Five Takeaways: Pitt 19 Syracuse 9
Here are five takeaways from Syracuse's loss at Pittsburgh on Saturday.
1. Defense
Syracuse's defense was gashed by the run in the previous two games and had its issues at times on Saturday. However, largely, it held up pretty well. The Orange did allow 161 yards on the ground, but Pitt averaged just 3.4 yards per carry and the longest run of the day was just 13 yards. The defense also forced two turnovers and seven punts in the game while allowing only 337 yards of total offense. The defense did enough to win that game despite being banged up.
2. Missed Shrader
This is a game where Syracuse missed the playmaking ability and veteran leadership of Garrett Shrader. The offense stalled without him on the field and we can see the difference when he was out there (and healthy) versus not. The offense has not looked the same since the second half against Clemson and I think his health is a big part of that. It is now up to the coaching staff to figure out how to move the ball without him if he continues to deal with injuries.
3. Del Rio-Wilson
The redshirt freshman really struggled in his first start. He made some great throws and has an absolute cannon of an arm. However, he is still learning how to put touch on certain passes and had issues with accuracy down the field. That and he continues to get passes batted down at the line of scrimmage. The potential is still through the roof for him and he is in the very early stages of his development, but there are areas he will need to work on in order to become a more consistent quarterback.
4. Offensive Line
Syracuse's rushing attack mustered just 25 yards and 1.0 yards per carry. Part of that was due to Del Rio-Wilson being sacked six times, but Sean Tucker also had just 19 yards on 10 attempts. Not only should Tucker get more than 10 carries, but the rushing attack is lacking creativity while the offensive line struggles to open holes. The line also did not protect Del Rio-Wilson consistently as he was under pressure throughout the game. Yes Syracuse was missing its starting left guard Kalan Ellis for this one, but it must be better than that. Syracuse has to figure something out with its rushing attack and offensive line moving forward if it wants to win more games.
5. Where Does Syracuse Go From Here?
Obviously losing three straight is not ideal, but there are more winnable games on the schedule. Florida State has looked very good the last couple of games, but they played Georgia Tech and Miami. Florida State's rushing attack is also very good while its quarterback has thrown the ball extremely well this season. That will be a tough test, but it is also at home. The next game is at Wake Forest, who has lost two straight after being blown out by Louisville and losing to NC State. After that is a Boston College team that recently lost to UConn. The point is, Syracuse still has opportunities to win games, but the three straight losses is a step back without question. It is a weird spot to be in because going into the season if you had said Syracuse would be 6-3 after nine games most fans would be happy with that. However, given the way it started, it now feels like a disappointment. The only thing Syracuse can do now is move forward and win a game to get back on track.
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