coaches teleconference.

The Big East race is a complicated stew if Tech falters. Even Miami and Pittsburgh - both 4-4 overall and 2-2 in the league - remain in the title chase. If both win their remaining games, they would tie for the conference title at 5-2 and everyone else would have at least three losses. Pittsburgh would be the Bowl Alliance representative because it beat Miami.

``Whoever can play well down the stretch is going to come out on top,'' Beamer said.

Tech has the clearest track to the title and doesn't need help from anyone else. If the Hokies lose the scenarios are numerous, but basically everyone with two league losses still has a chance.

``If we can win this game, then we keep the dream alive for another couple of weeks,'' Miami coach Butch Davis said.

Syracuse is on a roll

The best team in the Big East? It might be Syracuse.

The Orangemen opened the season 1-3 and got crushed at Blacksburg, but they have won five in a row and have outscored their last four opponents 206-20. Included in that was Saturday's 40-10 win over West Virginia.

``They're the best team we've played this year and the best team in this conference,'' said Tom O'Brien of Boston College, which visits Syracuse on Saturday. ``Virginia Tech is a good, solid football team, but they're not as athletic as Syracuse.''

Injuries hit Miam, WVU

The injury bug bit West Virginia and Miami hard last week. The Hurricanes lost starting strong safety Dennis Scott, while the Mountaineers lost starting split end Khori Ivey (broken leg) and linebacker Damon Cogdell (fractured hip) for the season and had several other players hurt.

``I just left a meeting with the trainer and if we were going to practice tonight, I'd have 14 guys in the two-deep who wouldn't be able to practice,'' West Virginia coach Don Nehlen said.

Rutgers: It's a kick

This lets you know what kind of team Rutgers has had the last couple of years: Jared Slovan needs 18 more punts to set a Big East career record. He has 243, while Temple's John Shay has the dubious record with 260. The Scarlet Knights are 0-9, have been outscored 417-154 and are last in the nation in scoring defense.

Quick hits

Miami has rushed for more than 300 yards in three consecutive games for the first time in school history. . . . Tech's Shayne Graham kicked four extra points and three field goals Saturday in the Hokies' win over Alabama-Birmingham, including a career-best 46-yarder, to win Big East special-teams player-of-the-week honors. . . . Beamer said he expects quarterback Al Clark, receivers Angelo Harrison and Michael Stuewe, defensive end Chris Cyrus and backup linebacker Sean Ruffing to play against Miami. All were held out of the Alabama-Birmingham game because of injuries. . . . Temple is 3-6, a good season by the Owls' standards. Its Temple's most wins since it went 7-4 in 1990.

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