Syracuse Football Loses Final Game of the Season

Story by Jude Allume 
Photo by Peter Benson

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The Syracuse Orange (4-8) lost its fifth straight game in blowout fashion to the Boston College Eagles (7-5) 42-14 at the Carrier Dome to end the season, Saturday afternoon.

"When you're playing the type of team that we're playing, you have to be able to exchange punches with them," Orange head coach Dino Babers said. "What you saw was a boxer and a brawler and it's a physical game. You get hit, you get hit, you got to hit back. It comes a point you get tired of doing it."

The Start of a Long Day

From their first possession, the Eagles' offense gave the Orange a taste of what would take place all day. With Boston College backup quarterback Darius Wade filling in for the injured Anthony Brown, the Eagles leaned heavily on their running attack. Running back AJ Dillon capped off the drive with a 22 yard touchdown run for the early 7-0 lead.

With Eric Dungey out for the third straight week, redshirt freshman Rex Culpepper got the start and the Orange responded with a scoring drive of its own. After a kick out of bounds gave Syracuse possession with good field position, the Orange picked up three first downs before the drive was capped off by a 37 yard catch and run by Steve Ishmael to even the score at 7.

That was the closest Syracuse would get for the remainder of the day however, as the Eagles went on to score rushing touchdowns on three of their first four possessions, building up a 21-7 lead halfway through the second quarter.

Have a Day, AJ

The Orange had no answers for the Eagles' running game. True freshman AJ Dillon led the BC running attack with three touchdowns and 196 yards. The Eagles finished the game with 333 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns.








Bright Spot for the Orange

Steve Ishmael had the best game of his collegiate career, finishing with 11 receptions for a career high 187 yards and one touchdown. Ishmael broke two school records with his performance, surpassing the single-season receptions record of 94 catches and career receiving yards record of 2,728 yards. On the season Ishmael has 105 catches for 1,347 yards, good for second and third in the NCAA respectively.

Tough Goodbye for the Seniors

The loss was not the preferred way to end the season for the Orange, especially for the seniors who played their final game for Syracuse and for some, possibly the last game of their careers.

“When a football player retires from college, there’s nowhere to go,” Babers said. “Twenty-two guys aren’t playing in the park with pads.”

Instead of letting the loss sting as the final memory of a long season, with five seconds remaining in the game, Babers called timeout. One by one, he called off the seniors on defense including Zaire Franklin and Parris Bennett and embraced them as they walked off the field to the cheers of those left in the crowd.

"I was very surprised," Bennett said. "I definitely appreciated it though. Definitely very emotional. You don't really realize it's your last game at the Dome until it's over with."

What's Next

Boston College completed its regular season at 7-5 and awaits an invitation to a bowl game.

Syracuse finishes the season at 4-8 for the third straight year and fails to qualify for a bowl game for the fourth straight year.

Seniors Save the Day

Story and photo by Lauren Walsh

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The Syracuse seniors marched out of the tunnel with smiling faces, surrounded by their families to honor them on Senior Day. However, Binghamton nearly spoiled that bliss for the Orange at the Carrier Dome, Saturday afternoon.

In a back-and-forth game, No. 1 Syracuse (11-1, 4-0 ACC) managed to hold on to a 9-8 victory over Binghamton (10-3, 3-2 America East) in its ninth one-goal game of the season.

Head coach John Desko highlighted offensive struggles for Syracuse as a main contributor to the close score. He credited the defense for keeping Syracuse in the game throughout the afternoon.

“It turned into a dogfight in the second half,” Desko said. “Their game plan was a lot of long possessions, so hats off to the defense. They really gutted it out.”

Senior Standouts

Jordan Evans and Nick Mariano headlined the senior contributions. Evans had three goals on eight shots and picked up two ground balls. Mariano, the Syracuse sharpshooter was a little quieter than usual with three shots on the day and just one making it in net for a goal.

“A lot of emotion to start the day with Senior Day,” Desko said.

Syracuse goalie Evan Molloy, a redshirt senior, had nine saves in the win, including stoning Griffin Konen from point-blank range on what would have been the tying goal with eleven seconds left.

“I got a little emotional today,” Molloy said. “Obviously seeing those seniors walk out, there’s just something special about today. I really just took it in.”

One senior who doesn’t necessarily grab your eye on the score sheet is Scott Firman. He quietly anchors the Orange defense and shuts down the most prolific scorers in the ACC. Against Binghamton Firman had three ground balls and two caused turnovers.

Despite his 40 points on the season, redshirt senior Sergio Salcido put up a goose egg in the points column Saturday.

“He kept trying to make something happen and a lot of them turned into bad decisions,” Desko said.


