Syracuse Falls Short vs Notre Dame, Suffers Second Straight Loss
In This Story:
It was ugly right from the start and Syracuse was never able to get any momentum as Notre Dame ruined the afternoon for the sellout crowd on Saturday with a 41-24 win over the Orange. With the loss, Syracuse drops to 6-2 on the season. Next up, the Orange returns to ACC play at Pittsburgh next Saturday.
The game could not have started much worse for Syracuse, as quarterback Garrett Shrader threw an interception on the first play from scrimmage that was returned by Brandon Joseph for a touchdown. Syracuse would respond on its next drive, marching down the field before Shrader hit Oronde Gadsden for a touchdown pass to tie it up.
From there, the Notre Dame offensive line and rushing attack took control for the rest of the first half. The Irish used that to take a 21-7 lead into halftime.
In that first half, Shrader really struggled and looked hesitant to run the ball, which is unlike him. At halftime, Dino Babers made the switch to backup Carlos Del Rio-Wilson, citing an injury to Shrader. Del Rio-Wilson sparked the Orange offense with 10 points on its next three possessions to trim the lead to seven entering the fourth quarter.
After another defensive stop, Del Rio-Wilson had the offense rolling until a tipped pass was caught by Marist Liufau to put momentum back on the Irish's side early in the fourth quarter. Notre Dame responded with a seven play, 54 yard drive capped by an Audric Estime 11-yard run that all but sealed the game.
Notre Dame would subsequently block a punt to set up a short score for the final margin of victory.
The Syracuse defense actually had an up and down game. The Orange forced one turnover, kept Notre Dame to 362 yards of total offense but only had one sack and allowed nearly 250 rushing yards at almost five yards per attempt. Of the 41 points allowed, seven were an interception return, another seven were due to a blocked punt that Notre Dame recovered on the SU two yard line, and the Irish had two short fields as the result of a turnover and failed onside kick attempt.
The Orange offense struggled to get into rhythm in the first half and when Del Rio-Wilson sparked some momentum after intermission, it was too late to overcome losing the turnover battle three to one. Syracuse only mustered 207 yards of total offense through three and a half quarters until a garbage time touchdown padded those numbers a bit.
Shrader finished just 5-14 passing for 35 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Sean Tucker had 16 carries for 60 yards with one score. Oronde Gadsden added four receptions for 78 yards and a touchdown. Carlos Del Rio-Wilson threw for 190 yards and two touchdowns with one pick on 11-22 passing.
Audric Estime was paced Notre Dame's offense with 123 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. The best tight end in the nation, Michael Mayer, was held in check with just 54 yards on three catches.
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