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TALLAHASSEE, FLA. — Dino Babers didn’t flinch when Syracuse was deep within No. 4 Florida State’s territory on a fourth-and-6 in the third quarter. With Syracuse trailing by three touchdowns at the Seminoles’ 14-yard line, Babers sent out Brady Denaburg to try for a 32-yard field goal.

But the Orange received a delay of game penalty. Denaburg was moved back five yards and his kick sailed wide left. It was a nail-in-the-coffin moment for SU in its 41-3 loss to Florida State.

Annoyed Syracuse fans took to social media, asking why SU didn’t go for it on fourth-and-6. It was already down by three scores and a field goal wouldn’t change much. For Babers, the decision was simple.

“(The coaches) didn’t try to pitch me on making them stay out there and I didn’t think about it,” Babers said.

Another questionable coaching decision came on the Orange’s first drive. Garrett Shrader completed a pass to Umari Hatcher to draw up a fourth-and-1. Babers thought about keeping the offense out, but eventually sent out punter Jack Stonehouse, who finished with nine punts.

“It was too early and too close,” Babers said of calling on Stonehouse. “And I could just envision an explosive offense coming back. So no, I punted.”

The conservative nature of Babers’ decision-making can be infuriating. Surrounded by a hostile environment in Tallahassee against a potential College Football Playoff team with a Heisman Trophy candidate at quarterback, why not be aggressive?

But his decisions, as questionable as they may be, haven’t been enough to shoulder all the blame during these past few weeks. Syracuse’s abysmal stretch on offense in losses against FSU, then-No. 14 North Carolina and Clemson has proven that this program remains a tier below the top powers in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

The Orange have scored three touchdowns since the start of the Clemson game. And Shrader has looked shaky ever since taking a big hit from the Tigers’ Justin Mascoll during the game’s opening drive. Following Saturday’s loss, Babers said Shrader came down with food poisoning the evening prior.

Shrader’s struggles have translated into less receiver production. Stronger opposing defenses have revealed how reliant SU’s passing game had been on Oronde Gadsden II. With Gadsden out for the year, no one has taken up the mantle of WR1. Aside from Damien Alford’s performance against Army, no wide receiver or tight end has tallied over 100 yards all season.

The lack of a passing game hurt the Orange against the Tar Heels in a 40-7 loss, where another controversial Babers decision took place. On the ensuing offensive possession following SU’s first touchdown of the contest, a Joe Cruz false start presented a fourth-and-5 opportunity in UNC territory. But Babers decided to punt, ending a drive that seemed promising with SU down 23-7.

“We’re good on fourth-and-1 and let’s go,” Babers said. “But it’s the difference between fourth-and-1 and fourth-and-6 on a defense…You still have an opportunity to pin them down.”

The Orange did not pin the Tar Heels down, though. Drake Maye connected with Kobe Paysour for a tipped 77-yard catch-and-run touchdown. The punt and ensuing Tar Heel touchdown ensured another blowout loss.

To Babers’ credit, we saw what could happen when you get too aggressive. In No. 8 Oregon’s top 10 matchup with No. 7 Washington, head coach Dan Lanning decided to go for it on fourth-and-3 up 33-29. A first down would’ve ended the game. But when the Ducks didn’t convert, the Huskies went downfield for the game-winning score.

Should Babers get more aggressive? Yes. It would certainly help increase SU’s probability of winning. But has it really mattered? Not in the slightest.

The game was won when…

SU was only down 17-3 at halftime. The game wasn’t out of reach as the defense had stopped FSU twice on fourth down in the second quarter.

But the Syracuse offense looked lethargic. It began the second half with a false start penalty, a batted pass and two LeQuint Allen Jr. rushes that didn’t make a dent. After SU punted, Jordan Travis found Jaheim Bell for a pickup of 39 yards. And following four efficient runs from Trey Benson, Travis faked the handoff and waltzed into the end zone, increasing the Seminole advantage to 24-3.

Denaburg’s missed field goal on the ensuing drive cemented the loss in the third quarter.

Quote of the night: Dino Babers on Florida State’s Keon Coleman

“God was showing off when he made him.”

Coleman finished the day with nine catches, 140 receiving yards and a touchdown. In the first quarter, he ran across the middle on a post route against SU’s Jason Simmons Jr. and made a leaping one-handed grab for an easy FSU first down.

The catch of the day took place just 10 minutes in. Along with multiple catches on third down that served to be back-breaking for Syracuse, Coleman scored on a 58-yard catch-and-run touchdown.

