Antwon Bailey’s final carry was practically the same as his first. He took a handoff going right, shifted left and turned upfield. The one action the Syracuse running back didn’t plan for on either carry, though, was the fumble.

His last carry in overtime resulted in the final blunder for SU in a game that was full of them. Rutgers linebacker Edmond Laryea forced the ball from Bailey before he hit the turf, and Logan Ryan emerged from the ensuing scramble with the loose ball.

The play was reviewed, but officials confirmed the original call, and the game was over.

‘I thought I was down, but at the end of the day, I need to hang on to the ball,’ Bailey said. ‘That’s all on me.’

The performance of Syracuse’s (3-2, 0-1 Big East) offense was bookended by Bailey’s lost fumbles, with multiple interceptions and various miscalculations in between. Quarterback Ryan Nassib threw three momentum-killing interceptions, and Bailey lost the two fumbles. The sloppy play ultimately cost SU the game in a 19-16 double-overtime loss to the Scarlet Knights (3-1, 1-0 Big East) in front of 42,152 in the Carrier Dome on Saturday.

Bailey’s final fumble ended the game, after San San Te nailed a 47-yard field goal to begin the second overtime to give Rutgers the lead.

‘It’s the No. 1 way to not win a football game,’ SU head coach Doug Marrone said of the turnovers.

The Orange survived two overtime games against Wake Forest and Toledo, but in its third overtime game of the season, the team couldn’t overcome its poor offensive performance.

Marrone said the Orange talked this week about how good the Scarlet Knights defense is at stripping the football. But the Orange failed to execute its game plan and protect the ball. Bailey’s first fumble on the opening possession set the tone for the first half, as the offense couldn’t find its rhythm.

The SU defense redeemed Bailey’s fumble by forcing the ball loose from Scarlet Knights running back Jawan Jamison on the next possession and taking it back for a score.

But the Orange did not score a point on offense in the first half. SU converted only two first downs in the first two quarters.

‘It was tough, but it’s not different than what we’ve experienced before,’ center Macky MacPherson said. ‘We always focus on getting the first first down, which we didn’t accomplish enough.’

Even with good field position coming off a couple of Rutgers turnovers, the Orange found ways to botch golden opportunities to add insurance points.

Marrone pointed to two specific turnovers that he said would be ‘tough’ to handle.

Up 7-0 in the second quarter, SU defensive end Torrey Ball had just recovered a fumble for the Orange in Rutgers territory. Syracuse planned to run a screen pass first, pump faking to the left and tossing the ball back to the right.

But the screen was covered well by Rutgers defensive tackle Justin Francis, who dropped back into coverage, grabbed the pass for an interception and secured it against his 275-pound frame.

‘They dropped (Francis),’ Marrone said, ‘and what Ryan did was pump left, and then his eyes are off what’s going on.’

Then in the third quarter, Scarlet Knights quarterback Gary Nova — who had recently entered for starter Chas Dodd — coughed the ball up on a sack, and Marquis Spruill recovered it for Syracuse at the RU 16-yard line. A 6-yard run by Bailey, who had a sound game with 124 yards and a touchdown despite the two fumbles, moved the ball down to the Rutgers 10.

But in an empty backfield set on first-and-goal from the 5, Nassib’s quick slant to freshman Kyle Foster was tipped in the air. Rutgers safety David Rowe came down with the pick.

‘You can’t expect to win a game when you have five turnovers,’ Nassib said. ‘Leaving all those points on the board is unacceptable.’

Yet in the midst of the Orange’s worst offensive performance of the season, Rutgers was just as inefficient. The Scarlet Knights turned the ball over four times. While Syracuse missed two field goals and an extra point, Rutgers missed three field goals. The result was a 13-13 tie and overtime.

They remained tied in overtime, too — until Bailey’s fumble.

MacPherson said after the game that many of SU’s mishaps on offense fell on the offensive line. So when Bailey walked to the podium for his postgame press conference, he was surrounded by the five members of the starting SU offensive line.

MacPherson, Michael Hay, Andrew Tiller, Zack Chibane and Justin Pugh stood with him, looking like bodyguards as Bailey took questions.

‘He’s a great running back, and we support him all the way, with anything he needs to do,’ MacPherson said. ‘And it’s our responsibility to keep those linebackers from hitting him late so the ball doesn’t come out.’

mcooperj@syr.edu

Published on September 30, 2011 at 12:00 pm

Contact Mark: mcooperj@syr.edu | @mark_cooperjr