Five Takeaways from Syracuse's Loss to Wake Forest
1. Cooper Lutz Showed Something
Syracuse was without injured running back Sean Tucker in this game. Going into it, I believed he was a key for the offense to have balance. I did not have confidence that Cooper Lutz or Markenzy Pierre would be able to replicate Tucker's production. Lutz proved me wrong. He ran for 81 yards on 15 carries, a solid 5.4 yards per carry. He also had four catches for 25 yards. Lutz displayed good vision and some elusiveness at the second level. The Syracuse offense can work with him as the running back. Tucker is still clearly the best option, but Lutz proved he can play.
2. Tackling Still an Issue
There were several instances where missed tackles kept Wake drives alive. In some cases, multiple missed tackles. It has been an issue at various points this season, but improved a bit last week against Clemson. Syracuse took a step back against Wake Forest. The defense was not all bad, but this was a major issue. If Syracuse is going to get another win this season, they have to figure out how to improve tackling. For the first time, some of those mistakes were not bailed out by turnovers. Syracuse failed to force a turnover for the first time this season.
3. Run Defense Continues Improvement
That said, the run defense overall continued its solid play from last week. Remember, Georgia Tech, Duke and Liberty racked up an average of 325 rushing yards per game against Syracuse. They averaged nearly six yards per carry. Clemson ran for only 150 yards at less than five yards per carry. Wake Forest did put up 188 yards on the ground, but averaged only 3.8 yards per attempt. That is a step forward despite the tackling issues. This shows that there have been adjustments by the coaching staff in order to mitigate the defensive issues against the run. They are working, but can be even better with stronger tackling.
4. Third Down is a Major Problem
This goes for both sides of the ball. Wake Forest was 9-18 on third down while Syracuse was just 4-11. That continues an ugly trend. Syracuse was 4-13 against Clemson while the Tigers were 9-17. Duke was 12-17 on third down compared to just 2-12 for the Orange. Even against Georgia Tech where Syracuse scored 37 points, they were just 5-15 on third down. Syracuse struggles to get off the field defensively and cannot sustain drives offensively. They are worst in the nation in yards per drive, which further exemplifies that point. Tackling is part of that. Limiting first and down gains defensively is part of that. Offensively, the inability to make consistently accurate throws along with too many third and long situations are part of the problem.
5. It is Time for the Freshmen QBs
Listen, the Rex Culpepper story is a great one. That kid is tougher than almost anyone having beaten cancer and battled back to continue playing division one football. That is flat out awesome and more important than a football team's record. That said, it is time to see what the freshmen can do. Rex is what he is, and that isn't getting better. The offense hasn't gotten any better with him taking over for the injured Tommy Devito and that is partly due to Culpepper's limitations as a quarterback. JaCobian Morgan flashed in short time on the field against Wake Forest. He went 7-7 for 57 yards and a touchdown. Yes it was against Wake's backups. Yes they were playing vanilla defense. But the one play I will point to is when he was pressured, escaped the pocket and threw a perfect pass down the field for a completion. It was the first time I had seen such a play since Eric Dungey left.
Giving Morgan the bulk of the first team reps will only help his preparation and confidence. At this point, sitting at 1-6 with an offense that has struggled every week, it is time to see if Syracuse has anything in Morgan and even fellow freshman Dillon Markiewicz. Split time between the two. Heck, if you want to start Rex, at least split time with Morgan and Markiewicz. I just can't grasp the reason not to. I know Dino said that with Rex the full playbook is available. But he threw for 85 yards against Wake Forest and turned it over three times. Culpepper is completing just 43.5% of his passes on the season, and averaging just 157 yards passing per game as a starter. His passing yards has decreased in each start. Rex's touchdown to turnover ration is 5:7, which is poor. Having the full playbook has not helped. There is not production, there is not efficiency, there are a lot of turnovers. It is time for something else. It might be the only way to even somewhat salvage the season.
