Sunday Sidebar: Learning on the Fly
11/18/2018 11:00:00 AM | Football
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – On national television in front of a sellout crowd of 48,104 inside Yankee Stadium, Syracuse went head-to-head with one of the best teams in the country and came up short.
The 36-3 setback against No. 3 Notre Dame snapped the Orange's four-game winning streak and spoiled the team's opportunity to finish the season unbeaten in non-conference play.
"[Notre Dame] was a doggone good football team," head coach Dino Babers said after the game. "You can't dismiss what they did. We've got to rebound, and we've got to play much better than we did."
What did Notre Dame do? The Irish defense held Syracuse's offense, which had been averaging 44.4 points a contest, to a season-low 115 passing yards and forced three first-half turnovers. The Irish's pass rush was relentless, generating six sacks.
Syracuse's ground attack, meanwhile, was limited to 119 yards. The Orange failed to score a rushing touchdown for the first time this season.
"[Notre Dame] turned the game from chess to checkers," Babers said. "There was numerous passing combinations that we called, and you looked out there and everybody was covered. If there's coverage, there's nowhere for the quarterback to throw the ball to.
"We attempted to do some things [on the ground], and they closed off some gaps with their length. They're very, very long as a defensive football team and because of that length they're able to cover up a lot more space in the gaps."
Amid the struggles against the Irish, however, Syracuse's promise and potential was apparent.
Safety Andre Cisco carded his team-high eighth pass breakup and tallied his sixth interception of the season, which is the most of any freshman in the FBS and is tied for second-most in the country. The Orange defense has forced a turnover in 12 straight games dating back to the 2017 season finale against Boston College, the longest active games with a takeaway streak in the ACC.
Wideout Taj Harris had five catches for 78 yards and now has 33 receptions on the season. He's tied with Shelby Hill (1990) for the most receptions in program history by a freshman.
Kicker Andre Szmyt connected on a 28-yard field goal to break the ACC single-season record for most made field goals. The kick was his 28th make of the year, eclipsing the previous record of 27 which he shared with Florida State's Sebastian Janikowski (1998), Gary Cismesia (2007), Roberto Aguayo (2014) and Clemson's Greg Huegel (2015).
Ranked and guaranteed a trip to the postseason for the first time since 2013, Syracuse has one more regular-season game remaining. It's against rival Boston College on the road. Syracuse will use this week to learn from the Notre Dame setback and return to playing their brand of football.
"This will make them grow up," Babers said. "They will go home, and they'll hurt. All those open wounds will turn to closed scars. We'll get better, and we'll remember.
"If it doesn't kill you, it makes you better. We're going to grow from this. There's no doubt about it."
For complete coverage of Syracuse football, follow us on Twitter (@CuseFootball), Instagram (@CuseFootball) and like us on Facebook (Syracuse Football).
The 36-3 setback against No. 3 Notre Dame snapped the Orange's four-game winning streak and spoiled the team's opportunity to finish the season unbeaten in non-conference play.
"[Notre Dame] was a doggone good football team," head coach Dino Babers said after the game. "You can't dismiss what they did. We've got to rebound, and we've got to play much better than we did."
What did Notre Dame do? The Irish defense held Syracuse's offense, which had been averaging 44.4 points a contest, to a season-low 115 passing yards and forced three first-half turnovers. The Irish's pass rush was relentless, generating six sacks.
Syracuse's ground attack, meanwhile, was limited to 119 yards. The Orange failed to score a rushing touchdown for the first time this season.
"[Notre Dame] turned the game from chess to checkers," Babers said. "There was numerous passing combinations that we called, and you looked out there and everybody was covered. If there's coverage, there's nowhere for the quarterback to throw the ball to.
"We attempted to do some things [on the ground], and they closed off some gaps with their length. They're very, very long as a defensive football team and because of that length they're able to cover up a lot more space in the gaps."
Amid the struggles against the Irish, however, Syracuse's promise and potential was apparent.
Safety Andre Cisco carded his team-high eighth pass breakup and tallied his sixth interception of the season, which is the most of any freshman in the FBS and is tied for second-most in the country. The Orange defense has forced a turnover in 12 straight games dating back to the 2017 season finale against Boston College, the longest active games with a takeaway streak in the ACC.
Wideout Taj Harris had five catches for 78 yards and now has 33 receptions on the season. He's tied with Shelby Hill (1990) for the most receptions in program history by a freshman.
Kicker Andre Szmyt connected on a 28-yard field goal to break the ACC single-season record for most made field goals. The kick was his 28th make of the year, eclipsing the previous record of 27 which he shared with Florida State's Sebastian Janikowski (1998), Gary Cismesia (2007), Roberto Aguayo (2014) and Clemson's Greg Huegel (2015).
Ranked and guaranteed a trip to the postseason for the first time since 2013, Syracuse has one more regular-season game remaining. It's against rival Boston College on the road. Syracuse will use this week to learn from the Notre Dame setback and return to playing their brand of football.
"This will make them grow up," Babers said. "They will go home, and they'll hurt. All those open wounds will turn to closed scars. We'll get better, and we'll remember.
"If it doesn't kill you, it makes you better. We're going to grow from this. There's no doubt about it."
For complete coverage of Syracuse football, follow us on Twitter (@CuseFootball), Instagram (@CuseFootball) and like us on Facebook (Syracuse Football).
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