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In Syracuse’s 41-36 win over Virginia Tech on Saturday, quarterback Garrett Shrader accounted for five touchdowns and over 400 yards of offense, but SU still nearly lost following several special teams and clock management issues throughout the game.

The Orange had the ball on VT’s one-yard line with 19 seconds and two timeouts left in the second quarter. But head coach Dino Babers had to call two timeouts before Syracuse even got a snap off, sprinting down the field to call the second one before proceeding to enter the field and yell at his offense. Then, Shrader missed Damien Alford on a short pass and SU had to send out the field goal unit. But four-year starting kicker Andre Szmyt missed from 19 yards, and the Orange entered halftime down 19-13.

SU had a “nice kumbaya meeting” at halftime, Babers said, and attributed the late-half mistakes to miscommunications. After halftime, Shrader was able to lead Syracuse down the field twice for touchdowns at the end of the fourth quarter, and he threw a 45-yard, game-winning pass to Alford.

“We’re going to celebrate the good, and we’re going to work doggone hard on the bad,” Babers said.

Here are three takeaways from Babers’ press conference ahead of Syracuse’s game against Boston College on Saturday:

Wide receivers show improvement

Against Virginia Tech, six different SU receivers recorded catches, led by Courtney Jackson who had seven for 86 yards and a touchdown that cut the Orange’s deficit to two in the fourth quarter. Shrader had 16 completions for 236 yards, but he again finished with a completion percentage under 50% — a number he’s only hit twice since becoming Syracuse’s starter ahead of its September game against Liberty.

Since No. 1 receiver Taj Harris announced his decision to enter the transfer portal after a loss against Florida State, Babers and SU’s offense has been forced to replicate Harris’ production with the remainder of the wide receiver unit. Harris’ departure created an opening, Babers said, giving opportunities to other options like Jackson, Alford, Anthony Queeley and Devaughn Cooper.

“They realized there was a vacuum and they realized there was opportunities to fill it,” Babers said. “And everybody is working extremely hard from their standpoint.

Babers said Alford in particular has been learning a lot this season. For every good play like the touchdown catch against Virginia Tech, there’s a bad play like the miscommunication with Shrader from the one-yard line, Babers said. The freshman saw limited time in five games last season, but he stepped up to make a game-winning catch in tight, man-to-man coverage late in Saturday’s game.

“We’re looking forward to when he starts growing some horns because there’s positives and negatives when you’re that young out there, in a lot of ways, but he’s growing and he’s learning and he doesn’t even know what he’s capable of doing. But hopefully someday he does,” Babers said.

Special teams, clock management issues piling up

Throughout the season, Babers has received criticism for his in-game decisions, particularly against Wake Forest and Clemson. Babers accepted a third-down penalty on the Demon Deacons, replaying the down and allowing Wake Forest to pick up a first down and later score a touchdown. Syracuse lost by three points in overtime, costing it a chance at a top-25 win at home.

Against Virginia Tech, Babers used his two timeouts at the end of the first half, and SU came away from the possession with no points. If Szmyt had converted his chip shot for three points, the Orange potentially wouldn’t have needed Alford’s catch in the fourth quarter, since they were down by two points late in the game.

Babers said the crowd noise at Lane Stadium caused Shrader and his center, Josh Ilaoa, to have communication problems throughout the game, particularly late in the half. Airon Servais moved to tackle due to injuries along the offensive line, and Ilaoa and Shrader had issues throughout the game. At one point, Ilaoa snapped the ball too early, forcing Shrader to jump on it to avoid a costly turnover.

In addition to missing the field goal, Szmyt had an extra point blocked by the Hokies and returned for a unique two-point conversion. Babers wouldn’t comment on whether he’s “concerned” about Szmyt, who has missed either a field goal or extra point in five straight games. And when asked whether special teams issues could be mitigated by hiring a special teams coordinator, Babers said “that doesn’t work.”

“It’s not really technical stuff, it’s mistakes made by young people that I’m not going to call out,” Babers said. “I want my coaches to do a better job with reminders and then I want those guys to go out there and do a better job of execution. It’s not rocket science out there.”

Looking toward Boston College

Next up for Syracuse is Boston College, which is the only team in the Atlantic Coast Conference’s Atlantic Division without a win this season. The Eagles are coming off a 28-14 loss at Louisville last Saturday, and they haven’t won a game since beating Missouri at home in overtime on Sept. 25.

SU and BC have played each other every year since the Orange joined the ACC in 2013, and aside from Holy Cross, no other team has played Boston College more than Syracuse has. In regards to the importance of Saturday’s game from a northeast recruiting perspective, Babers said all the other regional schools are “going after the same players.”

Babers said when the Orange play Clemson, the Tigers have several northeast players on their team. Recruiting in the area is “very competitive,” he said. This year’s 2021 SU recruiting class was ranked second-to-last in the ACC and 60th nationally. Of Syracuse’s highest-ranked commits per 247 Sports, only one — cornerback Duce Chestnut — was within 350 miles of the SU campus. Boston College, meanwhile, was ranked eighth in the ACC’s recruiting rankings and had several of its top commits from New Jersey, Massachusetts and Maryland.

“We gotta compete with those guys, but we compete with a lot of other people as well. And the game’s a rivalry game, and it’s a recruiting battle as well,” Babers said. “But right now, it’s just a way for us to get one more win in the ACC.”

Published on October 25, 2021 at 6:01 pm

Contact Connor: csmith49@syr.edu | @csmith17_