Time for Syracuse's playmakers to step up around Rickie Collins

Syracuse is missing Steve Angeli in a bad way. In the two games since losing its starting quarterback, the Orange has scored 21 total points, six turnovers and two lopsided losses.

I wrote earlier this week about where Rickie Collins has struggled since replacing Angeli. He deserves a ton of criticism for his performance. However, the entire offense has regressed over the past two weeks.

Heading into a bye week, this is the time for the offensive skill players to reset and determine how they will carry this team forward. It is clear that Collins is not capable of doing it by himself and that the defense is not going to win many games. This highly-touted group of running backs and receivers needs to step up.

The run game continues to be non-existent

Syracuse’s run game was supposed to be the engine that made this offense go. The combination of Yasin Willis and Will Nixon is one of the most talented in the ACC. Instead, the Orange has one of the worst rushing attacks in the country.

SU ranks 121st out of 136 FBS schools in yards per carry. PFF has the Orange at 113th in team rushing grade. The offensive line has not been great, but good enough that this rushing attack should not be this unsuccessful. Of the 120 players in the country who have at least 50 carries this season, Willis and Nixon rank 85th and 114th, respectively, in PFF’s ELU rating, which measures a running back’s impact and success independent of blocking. Both rank in the bottom half in yards after contact as well.

Against Duke and SMU, the Orange have run the ball 60 times for 195 yards. That’s 3.25 yards per attempt. Against the Mustangs specifically, Collins did most of the damage. Willis and Nixon combined to average 2.32 yards per carry.

These things go hand in hand. Because the passing threat is not as significant with Collins under center, defenses can load the box and prioritize stopping the run. With Syracuse not being able to find a way to consistently run the ball, it puts Collins in less advantageous down and distance at a much higher rate than the coaching staff would like.

The wide receivers are not playing as sharp

The Duke game was fine, but things went off the rails against SMU. PFF credited SU receivers with five dropped passes. That was the second-most drops of the season, trailing only the Colgate game. Half of the six drops in the Colgate game were by backups Jaylan Hornsby and Tyshawn Russell.

There was just something a bit off with the receiving corps. Perhaps it is a lack of reps with Collins as the starter, but it was notable how disjointed the passing attack felt for the first three quarters of the game. Syracuse had just 165 yards through the air heading into the fourth quarter.

The receivers have been the strength of the team so far this season. This is an awful time for them to take a step back or have a bad week. Justus Ross-Simmons seems set for some time on the sideline after suffering an ankle injury that had him in a walking boot and on crutches at the end of the SMU game. It is a massive void to fill and one that Syracuse truly does not have time to lament.

Hopefully, Ross-Simmons will get back on the field sometime in November. Until then, Johntay Cook, Darrell Gill Jr., Dan Villari and Emmanuel Ross will step into larger roles. The issue is not a lack of talent; it is that the talent is not meshing together or performing to the best of its ability every week.

The bye week will be essential for this crew. It’s a chance to recalibrate the offense and maybe overhaul some of the playcalling. Syracuse needs to come out much stronger and get off to a strong start. Hopefully, the fourth quarter against SMU was a turning point for the unit as a whole, and they can build off what went well.

SUPPORT THE JUICE ONLINE

Chat about this story and all things Syracuse on our message board, Cuse Classified!