NFL
By: Rick O’Donnell
In a week where the Syracuse Orange announced their first sellout of the Fran Brown era, they’ll take on the Stanford Cardinal football team. It’s another home game for the Orange and the third straight. What will Friday’s game hold for SU?
Two matchups and two victories later, the Orange are returning after an off week. How much will it pay off? The bigger question is, where will the Orange’s biggest adjustments come? Syracuse hasn’t played mistake-free football, but it hasn’t mattered despite almost leading to a comeback from Georgia Tech.
Did Syracuse look at the tape and adjust? Will these mistakes just be written off as part of the game and the Orange be content being 2-0? Hopefully, it’s a little of both. For the most part, what the Orange are putting out is working. Too many adjustments and it’ll kill any momentum moving forward. The offense seems to be moving the ball easily while the defense shows it can dominate.
However, the bye week should’ve been focused on cleaning up special teams. A blocked FG, a blocked punt, and an allowed recovery on an onside kick do not make the highlight reel for the Orange. Yet, if they didn’t clean up those mistakes, it could prove costly against Stanford.
While their opponents walk into the JMA Wireless Dome 1-1 on the season so far, Standford is no stranger to putting points on the board. So far this season they’re averaging 34 points per game. When teams can put up points in bunches that way, the battle for field position will be key. If Syracuse falls victim to the same sloppy special teams play, it may put more added pressure on their defense. While the Orange have had their bend-don’t-break moments, the game could get out of hand.
Syracuse allowed Georgia Tech QB Haynes King to take advantage of open lanes and rush 6 times for 62 yards and two TDs. This week they’ll face Ashton Daniels who can beat teams with his legs just as easily as he does his arm.
The key to Syracuse winning shouldn’t come on offense as much as it will on defense and this will be a big test. The Orange will need to lock in on assignments and play mistake-free football in order to contain Daniels. An opponent whose offense can utilize the whole field cannot be given a short field. Can Syracuse stay disciplined enough to beat Stanford? We’ll see tomorrow at 7:30 pm EST.
