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NEW YORK – Former Michigan quarterback Dan Villari switched to tight end last year when he transferred to Syracuse. Saturday, he switched back, dominating Pittsburgh on just five pass attempts in a brand-new scheme. His physicality on the ground bullied the Pitt defense as he fought through contact to fall forward consistently.

In the fourth quarter, by which time Villari had already eclipsed 100 rushing yards, he scored his first collegiate rushing touchdown. On second-and-3, Villari faked the jet sweep handoff and then erupted through a gaping hole in the line of scrimmage for a 27-yard score. He then outran multiple defenders in the open field as he crossed the goal line to give SU a 28-13 lead.

Babers said it was “very difficult” to create a new offense and then hand the reins over to Villari. He and the staff had lots of conversations about how to execute this game plan but believed in Villari’s ability to run the scheme successfully. And he did, without a single negative rush.

“I had no doubt. That’s what I do,” Villari said. “I’m used to running with the ball in wildcat like that, so I was confident and I tried my best to get everyone else on board.”

Prior to Saturday, Villari had three rushing yards and seven snaps at quarterback in two seasons for the Orange. Saturday, he rushed for 154 yards and a touchdown while taking the majority of quarterback snaps for Syracuse (5-5, 1-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) in a 28-13 win over Pittsburgh (2-8, 1-5 Atlantic Coast Conference). Villari’s physicality in a new, motion-heavy offense propelled SU to its first conference win of the season, breaking a five-game skid.

Villari’s impact was felt from the very first drive, when he converted a third-and-11 in the red zone. As soon as he took the snap, Villari put his head down and burst forward into a mass of bodies. He moved the pile for over half of his 12 yards, setting up an integral first-and-goal on the six-yard line.

Two plays later, the Orange scored their first opening drive touchdown of the season. It wouldn’t have been possible without that gritty third-down conversion. From there, Villari only improved. Later drives featured more patience from Villari. He hit his holes and then made defenders pay if they went to tackle him solo. He dragged desperate defenders behind him to gain excess yards throughout. Villari did fumble twice, but neither was lost.

Near the end of the first quarter, Villari hesitated behind the line on a second-and-7, letting his blocks develop, before bursting through a hole Juwuan Price helped create. With a few yards until the line to gain, Villari kept his legs churning for long enough for reinforcements to come. Syracuse and Pitt players converged on the ball, but SU prevailed, pushing Villari forward for a seven-yard gain and a first down.

Syracuse hasn’t gotten that level of rushing prowess from Garrett Shrader since his near-200-yard performance against Purdue, as his health has limited him in certain games. Yet, Babers said the game plan wouldn’t have changed even if Shrader could throw downfield.

“The plan was not based on Garrett’s availability,” Babers said. “It was based off of who we want to be. I just felt like we wanted to get physical. We wanted to go old school.”

After not completing a pass further than one yard down the field last week against Boston College, Barbers needed a change.

Earlier in the week, Babers said Villari wasn’t in the running to play quarterback. Syracuse also didn’t reveal if Shrader would play until minutes before the game. And, while Shrader did start at quarterback and took snaps throughout the game, Villari took the lion’s share of work and no backup quarterbacks took the field.

“We have backup quarterbacks and we feel that Dan is doing a really nice job where he’s at,” Babers said Monday.

In the third quarter, Villari broke another vicious run. Following Price, Villari put his head into his lead blocker and shrugged off any player that touched him. Without a clear rushing lane, he powered through traffic for a 10-yard first down. That led to a 21-yard rushing touchdown which gave Syracuse its first lead of the second half.

After the game, Babers said the team had been practicing that rushing offense since Tuesday, and the team wasn’t 100% sold on the idea at first. But, by the time they got on the plane, Babers said everyone had bought in.

Villari didn’t play a typical quarterback role, yet still led the offense throughout. Midway through the third, he broke his longest run of the game in a fitting, physical fashion. On a third-and-5, Villari took off up the middle on a designed run, cutting past Shayne Simon and Javon McIntyre to keep chugging into the red zone. Villari dragged two defenders on his back before being brought down at the seven-yard line.

This win would have been harder to come by without the aggression Villari exhibited on the ground. Babers boiled the success down to physicality and belief above all else. The team had doubts at first, but this was nothing new for Villari.

“It was just a mix of me running some wildcat, throwing some passes, making some calls to the line,” Villari said. “I was pretty used to it because I played quarterback my whole life, so it wasn’t that hard of a transition.”

Published on November 11, 2023 at 10:52 pm

Contact Wyatt: wbmiller@syr.edu