Syracuse Orange

Syracuse Nearly Upsets #8 Penn State

September 12, 2009

Game Report Posted: September 01, 2009 20:17  

The Syracuse Orange weren't given much of a chance against the #8 Nittany Lions in Happy Valley, but the Orange very nearly pulled off what would have been an incredible upset. Unfortunately, the veteran leadership of QB Darryl Clark allowed Penn State to ultimately prevail.

The Orange jumped out to an early 7 - 0 lead on their first possession of the game, a long drive that ended with a 1-yard TD run by Delone Carter. Penn State did not score its first points until the 2nd quarter when backup RB Stephfon Green took it in from 2 yards out to tie the game at 7.

Syracuse briefly went back ahead on a late first half field goal, but Penn State responded with a long drive led by Darryl Clark, who found Chaz Powell in the end zone for a 15-yard TD, which gave the Nittany Lions a 14 - 10 halftime lead.

It looked as though Penn State was going to finally run away with it when Stephfon Green scored his 2nd TD of the game in the 3rd quarter to make it 20 - 10, but with under a minute to go in the 3rd quarter, Syracuse Safety Max Suter jumped in front of a Darryl Clark pass, picked it off, and returned it 54 yards for a TD to pull the Orange to within 3. Clark claims he never even saw Suter who was hiding in zone coverage and made a play on the ball at the last second.

In the 4th quarter, Penn State drove down again and were looking to go back up by 2 scores, but a key holding penalty forced them to settle for a field goal to put the lead at 23 - 17. Syracuse had the ball deep in their own territory and were completely unable to move the ball, forcing them to punt. Punter Rob Long punted it deep, but the return man was leveled by Dale Peterman and lost the ball, which was fallen on by the Syracuse Special Teams. The Orange capitalized on the turnover, as they drove down and took the lead on a 19-yard scamper by Carter.

However, the veteran Penn State QB Darryl Clark remained cool under pressure as he has done so many times in his career, and easily drove the Nittany Lions down the field in just over a minute to reclaim the lead on a 6-yard TD pass.

The Orange got the ball back with a chance to win, but 2 sacks and a last-dtich Hail Mary pass that fell to the ground incomplete had the upset bid fall short, as Penn State won 29 - 24.

Overall, the Syracuse Head Coach was very pleased with his team's effort, and despite the loss and 0 -2 start to the season, is optimistic his team is headed in the right direction.

"A couple more breaks here and there, and we're talking about how we're not just headed in the right direction, but ahead of schedule - knocking off a top ten school on the road would have been a giant leap for this program, but even just playing well and having a chance to win it against quality schools like Minnesota and Penn State shows that our guys are learning and giving effort. Now we just need to find a way to create those 1 or 2 more plays to get us the victories."

Next week, Syracuse concludes its 3-game Big Ten tour, as they host the Northwestern Wildcats. A victory would give the Orange an excellent chance to climb up to a .500 record before the Big East schedule begins in Week 5.

Orange Lose Opener to Minnesota

September 5, 2009

Game Report Posted: September 01, 2009 16:46  

The Minnesota Golden Gophers were able to capitalize on 3 Syracuse turnovers to score 20 2nd quarter points and beat the Orange 23 - 18 in the 2009 season opener.

Syracuse struggled early offensively as Redshirt Freshman Ryan Nassib threw 2 INTs and backup Cameron Dantley fumbled the ball while scrambling. One of Nassib's picks was returned by Minnesota LB Lee Campbell 56 yards for a TD to put Minnesota up 20 - 0 at the half.

Nassib played much better in the second half, finishing 24-44 with 218 yards and a TD on the game. Star RB Delone Carter, who was injured in the 1st quarter, managed 71 yards on 19 carries.

Defensively, the Orange looked solid led by Doug Hogue, who had 10 tackles and a sack that resulted in a safety, for Syracuse's first score of the season. DT Arthur Jones also had 2 sacks.

Syracuse's new head coach said "It's obvious that we still have a lot of work to do, but there were a lot of positive things that happened on the field today. Our defense really stood up to the challenge despite some difficult circumstances. I think we can build on what we saw today."

The head coach also said he plans on sticking with Nassib next week as the starter against Penn State, but that Duke transfer Greg Paulus could also see some time.

'Cuse Wins First Game of 2009

September 19, 2009

Game Report Posted: September 02, 2009 17:42  

The Syracuse Orange beat the Northwestern Wildcats 13 - 7 on Saturday for the first win of their new head coach's career, but you would never know it from his post-game comments.

"We still have a lot, a lot of things to work on here. I think this might have been our worst of the three games we've played. I like what Ryan [Nassib] did today, but we have got to make things easier for him."

The coach was referring to the 7 sacks that the offensive line gave up to Northwestern, putting the Orange in difficult down and yardage situations for much of the game. The biggest play of the game came on one of those tough down and distance plays, as Nassib found Mike Williams in one-on-one coverage on a 3rd and 15. Williams beat his defender all the way to the end zone for a 70 yard touchdown to give the Orange a 7 - 0 lead with only one second left in the first quarter.

Nassib was excited about the biggest play of the Orange season thus far, but didn't want to take all the credit. "They were sending the blitz, and I knew I had to get rid of it quick. I figured it was 3rd and 15 anyway, and I saw Mike had his man beat, so I just threw it out there and gave it a shot. Mike made a great play to come down with it and get the score."

The Orange made it 10 - 0 after a field goal following an INT by DT Arthur Jones. Jones laughed about the INT, and said his teammates teased him when he got back to the sidelines, wondering why he didn't bring it to the house.

The rest of the game was a defensive tussle, as Northwestern managed only one score on the day, a 2nd quarter 8-yard option run by QB Mike Kafka. The Orange did not score again until late in the 4th quarter when Freshman Lichtenstein hit a 46-yard FG to make it 13 - 7.

"It wasn't our greatest game, but still, it should give these guys some confidence just to have one in the win column," said the Syracuse Head Coach. "Now they know they can win, so it's just a matter of figuring out how to do it on a regular basis, and how to develop that killer instinct to really put games away."

So far this season, all of Syracuse's games have been decided by 6 points or less. That should change next week when they face FCS school Maine, as they will look for the easy win to even up their record.