Syracuse Undone by Penalties and Interceptions in 21-18 Loss to Cal

Syracuse (1-1, 0-1) lost to Cal (1-1, 0-1) 21-18 on Saturday in their conference opener at the Dome.

Tylik Hill brought fireworks early on as the sophomore ran for 55 yards on the second play from scrimmage. In its first red zone trip Syracuse settled for a 25-yard field goal. The Orange did well to contain Cal’s explosive QB Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele who struggled throwing downfield early on.

Both teams traded punts throughout the first quarter. Syracuse ended up with another redzone trip which stalled and turned to three points as the 2nd quarter began. The offense started to heat up later in the quarter and Steve Angeli found tight end Daunte Bacheyie for a gain of 38 and then a 23-yard touchdown shortly after. The Orange went for two but was unsuccessful as Angeli was sacked.

Cal answered less than two minutes later as Sagapolutele marched down the field and found Chase Hendricks for the first Cal points of the game. After a barrage of penalties which negated a long punt-return, the Orange led 12-7 at halftime.

A turnover on downs for Cal gave the Orange good field position for its first drive of the second half. It was soon wasted as Angeli was picked off by Kingston Lopa who was taken down near the redzone. Sagapolutele found Jordan King from short-range soon after as Cal took the lead.

Syracuse was able to respond quickly with a clinical drive that featured six first downs. LSU-transfer RB Ju’Juan Johnson showed off his playmaking ability and ran into the endzone from two yards out. Once again the offense went for two and was stuffed, 18-14.

Syracuse again looked to march down the field and got to the red zone for the fourth time to start the final quarter. The Orange turned the ball over on fourth down but 12 men on the field for Cal negated the turnover and kept the ball in the red zone. Tripp Woody thought he had extended the lead but was denied by the post keeping the lead at four.

Cal threatened to enter field goal-range but a sack on a free rush by Chris D'Appolonia pinned the Bears back as the Orange eventually forced a punt. Angeli was picked off for a second time by Lopa throwing over the middle who walked in for a touchdown giving Cal the lead with 4:51 left, 21-18.

On the subsequent drive Angeli was in trouble rolling right on third and long. He got rocked by the sideline but somehow found Justus Ross-Simmons for a 25-yard first down which put the Orange in field goal-range. Angeli was sacked on the following third-down, setting up a 46-yard try from Woddy which he missed short.

Cal was narrowly stopped on third down as Syracuse got one last chance to tie the game from the 24 with 1:05 left and no timeouts. Angeli found Ross-Simmons on a free-play for 23 yards to kick start the drive. Angeli got picked off for a third time by Lopa on the very next play, effectively ending the game.

Analysis

Penalties wiped out a barrage of big plays for the Orange. 3rd-year head coach Fran Brown’s team looked out-coached by first-timer Tosh Lupoi. In total, Syracuse amassed 15 penalties totalling 134 yards. The Orange also struggled with penalties in week one.

Hero: Daunte Bacheyie

Bacheyie had his best game in an Orange uniform against Cal. The Christian Brothers Academy product was instrumental in the team’s first touchdown drive with a 38-yard catch and a 23-yard score. Vertical ability isn’t prevalent among the team’s tight ends. Bacheyie looks to change that.

Zero: Steve Angeli

Steve Angeli played his worst game for Syracuse. The pick-six and the two other interceptions were obviously rough but the sack on third-down with under two minutes was almost equally consequential. The passing game did not have the same rhythm Orange fans have come to expect as Angeli finished 24-49 passing.

What’s next

Syracuse takes on Pitt on Thursday in Pennsylvania.

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