Syracuse Fined by ACC for Faking Injuries to Stop Clock vs. Clemson

Two players pretended to have injuries in the fourth quarter.

Syracuse was fined by the ACC for faking injuries to stop the clock. / Winslow Townson-Imagn Images

The ACC announced on Monday that Syracuse will be fined $25,000 for violating NCAA Football Rule 3-3-6-b, which essentially states for players to not pretend to have injuries.

With 9:25 left in the fourth quarter of Syracuse's game vs. Clemson on Saturday, the Orange took an injury timeout for two players, and it has since been discovered that the team used the injury timeout in place of using a regular one. The ACC's statement notes there were actions made by a Syracuse coach on the sidelines signaling that the players were instructed to fake the injuries.

"The actions by the two players—especially with the concurrent action by the coach in the team area—were a clear attempt to gain an unmerited advantage by stopping the game in order to secure an injury timeout," the ACC's statement read.

Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik seemed to call out Syracuse in his post-game interview for this very reason. He said the Orange taking those injury timeouts in the fourth quarter made the Tigers lose some of the momentum they were building on while attempting to make a comeback. Syracuse won the game 34-21, which was a tough loss for the Tigers.

This incident isn't the first time this season in which Syracuse has been called out for seemingly faking injuries. During the team's Week 1 45-26 loss to Tennessee, both teams were accused of faking injuries in order to stop the clock. Neither team was fined for their actions in this game.

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