For the first time in the Fran Brown era, the Orange have dropped back to back games. After getting embarrassed by Duke at home last weekend, Syracuse traveled to SMU and were soundly defeated 31-18. The Mustangs, who came into today 2-2, completely dominated from kickoff to the final whistle. Syracuse heads home with more questions than answers, especially at the quarterback position.
- Time to panic
After struggling mightily versus Duke in his first college start last weekend, all eyes were on Rickie Collins. Maybe, just maybe, he caught the case of first game jitters. That “glass half full” approach was debunked today after struggling versus SMU. In the loss, an overwhelmed Collins missed multiple open receivers and was inaccurate throughout. He finished the game 22/44 with 2 interceptions. His struggles came against a Mustang defense that ranked last in the ACC in pass defense coming into this afternoon. His bright spots came in the 4th quarter, when he ran for a 6 yard touchdown and connected with Johntay Cook for a 15 yard touchdown strike.
- The silent run attack
This week, while previewing SMU, Fran Brown stressed the importance of running the ball. The emphasis of Syracuse’s running attack came after the Duke loss, where Will Nixon and Yasin Willis totaled a season low of just 18 carries. In the first drive versus the Mustangs, the Orange stayed true to Brown’s words, and ran it 7 times to Yasin Willis. Despite the run-heavy Orange marching down the field, they quickly abandoned the ground game and turned to the arm of Rickie Collins. For the second straight week, Jeff Nixon failed to ease Collins into the game by turning away from the run game.
- Defensive woes
Syracuse’s defensive struggles continued versus the Mustangs. Coming into today, the Orange ranked last in the ACC in points and yards allowed. SMU took full advantage of a depleted Orange defense, scoring 31 points on 372 yards of total offense. Mustang quarterback Kevin Jennings threw for a season high 4 touchdowns. He started today with 5 on the entire season. While the Orange held their ground versus a solid SMU backfield, they allowed far too many chuck plays through the air to keep this one competitive.
Syracuse heads into a much needed buy week. The 3-2 Orange take on Pitt at home on October 18th.
