Syracuse's steady success is all a matter of time.(college football)

Allen Griffin can see the difference when he watches other teams play on television. He sees freshman point guards and sophomore captains, inexperienced players who must make significant on-court decisions. He hears announcers discuss whether these young players might spend next winter in the NBA. This is not how things are done at Syracuse.

Not anymore.

"Like Eddie Griffin (Seton Hall). I think he's a great talent," says Allen Griffin, a senior point guard for Syracuse. "But there are things he's going to learn to make him a great college player. It takes some time."

Those who play serious minutes for Syracuse mostly have put in that time, which is one reason Syracuse never stops being Syracuse no matter how confidently anyone predicts that will happen. The Orangemen began the season with nine consecutive victories and a Great Alaska Shootout championship even though TSN rated them No. 64 at the start. Their only loss is to No. 7 Tennessee.

"We always have a senior class," says first-year Syracuse assistant Troy Weaver, quickly becoming indoctrinated to the ways of the Orange.

This no longer is the Syracuse that built its legend m me 1980s with rosters bloated with McDonald's All-Americans. But that's OK. Coach Jim Boeheim has since concocted a winning formula by collecting athletic wing players with perimeter shooting skill-players such as Preston Shumpert and DeShaun Williams--and aligning them in a 2-3 zone defense.

Syracuse's access to elite talent slackened after the 1992-93 team missed the NCAA Tournament because of sanctions. The team hasn't signed a McDonald's All-American out of high school since John Wallace in 1992. It hasn't mattered much.