What Fran Brown said after Syracuse football’s 70-7 loss at No. 9 Notre Dame

Syracuse was overpowered from the start against No. 9 Notre Dame, leading to a 70-7 loss, its seventh straight.

SU showed some promise in their last game with quarterback Joseph Filardi, who commanded its offense to a scoring drive at the very end. But against the Fighting Irish, the Orange struggled mightily from start to finish.

Notre Dame scored 35 first quarter points, scoring their first three touchdowns from its defense and special teams. The Fighting Irish’s pressure got to the Orange with five sacks and three forced turnovers.

On offense, it was two different stories, as ND nearly doubled SU in yards of total offense. Notre Dame’s leading rushers Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price combined for four rushing touchdowns while the Fighting Irish totaled 329 rushing yards.

After being ambushed, Syracuse was unable to slow down its top 10 opponent on almost every front.

Syracuse unravels in first six minutes

Syracuse fell into a 21-0 hole in the first six minutes. Meanwhile, Carr and the rest of ND’s offense didn’t have to lift a finger.

“It was 21 points before the defense could get out on the football field,” SU head coach Fran Brown said.

The Orange had possession on the first drive of the game, and it lasted just two plays. Filardi looked over the middle, and ND’s Jalen Stroman intercepted it and scored for an early 7-0 advantage.

Then, Notre Dame poured on more points. Jack Stonehouse punted from deep in SU’s own territory and the Fighting Irish got a hand on the punt and returned it for a touchdown.

Down 14-0, ND cornerback Leonard Moore sniffed out a Filardi pass on the sideline and returned it for a score.

With two pick sixes and a special teams score, Notre Dame set the table for its success and put SU in a tough position for the rest of the game.

Syracuse's first downs were few and far between

In the first half Syracuse tallied six first downs on nine drives, and its deficit was 49-0.

Syracuse didn’t get a first down until its third drive of the game. After early struggles to move the ball down field, Filardi connected with fellow freshman Darius Johnson for a 9-yard pickup. The next play, Dan Villari ran the ball up the middle to pick up the first.

On the following two drives, Syracuse turned to Carney, but it still didn’t pick up first downs. Notre Dame snuffed out SU’s rushing attack led by Will Nixon, stopping him for several short or zero-yardage plays.

On the other side of the ball, Notre Dame’s offense was chugging along to take a 42-0 lead early in the second quarter.

Filardi re-entered the game at quarterback for SU late in the first quarter, and he found some success in the second.

“[Brown] says stay focused, keep your head in the game and just keep battling,” Filardi said.

Love, ND run all over SU

Syracuse had no answers for Notre Dame’s potent rushing attack. The Fighting Irish scored six of their seven offensive touchdowns on the ground.

ND scored its first rushing touchdown on its second play of offense. Love, who Brown called the “Heisman” postgame, took the ball for a 45-yard score which put SU down 28-0 midway through the first quarter.

Then the fighting Irish turned to Price, who burned SU for a 58-yard score.

Earlier in the week, Brown said SU needed to wrap up on tackles, but Notre Dame continued to break through the line and drop defenders.

In the middle of the second quarter and then early in the third, Love added his second and third rushing touchdowns of the game. His three touchdowns on the ground marked a season high.

“[Love] is a good back. They’re a good team. When you play good teams and good players, they make plays,” SU linebacker Gary Bryant said.

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