Syracuse suffered its first loss of the season on Friday, falling 26-24 to Stanford on a field goal as time expired.
The offense struggled, as quarterback Kyle McCord threw two interceptions, and running back LeQuint Allen Jr. rushed for only 25 yards on 8 carries. The lone bright spot was wide receiver Trebor Pena, who had 10 catches for 101 yards.
Despite Pena’s strong performance, Syracuse struggled to score against the Cardinal defense while Stanford’s running game dominated the Orange defensive line with 173 team rushing yards. Running back Chris Davis led the onslaught, racking up 78 rushing yards on just 9 carries.
Across the first three games, Syracuse has struggled to contain the run, allowing each of its opponents to rush for more than 100 yards. The team has been outgained 547 to 286 on the ground, giving up 5.8 yards per carry to opposing running backs.
It’s a worrying trend that started last season. In the final three games of 2023, the Orange allowed its opponents to run for at least 120 yards and a touchdown, giving up 488 yards. That includes a 45-0 demolition at the hands of South Florida, where the team was shut out in a bowl game for the first time in the program’s history.
Despite the offense’s brilliance, the run defense has remained just as poor. In Syracuse’s 31-28 upset win over Georgia Tech in Week 2, who were ranked No. 23 at the time, the Orange offense again bailed out its defense, which allowed two 15+ yard rushing touchdowns to Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King.
In the game against Stanford, Syracuse’s run defense was exposed from the start, allowing Cardinal quarterback Ashton Daniels to rush for 19 yards on back-to-back plays in the first quarter. Two plays later, Stanford scored its first touchdown of the game to put the Orange in an early 7-0 hole.
Syracuse’s run defense has a chance to get back on track in their next game against Holy Cross, but it’ll be a quick turnaround. The following week, the Orange square off on Oct. 4 with UNLV to kick off a three-game road trip against one of the top-10 run games in the country.
The Rebels, who have racked up an average of 293 rushing yards per game, will be the toughest test for Syracuse’s run defense all season. If the Orange defensive line can’t find a way to contain the run, it could spell trouble for any postseason hopes the team has, and put even more pressure on the offense to mask its struggles.
