Raleigh, N.C. -- A look at the highlights and lowlights from Syracuse’s 41-17 loss at North Carolina State on Saturday.
Best performance: North Carolina State has lost two of the ACC’s better linebackers to injury this season. The lone remaining starter, Drake Thomas, was the star for the Wolfpack against Syracuse.
The Wolfpack’s middle linebacker jumped a short route over the middle for an interception, racing 38 yards back down the field for a defensive score to give North Carolina State a 14-0 lead with 5:25 remaining in the first half.
He also stopped Syracuse’s best drive of the first half with a tackle on Garrett Shrader and finished with eight tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss.
Worst performance: Syracuse’s passing game. The inability to pass remains an anchor weighing the Orange down as the season drags on. SU has thrown for 172 yards over its last three games combined and has failed to clear 100 yards in any of them.
The issues are multiple. Syracuse doesn’t have downfield threats, so its receivers are getting pressed at the line of scrimmage and they aren’t good at countering that either. Without fullback Chris Elmore or offensive linemen Chris Bleich and Carlos Vettorello, the pass-blocking isn’t holding up nearly as well, giving the receivers limited time and allowing five sacks. And quarterback Garrett Shrader seems to be misfiring with frequency, completing just 8-of-20 passes for 63 yards.
Worst pass: On the second play of the second half, Syracuse tried to get Shrader on the move by rolling him out to the right. The movement bought SU wide receiver Devaughn Cooper time to get open downfield and he utilized it to get wide open in the secondary. Shrader’s throw on the move was way short and Syracuse got an incompletion on what should have been a big gain.
The Orange trailed 28-7 at the time and was desperate for something good to happen. It should have. But it didn’t.
Best milestone: Syracuse running back Sean Tucker broke Joe Morris’ single-season rushing record with a 17-yard gain on 1st-and-10 with 10:26 left in the second quarter. Tucker had been held to minus-3 yards before the drive but opened Syracuse’s third drive by rattling off two-straight first down runs, including the record-setter. Morris’ record of 1,372 yards had stood since 1979.
Best SU performance: Sean Tucker. The running back carried 13 times for 105 yards, clearing the 100-yard mark for the ninth time in 11 games. He’ll enter next week with a chance at leading the country in rushing. He didn’t get nearly enough help.
Best Syracuse play: Syracuse used a little misdirection to get Tucker free for a 55-yard run with 3:16 left in the first half. The Orange flowed one way before reversing the ball, and quarterback Garrett Shrader served as a blocker to seal the edge for Tucker.
Biggest momentum change: Following Tucker’s touchdown, North Carolina State’s Zonovan Knight took advantage of a huge hole through the middle of the field, returning the ensuing kickoff 97 yards. Syracuse’s performance on the play was poor. Knight was largely untouched, shaking off a weak attempt at a shoulder tackle at midfield and then stayed upright over the final 5 yards as the Orange tried to drag him down and tug at the ball. The Wolfpack led 21-7 and rolled the rest of the way.
Biggest hit: North Carolina State safety Derrek Pitts Jr. delivered a heavy blow to Syracuse wide receiver Damien Alford as the Orange freshman went over the middle in the second quarter. The hit was clean, a shoulder to the sternum, but ramped up emotions on both sides.
Best offensive play of the first quarter: The first quarter was a hideous display of offensive football. The longest offensive play was 13 yards. It came courtesy of North Carolina State quarterback Devin Leary, who scrambled for 13 yards on the last play of the quarter. The Wolfpack was facing a 3rd-and-10. Syracuse dropped into a deep zone. Leary had acres of green grass and slid awkwardly, in a slide-stumble-drive combination.
Most amusing moment: With just three plays remaining in the first quarter, a 4th-and-17 forced Syracuse to punt from the North Carolina State 37-yard-line. The Orange tried to get some extra room by taking a delay of game. The Wolfpack declined. Syracuse punter Ian Hawkins did a nice job by pinning the Wolfpack at the 6.
Worst sight: Syracuse senior defensive lineman Josh Black has been one of the faces of the program this season. A positive presence, fun personality and a senior that chose to come back to the school seeking to close his football career with something other than a one-win season.
Black went down with an injury with 7:47 left in the first quarter and did not return. Black threw his helmet on the ground as he entered the injury tent on the SU sideline and was wearing a sling in the second half.
Worst sign: Along with Syracuse’s poor passing game on offense, the Orange has surrendered an average of 40.7 points per game when playing above-average quarterbacks in the ACC (my list includes Sam Hartman, Malik Cunningham and, now, Devin Leary).
The Wolfpack did score 14 of its points on Saturday on non-offensive scores, but that’s also two possessions the offense didn’t get.
The league’s best quarterback, Kenny Pickett, is up next and leads a Pitt team that is excellent at stopping the run.
Contact Chris Carlson anytime: Email | Twitter | 315-412-1639
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