Syracuse Continues Their Hot Streak
Syracuse, N.Y. – The JMA Wireless Dome was packed on Saturday with 49,705 fans for Syracuse’s 24-9 win over No.15 over NC State. This was the first sellout game of the year. Winning against NC State was huge for Syracuse. This win marks the first time they’ve gone 6-0 since 1987, and be bowl eligible since 2018.
Minutes before kickoff, NC State announced their starting Quarterback Devin Leary would be out for the game and the remainder of the season. Leary will be getting surgery to repair a torn pectoral muscle. Quarterback Jack Chambers started in his spot.
First Half
To start off the game, Syracuse’s offense was humming on the first possession. Running Back Sean Tucker had a 38 yard run to NC State’s 12 yard line. After that Quarterback Garett Schrader had a run for no gain but then threw a 12 yard touchdown pass to Tight End Oronde Gadsden ll.
Syracuse’s defense was able to hold up well against NC State’s offense the whole game. Particularly, in the first half where NC State was only able to generate one field goal. Their only field goal in the first half came in the middle of the first quarter when Syracuse’s punter Maximilian Von Marburg was backed up at Syracuse’s 15 yard line and had a punt of only 36 yards putting NC State’s offense at their own 49 yard line.
NC State’s offense was able to get to the red zone by Running Back Jordan Houston and Quarterback Jack Chambers constantly making big plays. Houston converted on a crucial 4th&1 on the Syracuse 42 yard line by running for six yards. Chambers was also able to throw an 18 yard pass to Houston while having two Syracuse pass rushers in his face to get NC State in the red zone. NC State wasn’t able to get a touchdown because of all their run plays not having much gain so they had to settle for a field goal.
Syracuse’s offense was able to move the ball down the field throughout the first half and even got a field goal but two interceptions at the end of the second quarter by Garett Schrader cost them points. Sharader’s first interception came around the three minute mark when he thought that Devin Vann had jumped offsides, so he thought he had a free play, and decided to take a shot in the end zone to Damien Alford, but Safety Tanner Ingle had picked it off. Schrader said postgame that he had felt like an idiot.
Schrader’s second interception came at about a minute left in the second quarter. After a 36 yard completion to Oronde Gadsden ll to get them to the NC State 41 yard line he tries to throw a pass up the sideline to Courtney Jackson but gets picked off by Aydan White.
NC State had the ball with around a minute left in the second quarter but weren’t able to generate much offense.
Second Half
To start off, the second half NC State received the ball. They were able to move the ball with Jack Chambers hitting Christopher Toudle for a 21 yard completion and Jack Chambers and Jordan Houston running the ball to get them to the Syracuse 20. NC State wasn’t able to do much from there on that drive. Grant Gibson snapped the ball over Chambers head and NC State had a loss for 12 yards which put them at the Syracuse 24 yard line at 3rd & 14. They had a false start which put them another five yards back and made them have to settle for another field goal which put them down 10-6.
Syracuse on the other hand was able to get their offense moving, and score another touchdown. Schrader once again made big plays to Gadsden converting on a huge nineteen yard pass from the Syracuse 33 yard line to get them to the NC State 39 yard line. In addition, Sean Tucker also made some huge plays to get the chains moving by running for 9 yards to get them to Syracuse’s 33 yard line and also running for 4 yards to get Syracuse closer to NC State’s 24 yard line.
Schrader made some huge plays with his legs, by converting on a critical 4th & 1 so that Syracuse could keep the chains moving. After converting on the huge 4th down Schrader was able to hit Gadsden for a 17 yard touchdown pass.
NC State was able to generate one more field goal midway through the fourth quarter. Jack Chambers was able to get some of his receivers involved throwing a 12 yard pass to Darryl Jones to get their offense to Syracuse’s 36 yard line; Chambers also threw an 8 yard pass to Thayer Thomas to get the offense to the Syracuse 28 yard line.
NC State was eventually able to get to the red zone but they had the same issues that plagued them throughout the game. Their offense just wasn’t able to convert. Jack Chambers on 3rd & Goal got sacked by Jatius Greer and Caleb Okechukwu which made NC State once again have to settle for another field goal putting them down 17-9.
Syracuse on their final possession at the end of the fourth quarter was able to get a touchdown which ended the game away for all intents and purposes. Sean Tucker had some huge runs which included running for 25 yards for a touchdown. Tucker finished the game with 14 carries for 98 yards.
Player Of The Game
The player of the game was Oronde Gadsden ll. He finished with 8 reception for 141 yards and 2 touchdowns. If it wasn’t for him Syracuse would not be able to pull this game out. He was very crucial on Syracuse’s touchdown drives. Especially on the second touchdown drive where he caught a huge 19 yard pass on 2nd & 10 to get them to the NC State 49 yard line.
Injuries
Garett Williams was injured in the beginning of the second quarter when he had tackled Jack Chambers for a loss of five yards. Coach Dino Babers had said after the game that he told Williams he expected him back lickety split .
Looking Ahead
Syracuse will face off against No.4 Clemson on October 22 at 12:00 PM EST. The game will air on ABC.