A guy runs for 82-yards and a touchdown on an offense that's sputtering about as badly as any in the country. What's the best thing to do with him? Put him on defense of course!
Well, it's not happening...yet. But Doug Hogue, who has basically become a glorified fullback in the last month, is beginning to weigh his options...
"Has it crossed my mind?" Hogue asked. "Oh, yeah (laughs). I've actually thought about it a lot. I've talked to my parents about it and stuff like that. It's been thoughts, but I'm not really thinking about that right. I mean, I'm thinking about it but it's not right now. Maybe some time in the future. Not now. I'm going to finish out the season strong at running back."
One note I especially loved in Donnie's story...Hogue's touchdown run wasn't even supposed to happen. It was an audible.
Last week at Rutgers, Dantley called another audible with the Orange facing third-and-8 from the Orange 18. It was a draw play to Hogue, who burst through a gaping hole on the left side of the line, got to the second level and outran the Scarlet Knights defense for an 82-yard touchdown. The play gave Syracuse a 7-0 lead and was the longest touchdown run by an Orange player in 55 years.
"I've been waiting to do a lot of things since I've been here," Hogue said on Wednesday. "To have that run, felt real good. I haven't carried the ball in a little while. For me to break out and do my thing felt good."
His first rushing attempt in a month only happened because Dantley changed the play. Cam basically pulled the same thing Vince Vaughn did at the end of Rudy to make sure Rudy would get to play.
As for why Hogue finds himself in this precarious blocking situation...
Hogue said he has not asked coaches about why his role as a rusher has been reduced. All he knows is that his duties have been whittled down to serving as a blocker on pass plays.
"I got dealt (these) cards and now, there's nothing I can do about it," Hogue said. "I just play my role and try and help the team as much as I possibly can.
Interesting that Donnie didn't interview Greggers or Mitch for the story. Or perhaps they didn't want to comment???
Doug can take solace in one thing at least. If he's done something to piss Greg Robinson off, he'll get to start fresh next year with the new guy.