NFL
By: Rick O’Donnell
After a dominating win last Friday, the Syracuse Orange are on the road against the Clemson Tigers this Saturday. The Orange take on the Tigers at 12 pm EST at Clemson Memorial Stadium for their first ACC game this season. What will it take for Syracuse to shed their underdog label?
Leading The Way
Orange QB Steve Angeli is leading college football with 1,072 yards. If that sounds familiar, it’s because former SU QB Kyle McCord also enjoyed similar success last season by leading college football in passing yards. While he’ll face a tough challenge in the Clemson Tigers, it could be a collegiate career-defining moment for him. Late in the game against UConn, Angeli started to come alive. That same confidence carried over into the Colgate game. If he continues to grow this season and can hang with a team such as Clemson, win or lose, he will have made his mark in Syracuse.
Keep Your Friends Close …
… and your enemies closer. Syracuse did well swarming to the ball against Colgate, but this is a new game. The same strategy needs to be utilized against the Tigers. The Orange should vow to give up no easy or extra yards. As soon as the ball carrier is over the line of scrimmage, they have to make sure he fights for every inch of every yard with at least 3 defenders on him. Once defenders can guarantee they won’t get beaten deep, it should be a frenzy around the football. Big plays could be the dagger for the Orange.
History Repeating
If there’s one thing Syracuse has been consistent at, it’s losing to Clemson. Just one time in the past 10 games have the Orange pulled out a win. In their 12 meetings total, Syracuse has walked away with a victory just one other time. Keeping the game close is key. Despite Clemson having the upper hand, Syracuse has been able to be in a position to win. So long as they can eliminate costly mistakes and keep the score close, there’s no reason they haven’t shown the resiliency to pull out a win against a team like Clemson.
Statement Game
Both teams are looking to make a statement here. Syracuse would love to walk away with a win against a team that has repeatedly taken them to school. There’s a lot of young talent on the Orange that would love to put another feather in the cap of Fran Brown while simultaneously putting eyes on their game at the national level. It’s a big opportunity for the Orange.
On the flip side of the coin, Syracuse has to stay hungry as Clemson will be looking to make a statement as well. There will be no rest with Clemson coming off a loss against Georgia Tech. Syracuse might not be considered a powerhouse just yet, but they’ve had some buzz over the past few seasons. Look for the Tigers to come out and try to silence that buzz in a way of making a statement of their own.
Nothing says Syracuse Orange football like a surprise win as an underdog. Clemson has played their part in such a matchup the last time the Orange beat the Tigers. Of course, you have to go all the way back to 2017 at the (then) Carrier Dome to recall it, but no fans were happier than the Orange that day, as there was no way they were supposed to win that game. Can they play spoiler again this weekend, this time with much more at stake?
