Syracuse's Sean Tucker, Cooper Lutz Only Players to Run 100 Yards Against Notre Dame
Syracuse, NY — In the final game of the 2020 regular season, Syracuse running backs Sean Tucker and Cooper Lutz became the first and only players to run for more than 100 yards against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
Entering Saturday, Orange runners had only one 100-yard rushing performance all season. Against the second-ranked Irish, they had two. Tucker's 113 yards on 24 carries signified the first time he's eclipsed the century mark since posting 111 yards against Liberty on Oct. 17. Tucker only needed to break one tackle on his 40-yard touchdown run, and his speed took care of the rest.
Syracuse head coach Dino Babers had a vivid, play-by-play recall of Tucker's third-quarter score, acknowledging that the effort was something he's come to expect from the freshman game-in and game out.
"Sean's been steady all year long," Babers said during his postgame press conference. "That one run he had was a really, really good. He made one guy miss, cut back inside the corner, jumped over number twenty, a safety, and I'm sure fourteen was around somewhere. And then he outran fourteen to the end zone. So it was a really, really good run."
Tucker finishes his first season with 638 yards rushing on 138 attempts (4.6 AVG) and four rushing touchdowns. The former fifth-stringer provided a much-needed solution for an offense that lost top backs Abdul Adams and Jarveon Howard to opt-outs before the season. Tucker's presence in the backfield was the only reason Syracuse avoided a one-dimensional offensive attack from start to finish.
Joining Tucker in the hundred-yard club was receiver-turned-running back Cooper Lutz. Lutz brilliantly spelled Tucker, pitching in 102-yards rushing on just six carries. His 80-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter was the longest run Notre Dame has allowed all season. Before Lutz's jailbreak, South Florida RB Johnny Ford had the longest run against the Irish (42 YDS).
Babers was caught off-guard by Lutz's long-distance burst, saying after the game, "I thought he was really good, but I didn't know he was that fast."
Lutz finishes his redshirt sophomore campaign with 228-yards rushing on 41 attempts (5.5 AVG) and one rushing touchdown. Lutz started the season at wide receiver but was able to step in as a versatile and dynamic running back when Tucker was sidelined by injury against Clemson.
Notre Dame entered Saturday as a top-four team against the run. In their previous nine games, Irish defenders allowed an average of only 85.3 rushing yards per game and a minuscule 2.88 yards per rush. The 229 yards unleashed by the Orange was the most Notre Dame has seen all year, outpacing the 153 ground yards logged by Florida State in October. Before Tucker's 113-yard display, Seminoles QB Jordan Travis possessed the most dominant rushing performance in opposition of the Golden Domers (96 YDS, 19 CAR, 8.5 AVG).
Syracuse's suddenly explosive ground attack wasn't only surprising because of this week's opponent, but also because of how poorly they performed against NC State in their most recent outing. In 25 rushing attempts against the Wolfpack, Syracuse squirted just three yards total (0.1 AVG). Babers attempted to analyze the jarring disparity during his postgame availability.
"It's difficult to explain," Babers began. "I would like to think that we blocked a lot better, but I've got to watch the tape.
"Normally, when you have two backs that go over one hundred yards, those guys normally have some long runs, and that's exactly what happened. And normally, long runs happen from well-blocked plays that have extraordinary effort once they get into the secondary. And I think if you watch Sean Tucker's long run along with Cooper Lutz' long run, that's exactly what happened."
Babers has recently said that he has not been in touch with either Adams or Howard since they made their decisions to opt-out, so it's unclear whether or not they intend to return in 2021. But Babers feels his running back room will be in good hands, so long as Tucker and Lutz are there to carry the load.
"Both of those guys, last time I checked, they both have four years left as we speak," Babers said. "So we've got a chance to be good for a while."
