One of Syracuse’s greatest strengths this year was one of its glaring weaknesses a year ago, yet there has been no silver bullet to Syracuse’s third-down improvements. The personnel is largely the same, SU’s Tampa 2 defense has changed slightly and redshirt junior Antwan Cordy, a leader of the defense, has not played since the first quarter of the season.

A handful of tweaks to the scheme, coupled with increased maturity, has provided SU the bolstered third-down unit it needs to stay competitive. Syracuse is tied for the sixth-best third-down defense in the country, holding opponents to just a 24.7 percent conversion rate. It’s part of an overall much-improved defense from 2016, when SU ranked 82nd in third-down defense (41.4 percent) and 122nd in defensive yards allowed.

Backed by a defense that returned 13 of its top 14 tacklers from a year ago, SU’s third-down stops have become a crucial aspect of the team’s identity. Saturday’s dominant third-down performance in a narrow victory over Pittsburgh accentuated that Syracuse may be able to contend against Top 25 teams in large part because of the defense it fields.

“The primary focus is stopping the run,” said SU second-year head coach Dino Babers. “When we get them off schedule, in a position they don’t really like to be in, no team likes to be in third and long. We’ve done a decent job at that so far. If we do that on Saturdays, we’ll be in a good position.”

Third-down defense has correlated with overall success. And even in SU’s losses, the Orange has benefited from consistent stops on third down to stay in the game. In a 23-20 loss, SU held Middle Tennessee to 3-for-12. Though the Orange struggled against LSU, which converted on 7-of-13 third downs, Syracuse rebounded at North Carolina State, holding the Wolfpack’s high-powered offense to 3-of-12.

Through six games, SU pass-rushers showed speed and power in getting to opposing quarterbacks. Bringing QBs down has proved tougher, as SU has only six sacks in as many games.

“The D-Line, overall, we’re getting a lot of pressure,” said sophomore defensive lineman Kendall Coleman, who has nine tackles and a pair of QB hurries. “The next step is finishing the play, with QB hurries, sacks. Those are game-changers.”

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Last year, Syracuse struggled to get off the field even in third-and-long situations. Syracuse’s Tampa 2 defense is a zone coverage scheme where two cornerbacks are responsible for about one-quarter of the field on either sideline. Two safeties are in control of deep halves with the middle linebacker dropping back into coverage to fill in the middle. That puts an added onus on senior linebacker Zaire Franklin. Because it is a zone with a tendency to sag, it doesn’t favor sack-happy defenders.

That hasn’t mattered much, though, because the Syracuse defense continued to buckle down after the first two downs, shutting the door on third down against Pittsburgh. SU allowed just three conversions on 13 attempts and held Pitt to 0-for-10 in the first half.

One series in particular works as a snapshot for the larger point. In the third quarter, Alton Robinson got a hit on quarterback Max Browne for a loss of eight. Browne tried to throw the ball but fumbled after Robinson’s hit. Pitt recovered, but Browne lay on the turf before heading to the locker room. It backed up the Panthers in another third-and-long, from which Pitt didn’t convert and was forced to punt.

“You come in at halftime and you see that the opposing team has not converted a third down,” Babers said. “That’s absolutely amazing stuff.”

Coleman and Franklin pointed to maturity as a reason for success. Last year, the Syracuse defense was a glaring problem amid an otherwise powerful offense. The success comes without Cordy, a safety who ranked second on the Orange with 68 tackles as a sophomore in 2015. He has played all of eight quarters over the past two seasons. Compensating for his loss speaks to Syracuse’s depth.

“We’re going to be more fresh this year,” said sophomore defensive lineman Josh Black, who has eight tackles and a QB hurry. “We’re not going to be playing all these snaps in a row, we’re going to have fresh legs coming on third down.”

Syracuse plays three preseason Top 25 teams over the next three weeks and will need to fend off quality offenses fast, coming on stronger than the previous six games. Third-down defensive success will be a facet of overall competitiveness.

“We need to continue to do the exact same thing to have a chance to compete,” Babers said.

Published on October 10, 2017 at 10:17 pm

Contact Matthew: mguti100@syr.edu | @MatthewGut21