Five Takeaways: Syracuse 35 Purdue 20
Syracuse improved to 3-0 with a 35-20 win at Purdue Saturday night. Here are five takeaways from the victory.
1. Shrader is an Absolute Magician
With all apologies to Mr. Troy Nunes, Garrett Shrader should have this title moving forward. He was simply spectacular on this night. Purdue had no answer for Shrader's legs as he racked up 195 yards and four touchdowns on the ground. On top of that, he made several fantastic throws down the field that his receivers dropped. He was the best player on the field all night and made the Boilermakers defense look silly on a number of occasions. Whether it was scrambling for third down conversations when he seemed to be surrounded in the backfield, designed runs for big gains or throwing strikes on third and long, Shrader was magnificent. The offense racked up 455 total yards and scored 35 points even with those drops that would have added more points as well as a missed field goal. How dominant was Shrader on the ground? This stat sums it up perfectly. He was sacked four times and still averaged 7.8 yards per carry on the night (yardage lost in sacks is taken away from his rushing total).
2. Get 'em Some Stickum
The Syracuse wide receivers needed stickum in this game. The Orange wideouts dropped several passes, including some down the field that would have resulted in touchdowns. It was a subpar effort from this group and is the main reason why Shrader completed just 50% of his passes. Add six more completions to his total and he completes 70% and has at least one or two passing touchdowns as well. It was an equal opportunity offender situation, with Alford, Brown, Jones and Adams all having drops during the game. Without Oronde Gadsden for the rest of the season, they have to be better hanging on to the ball. The positive is that they are getting open and into position to make these plays. Now they have to make them.
On a positive note, blocking by the wide receivers was fantastic in this game. It was part of the reason why Syracuse was able to run for 271 yards on the night.
3. Worse Hands
Who had worse hands in this game, the Syracuse receivers or the Purdue runners? The Boilermakers fumbled the ball seven times with the Orange recovering three (it should have been five but I digress). The Boilermakers were sloppy with the ball all night and Syracuse took advantage. The defense was trying to strip the ball throughout the game and it clearly worked. This was a huge part in the defense's effort in this game and helped the Orange emerge victorious.
4. Getting Defensive
The Syracuse defense certainly had some weak spots, but overall they performed well given that it was the first power five opponent, first road game and a raucous environment. They set the tone with a fourth down stop on Purdue's first possession. They only sacked Purdue twice and did lack pressure for stretches, but coverage was solid especially by Jeremiah Wilson. Marlowe Wax was everywhere it seemed and Derek McDonald has a superb game. Safety Justin Barron made some key tackles as well. Kevon Darton was great in the middle of the defensive line. Syracuse needs more consistent pressure from its ends, but it was still a strong night.
5. Syracuse is Good
This is a good football team. There was a lot that challenged Syracuse and their mental makeup in this game. From some of the calls to Purdue getting momentum in the second half to dropped passes, etc. Still, they stayed together and made the plays necessary to get a win on the road against a Big Ten school. There are a lot of winnable games left on the schedule. Hopefully this team can stay healthy so we can see what they can do.
BONUS: Three Blind Refs
You knew I was not going to let the referees off the hook in this one. The officiating, simply put, was a catastrophe. Set aside missing things like offensive linemen holding, there were some significant blunders that could have impacted the outcome. There was a drive extending play where a Syracuse player hit Purdue quarterback Hudson Card on the hip but was called for roughing the passer on a low hit below the knees. There was the missed pass interference call in the end zone when the Purdue defensive back essentially tackled Damien Alford before the ball got there. There were others as well but one stood out as especially egregious.
In the fourth quarter with Syracuse up by eight, Purdue was driving trying to tie the game. Running back Devin Mockobee got hit and lost the football. The ball bounced on the ground and a pile was created as players tried to recover the fumble. Two officials were at the recovery/pile and both signaled it was Syracuse ball. Syracuse cornerback Isaiah Johnson got up from the pile with the ball. Yet, for some reason, an official several yards away from the pile came in and overruled the other two. Replay showed there was never a point where a Purdue player had possession of the ball. The official who overruled the other two should, in my opinion, be suspended for such actions. You cannot overrule two officials right on top of the play when you are that far away and therefore would not be able to see what you claim occurred.
Hopefully Syracuse can stay away from this crew for the rest of the season.
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