ESPN Commentators Call Out Tennessee and Syracuse for Faking Injuries

Louis Riddick and Bob Wischusen were disappointed in how Tennessee and Syracuse handled themselves on the field.

College football is working to crack down on players faking injuries, but it’s a tough problem to solve. / @AwfulAnnouncing / X

ESPN commentators Bob Wischusen and Louis Riddick were unimpressed with how both No. 24 Tennessee and Syracuse handled themselves in their season-opening game on Saturday.

The disappointment did not stem from how the team played on the field, but rather their reliance on faking injuries to cause stoppages while on defense.

Both teams were guilty of the crime at different moments of the game, but Riddick plainly called out the teams after a particularly egregious move to stop the clock was made by the Orange. Following a big play by Tennessee, Syracuse safety Demetres Samuel Jr. dove to the ground, forcing the game to a stop as trainers came out to check on him.

“This isn’t a good one. This one looks blatant, where he just kind of hit the dirt,” Riddick said. “I know they’re trying to crack down on this kind of thing—faking injuries. I don’t want to assume anything about any player, but this one to me looked suspicious.”

ESPN's Bob Wischusen and Louis Riddick call out Syracuse (and Tennessee) for "faking injuries"

Riddick: "They're trying to crack down on this kind of thing ... this one to me looked suspicious."

"If you're serious about getting this out of the game, you have to call that." pic.twitter.com/xB9JwDPWRw

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) August 30, 2025

Watching the replay back, Riddick and Wischusen noted that two players on the Syracuse defense appeared to be going down in fake injuries simultaneously, with corner Duce Chestnut moving towards the ground as well before bringing himself back to his feet once he saw Samuel had the situation under control.

When Samuel was back on the field looking spry just moments later, the two could only laugh.

A moment later, at the goal line.

Wischusen: "Demetres Samuel has made a miraculous recovery, he is back on the field."

Riddick: "Yeah, well." pic.twitter.com/Ma5iWiQ4fz

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) August 30, 2025

The Tennessee crowd booed the Syracuse players for their violation of a rule both written and unwritten in football, but as Wischusen noted, the Volunteers had employed similar tactics earlier in the game.

The frustration from Riddick and Wischusen is well justified. Obviously, above all else, we don’t want players getting hurt, but using the sport’s attempt to keep things relatively safe for those involved to manipulate the pace of the game to your advantage is unsporting to say the least. It can also, by the letter of the law, be penalized, but as Riddick noted, it’s not easy to call out a young player as faking an injury, because there’s plenty of real injuries to be concerned with.

Tennessee would go on to win the game, 45–26.

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