SU Football Loses Champs Sports Bowl

Box Score

ORLANDO, Fla. – The Syracuse football team lost, 51-14, to Georgia Tech on Tuesday, December 21, in the Champs Sports Bowl at Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium in Orlando, Fla. Senior wide receiver Jared Jones finished the day with six catches for 61 yards. Jones finishes his career with 102 receptions and 1,189 yards, becoming the seventh SU receiver to tally over 100 receptions and 1000 yards.

Jones’ 102 receptions ties him with Art Monk for sixth all-time at SU. Junior wide receiver Steve Gregory had five receptions for 66 yards and his first career touchdown catch. Sophomore quarterback Perry Patterson threw for 219 yards on 21-of-34 passing with one touchdown and one interception. Patterson also rushed for a score. Junior running back Damien Rhodes had four catches for 41 yards and ran for 14 yards on nine carries. Senior tailback Walter Reyes left the game in the first half after aggravating a shoulder injury.

Georgia Tech quarterback Reggie Ball finished the game 12-of-19 for 207 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Ball also ran for 38 yards and a touchdown. Running back P.J. Daniels finished with 119 yards on 17 carries and two touchdowns. Wide receiver Calvin Johnson had two catches for 61 yards and a touchdown and rushed twice for 12 yards and one touchdown. Wide out Nate Curry had three catches for 105 yards and a touchdown.

The Orange fell behind 7-0 on the second play of the game as Chris Reis returned an interception 20 yards for a touchdown just 41 seconds into the game. Syracuse answered with an eight-play, 69-yard drive capped by a Patterson 21-yard touchdown run. SU missed the ensuing point-after attempt and trailed 7-6 with 6:24 left in the opening quarter.

The Yellow Jackets scored four unanswered touchdowns in the first half, including three in a span of 3:09. Georgia Tech drove 80 yards in 10 plays and Ball found Johnson for a 10-yard scoring strike, to make the score 14-6. The Orange punted on its next possession and Ball found Curry on the next play for an 80-yard touchdown. SU was forced to punt again and the Yellow Jackets blocked the punt and recovered it at the Syracuse 14-yard line. Daniels scored on a two-yard touchdown run to give Georgia Tech a 28-6 advantage with 13:27 left in the second quarter.

The Yellow Jackets added another first-half touchdown with 1:32 on the clock as Johnson tallied his second score of the night, a five-yard run.

Senior free safety O’Neil Scott tallied his second interception in as many weeks on the Jackets’ opening possession in the second half. The Orange went three and out on its ensuing possession. Georgia Tech tacked on two touchdowns in the second half on runs by Ball and Daniels, to give the Yellow Jackets a 49-6 lead.

Patterson hooked up with Gregory at the 11:22 mark of the fourth quarter for a 25-yard touchdown. SU converted the two-point attempt on a pass from Rhodes to tight end Brandon Darlington, his first career reception. It was Rhodes’ second two-point pass of his career. Against North Carolina in 2002, he connected with David Tyree for a two-point conversion.

Georgia Tech recorded a safety late in the fourth quarter to make the final score 51-14.

Scott finished with a game-high 12 tackles, including 10 solo. Senior safety Diamond Ferri posted his sixth forced fumble and fourth fumble recovery of the year, and tallied eight tackles, including six solo. Redshirt freshman defensive tackle Tony Jenkins had six tackles, including five solo and two behind the line of scrimmage. Sophomore linebacker Jerry Mackey had nine tackles, including seven solo and one for a loss. Sophomore cornerback Tanard Jackson recovered a fumble with 1:12 left in the game, in addition to his four solo tackles.

Syracuse University Athletics

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