Orange Offense Struggles

Syracuse surged to a 4-1 lead in the first quarter, but fell behind 5-4 in the second, before Evans and Mariano put the Orange back up 6-5 at the half. But the Bearcats' defense shut down the Orange in the third quarter, getting ahead 7-6, until Evans tied it with four seconds left in the quarter.

Goals by Ryan Simmons and Jamie Trimboli gave the Orange a 9-7 lead with 9:43 left, but Syracuse did not score again. When Tom Moore netted his fifth goal of the game to put Binghamton within one at 2:38, it set the stage for Molloy's heroics and yet another one-goal Syracuse win.

Syracuse's ace faceoff man Ben Williams, struggled at the X, with the Bearcats' Austin Macchi taking 12 of 20 draws. Still, Williams passed Chris Cercy in the third quarter to become SU's all-time faceoff wins leader. Williams ended the game with 626 career faceoff wins in just three years.

Defense to the Rescue

Desko said defense saved Syracuse from an upset. 

“We needed to roll up our sleeves and really get between positions on the offensive ends and we didn’t do that,” Desko said.

The Orange forced 14 turnovers on the defensive end. The Bearcats beat SU in the ground ball game 27-22. Not to forget, Binghamton’s Tom Moore netted five goals past Molloy.

Despite some of those defensive shortcomings, the Syracuse defense bailed out a less aggressive offense after a disappointing practice week according to Desko.

“I didn’t think we had a great week of practice last week,” he said. “We need to pick it up again this week.”

Jordan Evans echoed his coach on Syracuse’s rather flat offensive performance. “Our goal as a team has been to get better each game that we play,” Evans said. “I don’t think the bar was set as high today as it has been in past games.”

Although Syracuse forced 14 turnovers, the team also turned the ball over 13 times throughout the game. Desko said overall there were too many turnovers and too many bad decisions from SU.

ACC Tournament Time

The one-goal win over Binghamton was the Orange’s last regular season game in the Carrier Dome and its last game before the ACC Tournament.

Last year Syracuse was the ACC Tournament champion, but had a rather early exit in the NCAA Tournament in a 13-7 loss to Maryland.

This year the  No. 1 seed Orange takes on  No. 4 seed UNC in the first round at Duke.

Earlier this season, Syracuse beat the Tar Heels 12-11 in overtime at Chapel Hill. Sergio Salcido scored the game-winner for  Syracuse’s third overtime win of the season. SU is 8-1 in its nine one-goal games this season.

UNC is 6-7 overall this season and 1-5 in the ACC.

The "Cardiac ‘Cuse" begins the first round of the tournament at 6 p.m. on Friday. The other semi pits Notre Dame against Duke.

Hunt Needs to Bring Back Faith to Orange Nation

By Ethan Joyce

Coming into the season, Syracuse was expected to run the football and do it well. The Orange would ride its horses into the ACC to establish the program’s credibility.

The team struggled at first, breaking the 200-yard rushing mark only once (against Wagner) in its first four games. Other than that, the rushing attack seemed stunted.

Now, after two games against Clemson and N.C. State, we see the attack forming. In both instances, Syracuse took advantage of two average run defenses—N.C. State is ranked 52nd in the nation in run defense and Clemson is 64th.

This week’s opponent, Georgia Tech, serves as a very interesting one; one that is similar to Syracuse.

Both teams rely heavily on running attacks that rank in the top 25 of the nation (Georgia Tech is No. 6; Syracuse is No. 22), and both teams boast a rush defense that ranks in the top 30 (Syracuse is 22nd; Georgia Tech is 30th).

This game is likely to be run-heavy and something’s got to give.

Jerome Smith, Prince-Tyson Gulley and Terrel Hunt rank fourth, 11th and 18th in the ACC in rushing yards and Smith leads the league with eight rushing touchdowns.

But for the run to remain effective, Hunt must step up his passing performance.

Look at a comparison between two quarterbacks in a two-game span:

                            Completion Percentage        Throwing Yards          TD’s            INT’s   

Player A                         54.6                                   468                        1                   4

Player B                         41.6                                   126                        0                   5

Player A is Drew Allen during the first two games of the season, against Penn. St. and Northwestern. Player B is Terrel Hunt in the last two games, against Clemson and N.C. State.

Though it’s a small sample size, Hunt played poorly in his last two starts and you could argue Allen’s first starts came against two tougher defenses.

Allen was easy to criticize, being the new guy who stole the starting spot. His reputation grew off speculation and talent. His downfalls were lack of mobility behind shaky pass protection and his own inexperience.

Hunt earned the right to start and in his first two games, looked like he might be the answer at quarterback. Wins are always encouraging, but against the likes of Wagner and Tulane, they should be taken with a grain of salt.

Hunt is dealing with the same inexperience bug that Allen caught, but he has a longer leash to work with because head coach Scott Shafer took a chance, endorsing him with the quarterback change.

