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EAST HARTFORD, Conn. — When Chris Elmore went down against Louisville, the question for Syracuse became who? Who could possibly replace a 6-foot, 286-pound sixth-year senior who had played offensive line, tight end and fullback over the course of his year. As Dino Babers said postgame against UConn, nobody could. It’s not possible. Elmore missed eight games last season, but in his 52 career appearances, he was a difference maker, paving the way for Sean Tucker on the ground and helping keep SU’s quarterbacks upright.

“He is a valuable member of what we do, and we don’t have anyone that can replace him,” Babers said of Elmore. “All I remember is a lot of guys getting yelled at for about three different jobs (and) Elmore did all those jobs, and he wouldn’t have gotten yelled at all. So we can’t replace him.” 

But after Elmore suffered a season-ending, lower-body injury last week against Louisville, the Orange needed to find a who. Or maybe multiple of them. They needed to still create holes for Tucker, give Shrader time to throw in the pocket and maybe even diversify their receiving options. 

Against Connecticut on Saturday night, Syracuse (2-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast) did all those things while demolishing the Huskies (1-2), 48-14. Tight ends Oronde Gadsden II and Max Mang, among others, stepped into the void left by Elmore and helped the Orange to their second straight blowout win. The pair helped Tucker take 27 carries for 112 yards and a touchdown, assisted Shrader in his five-touchdown performance (complete with just three incompletions and only three sacks allowed) and brought in four catches for a combined 51 yards. 

“They’ve been doing a lot of different stuff,” Shrader said postgame of Gadsden and Mang. “They’re protection-orientated first, and then leaking out in the flat and that’s when we started to hit them… But just using them within their skill set is the biggest thing.” 

Knowing that he was now one of the main guys responsible for Elmore’s production, Gadsden said he turned to the veteran fullback for help this week. Elmore pointed out who to block, and also helped Gadsden work on hand and shoulder placement while blocking. Gadsden said it’s a clean 50/50 split between the time he spends working on blocking and receiving in practice since Syracuse runs all its plays while preparing for games. So when a run play is called for Tucker, Gadsden is in there blocking. And if it’s a call for Shrader to throw downfield, Gadsden lines up as an additional receiving target. 

At 6-foot-5, 216-pounds, Gadsden is undersized as a tight end, but does provide a valuable asset for SU in the receiving game given his height. Since Babers became head coach in 2016, Syracuse hasn’t used tight ends in its passing attack often. But the hiring of Robert Anae as its new offensive coordinator may be changing that. Wide receiver Damien Alford said in the spring that tight ends were becoming more involved in the passing game, “opening up everything” as a result. 

After tight ends recorded just eight receptions total over last season, Gadsden and Mang have now registered seven over the first two games. Gadsden feels he has “a lot more freedom” this year, particularly on plays where Shrader is forced to scramble outside the pocket.

Two of Gadsden’s three catches against the Huskies came on those scramble plays, with the tight end finding open space downfield. Gadsden was featured heavily on the Orange’s first drive, appearing as a passing target, blocker up front and in the backfield next to Shrader. With Syracuse facing a 2nd and 1 on UConn’s 38-yard line, Shrader’s first few targets weren’t open, and he scrambled left as Gadsden worked his way toward open space, bringing in the catch at the 22 for an SU first down. 

Later in the half, Shrader had plenty of time to throw before finding Gadsden open over the middle for a 17-yard gain. The tight end was tackled at the 18, and two plays later, Shrader hit Courtney Jackson for a touchdown, giving the Orange a 27-7 lead just before halftime. 

Shrader said SU had a few plays designed for its tight ends heading into the night, and was able to convert on a few of them. Syracuse found plenty of success converting on throws over the middle, especially against UConn’s zone defense. Gadsden said they were focused on finding the soft spot in the middle of the Huskies’ zone when they ran a “23” blitz that involved three defenders staying high up with two below them. Against man coverage, Gadsden said SU was trying to connect with outside receivers Alford and D’Marcus Adams over the top because UConn simply “couldn’t keep up with our outside dudes.”

Coming off a very efficient performance against Louisville, Shrader again performed well Saturday, throwing for 287 yards and three touchdowns. He connected with nine different wideouts, including five players at least three times. While the Orange don’t have a go-to receiver like they did in the early years of Babers’ tenure, they have cultivated a deep core of players for Shrader to turn to. 

Babers said Shrader will throw to whoever he has the best connection with. Saturday, that was Tucker four times, but Gadsden finished as receiver number two with three catches for 45 yards. Mang also doubled his career receptions total with another grab, in addition to his work blocking. Gadsden said the 6-foot-7, 262-pound German has gotten even stronger since last year, and hasn’t lost any of his physicality. 

While Shrader, Tucker and the big plays they help create may earn most of the spotlight, Syracuse’s continued success this season will rely on their play up front and how their passing options develop. So far, through two games, the results have been positive.

Published on September 11, 2022 at 12:22 am

Contact Connor: csmith49@syr.edu | @csmith17_