Stat to know: 1

The three-game losing streak against top tier ACC opponents has shown Syracuse’s struggles when it comes to the receiving game. Since facing Clemson, there has only been one SU wide receiver with over 50 receiving yards (Hatcher recorded 85 against the Tar Heels). Hatcher has made some impressive catches, but nothing that influenced the outlook of three blowout losses. His fellow receivers have been worse.

Alford has made three catches across three weeks. Donovan Brown didn’t make a catch on Saturday and has just seven catches and 59 yards over the last three games.

Back in Week 2, when Syracuse beat Western Michigan 48-7, Brown boasted about the receiver depth. They combined for 343 yards. But Gadsden’s exit during that game signaled the loss of Syracuse’s No. 1 option. Though Alford pulled in a career-high 135 receiving yards against Army, the Orange haven’t produced a real receiving threat since. They’ve struggled to create space and make contested catches against elite defensive backs.

Injuries haven’t helped either. Isaiah Jones, who suffered an injury in Week 3 against Purdue, played yesterday but had zero catches. Trebor Pena, who has dealt with a nagging injury all season, didn’t travel with the team for the second consecutive week.

Game ball: LeQuint Allen Jr.

Yes, the Syracuse offense was mostly stagnant on Saturday but Allen Jr. enjoyed a season-high 110 rushing yards at Doak S. Campbell Stadium.

With Shrader out of sorts, the Orange relied on Allen Jr. On Syracuse’s second drive of the game, Allen Jr. received his first touches of the afternoon, gaining a combined 15 yards on back-to-back plays. When SU scored its only points of the game in the second quarter, he rushed for 18 yards on a third-and-5 to set up Denaburg’s 37-yard field goal.

Allen Jr.’s biggest rush from yesterday came in the third quarter. On a third-and-2, he picked up 27 yards by dodging defenders on a jet sweep and was aided by Dan Villari’s second level blocking. While his performance didn’t lead to touchdowns, Allen Jr. gave the Orange a fighting chance, no matter how slim.

Three final points:

Carlos Del Rio-Wilson’s appearance
Babers said he pulled his starting quarterback in the fourth quarter due to Shrader’s food poisoning. In came Carlos Del Rio-Wilson, who went 2-for-9 for 29 yards and generally looked unreliable in the pocket.

Florida State brought the heat. And while Del Rio-Wilson never got sacked, he did have to move around. A lot. On the last offensive play for Syracuse, it was fitting that Del Rio-Wilson threw an interception to FSU’s Greedy Vance Jr. to cement a pathetic offensive display.

Lack of Syracuse penalties
Penalties are typically a touchy subject for Babers. They were the root of his disappointment despite Syracuse’s dominating Week 2 win over Western Michigan. But against the Seminoles, SU got penalized only twice, causing Babers to crack a smile during the postgame presser.

“That was nice,” Babers said about the Orange’s lack of penalties. “We felt that there were certain things we saw on tape where some people were gonna be attacked for their discipline or lack of discipline and we challenged the kids really hard on that. They did a good job on that.”

Jayden Bellamy injury
On Florida State’s third drive of the second half, backup Syracuse cornerback Jayden Bellamy went down. After a first-and-10 play, where Marlowe Wax shut down an FSU screen pass, Bellamy got trapped under a pile up of players. His leg was in a bad spot. Bellamy stayed down on the field for a few minutes before being helped to his feet and carried off the field by trainers.

Babers didn’t offer an update of Bellamy’s injury or status postgame. Bellamy transferred to SU from Notre Dame this past offseason and has gotten increased time during the last two weeks. Against North Carolina, he produced 11 tackles. Before he was taken off, Bellamy recorded six tackles versus the Seminoles.

Next up: Bye week, Virginia Tech

After this brutal three-week stretch, Syracuse can finally rest up. Babers noted the biggest improvement for the offense will come when players get healthier. Pena, Jones and Kalan Ellis all get time to recover from their respective injuries. Babers also said the offense will improve later in the year against weaker defenses.

Syracuse travel to Blacksburg to face Virginia Tech on Oct. 26. The Hokies started off the season losing three of its first four to Purdue, Marshall and Rutgers. But since then, they have picked up double-digit wins over ACC foes like Pittsburgh and Wake Forest.

Even during a loss to FSU last week, VT kept it close deep into the second half. In Week 6’s win over the Demon Deacons, Hokies quarterback Kyron Drones threw for 321 yards and two touchdowns.

Published on October 15, 2023 at 12:18 pm

Contact Henry: henrywobrien1123@gmail.com