But that shouldn’t be taken for granted by Hunt or the fans.

This game is the game, and the rest of the schedule won’t be any easier: playing away against previously-ranked Maryland and No. 5 Florida State and at home against a Boston College team that led No. 3 Clemson last Saturday.

Playing well against a respectable Georgia Tech pass-defense unit (ranked sixth in the ACC) would be a great accomplishment for Hunt.

He doesn't need to throw five touchdowns. He doesn't need to pass for 400 yards.

All the team needs for him to do is play in the system. Throw for 150 to 200 yards. Toss a touchdown or two. Try not to throw an interception and don’t take unnecessary risks. Ride your horses to this victory and just help hold the reins.

Terrel Hunt is a sophomore. He doesn't need to be a star, much less a Heisman Trophy candidate. All he needs to do right now is show the capability to play effectively against better teams and grow in the system he plays in.

Coach Shafer had the faith to put the ball in his hands. Now, Hunt needs to transfer that faith to the fans. He must prove that giving him the starting position wasn’t a mistake. And all that starts with this week’s game.

Tigers Give Syracuse Plenty to Worry About

Syracuse head coach Scott Shafer

By Ethan Joyce

Syracuse head coach Scott Shafer is in his 23rd year of coaching. So when he said Clemson’s receiving corps are the best combination of wideouts he has seen in a long time, it carries some weight.

Speaking in the weekly installment of the ACC’s coaches’ teleconference, Shafer praised the group on Wednesday while talking about the upcoming game against the third-ranked Clemson Tigers.

Shafer said dealing with potential Heisman-winning quarterback Tajh Boyd is tough enough. But when you throw guys such as Sammy Watkins, Martavis Bryant and Germone Hopper, you have a potent offensive attack.

“He’s one of the best quarterbacks I’ve seen in a long time in college football,” Shafer said. “He can make all the throws, got a quick release, and they have a great offensive coordinator who understands their offense and taught kid really well how to play.”

Sammy Watkins is still the number-one option, with 355 yards on the season. But Bryant, Hopper and Watkins are tied for the team lead in touchdown receptions, with two apiece,  for a Clemson team leading the nation in red-zone efficiency.

That is a lot of responsibility for a Syracuse secondary that most fans consider less than formidable.

Shafer is looking for senior cornerbacks Ri’Shard Anderson and Keon Lyn to lead the defensive effort.

“Keon’s been there, and Ri’Shard’s been there,” Shafer said. “They’ve gone against some of the best at times throughout their careers.

“Great challenge [for them]. We’ve just got to have a good game plan to help them out a little bit here and there.”

The Syracuse defense currently ranks 48th in the nation in total defense, 15 spots above Clemson. That said, the Orange’s defensive stats have been padded by blowout victories against Wagner and Tulane.

Shafer was quick to point out that on the defensive side of the ball, Clemson is underrated. Shafer says Syracuse’s run-oriented style will have to prove its worth against them.

“You never know until you go in there and fight with people,” Shaffer said. “I like our running backs, and the offensive line continues to get better.

“I still believe, if we run the ball, we can play with everybody.”

Jerome Smith, who six rushing touchdowns lead the ACC, will carry the bulk of the rushing offense for Syracuse.

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney

Dabo Swinney, Clemson’s head coach, says Smith could create some problems for his defense.

“That running back, number 45(Smith), he’s a load,” Swinney said. “He is a big, strong, physical back that you’re just going to tackle for four quarters because he just keeps coming.”

Swinney is also impressed with the way quarterback Terrel Hunt has played in the pocket and stays cool under pressure.

“They’ve given up only four sacks,” Swinney said. “Part of that is a function of what they do in their passing game.”

“That ball is out quick. A lot of quick gain. A lot of throws in rhythm. They’re not a big drop back, stand there, sit-in-the-pocket type of deal.”

So far this season, Hunt has thrown for seven touchdowns and rushed for two more. Eight of those touchdowns have come during the last two games.

Shafer said his sophomore quarterback needs to remember to approach this game like he would any other.

“He needs to continue to throw the ball to the guys who are open,” Shaffer said. He cites the fact that Hunt threw to 11 different receivers in the Tulane game, and hopes he will continue to see the field.

“We don't want him to press, and we don't want him to turn into anything more than a quarterback trying to be productive in this offensive system,” Shafer said. “As long as he does that, we’ll have a shot.”

The kickoff time for the game is 3:30 p.m. This is the homecoming game for Syracuse this season. In last year’s homecoming, the team beat then ninth-ranked Louisville Cardinals, its last Big East regular-season home game.

The game will be televised regionally on ABC and nationally on ESPN2. Newhouse alum Sean McDonough will be calling the game.