Published on 10.30.2020 by Brian Harrison
I know a lot about football, but it's all just guessing at this point.
Syracuse held up fairly well against #1 Clemson last week at Clemson. Now Syracuse heads back home to play a plucky Wake Forest team that has a lot of momentum after a big win at home against Virginia Tech. Does Syracuse have what it takes to hang in another game?
Syracuse is still way down in terms of opening day starters being injured. While the defense kept Syracuse in the game at Clemson all the way into the 3rd period, the offense was just not enough to handle the Clemson defense. Both Wake and Syracuse have tough defenses, and the hopes are that the offense will score enough with the defense causing turnovers to win the game. That happened for Wake last weekend with VTech. But Syracuse has been unable to do the same against Duke and Liberty. And even picking off Trevor Lawrence for the first time in 2 seasons wasn't enough against Clemson (although that isn't very surprising). Either way, Syracuse has a decent chance at a perceived "upset" against a middle of the pack ACC squad. Not sure how Wake would be placed in a regular ACC Atlantic year. Either way. Syracuse will need to play well on offense. And Rex Culpepper has been average, able to stretch the defenses in a few games, but obviously fell short against the great Clemson D. The obvious key matchup is the Syracuse offense vs. the Wake defense. If Syracuse is able to get 3rd down (or 4th down) conversions, keep the ball moving, and put up points, the defense should hold Wake enough to win. If Syracuse isn't able to score, keep the defense off the field for extended time, and get turnovers, they will obviously lose big. While Syracuse has shown it can hang in games as of late, including an impressive performance against Clemson, they haven't shown they can overcome the injuries to get a win yet. I'm taking Wake Forest 45 to 34.
This game is available nationwide on the ACC Network at 12:00pm. John will be in the home office. I'll be out of pocket again. Have a spooky but safe game watch and Halloween. Enjoy the photo of John and I from Halloween 2009, when we went to the Cincy game as officials. The refs were so bad, people were heckling us as we left the Dome. As always, but especially on Halloween, GO ORANGE!
Labels: ACC, Football, Preview
Published on 10.24.2020 by John Brennan
Syracuse played pretty well & beat the spread but still lost to #1. How are we supposed to feel?
Labels: ACC, Crying Child, Football
Published on 10.23.2020 by Brian Harrison
Death Valley might be literal.
Syracuse is coming off a game with 11 starters out, including their starting QB and an all-American defensive player. They've dropped two in a row. While the season may eventually turn around, this game won't be it.
Here's the preview. Ready? Clemson is going to win. And win by a lot. They are going to get like 250 yards on the ground and probably like 150 through the air. In football terms, they're gonna win by a ton of points. I'd be completely shocked if anything other than all of that happens. Literally nothing the officials do will affect the outcome of the game. Clemson 55 to 10.
This game is available nationally (yay) on The ACC Network at 12:00pm. John and I will be in the home office, but I think I have some stuff I gotta do. Either way, GO ORANGE!
Labels: ACC, Football, Preview
Published on 10.17.2020 by Brian Harrison
My heart is injured, like most of Syracuse's football team.
Labels: Crying Child
Published on by Brian Harrison
This was the look the pool boy gave to Jerry.
Syracuse is wrecked by injuries, including to their top defensive player in Andre Cisco (who just declared for the NFL draft), and QB Tommy DeVito. Now Liberty, an independent FBS team that might as well be Wagner, heads into the Dome at 4-0. Can Syracuse rightfully beat a team they should, despite missing most of their starting players?
Liberty has done their job against lesser teams like FIU, ULM, Northern Alabama, and Western Kentucky. But now they play a real team. Syracuse was able to beat Liberty in their home stadium with their coach in a hospital bed in the press box, but now they come into the newly renovated Dome in front of tens of people trying to get an ACC win they will tout for years despite this season being batshit crazy. Syracuse doesn't have their starting QB, several running backs, pass rushers, and safeties. However, in theory, Syracuse should still have better talent to be able to muscle Liberty around the field. Not too much X and O analysis is going to help today. Both teams are just going to try and score any way they can. And the team that gets enough big plays or causes more turnovers should win. Rex Culpepper has flashed some great touch, like his TD at Pittsburgh. In theory he's capable and up to the task. If he gets minimal run support from the likes of Sean Tucker, who is playing, Syracuse should have enough success on offense to get the job done. I have a very bad feeling about today, and I think things can go south very quickly for the Orange however. Happy to be wrong, but I just think there are too many injuries to key positions for this to come out the way it should. I'm taking Liberty over the Orange 27 to 24 and I'll be happy to be wrong about it.
This game is available regionally at 12:00pm. Check your local listings here. Same as last week. For those in the footprint, FoxSports.com to stream, or WatchESPN for everyone else. A split ACC crew today, with some of the same officials from the last two weeks (also a good thing). John and I will be watching from home. Try to enjoy and GO ORANGE!
Labels: Football, Preview
Published on 10.10.2020 by John Brennan
Syracuse lost to previously winless Duke, so we Cue the Crying Child...
Labels: Crying Child, Syracuse Football
Published on by Brian Harrison
It's not basketball, but it doesn't matter.
Syracuse is coming off beating the Bye. Duke is 0-4 on the season. Either Duke is winning their first game, or Syracuse is keeping their streak alive at home, and going to .500.
Syracuse comes in as fresh as you can be with a seek off in the middle of a season. And the good news is that they get to play the worst team in the ACC, as well as Liberty the week after. Either way, Syracuse is chomping at the bit to play defense against Duke. Their strength over the past 3 games has been creating turnovers. They are tied for third in the nation in turnover margin. The Syracuse defense (even without Andre Cisco, should he not play) should be chomping at the bit to take on Duke. QB Chase Brice has 3 TD to 7 INT. and only a 52.6% completion rate. Syracuse should be excited to try and take on this offense. But that being said, it's not like the Syracuse offense has been proven on the year either. Syracuse was able to handle G'Tech, but that was thanks to points off turnovers. QB Tommy DeVito had a couple brilliant strikes though, and certainly had more time and protection to throw than he had in the first two games of the season. But Duke has a solid pass rush as well, so DeVito may have a lot more trouble if Syracuse isn't able to get the run as a credible threat. However, I think the game will mirror what happened with G'Tech. Syracuse should do enough to win, keep Duke from winning a game this season, and tell Vegas "it's not their fault. They didn't know." Syracuse over the Blue Devils, 41 to 30.
This game is available regionally on RSN at 12:30. Check your local listings
here (although NESN isn't listed, but it is on their guide). It's also available within the TV footprint on Fox Sports Go, or WatchESPN everywhere else. Both John and I will be watching from the home office. We'll see you out there. Duck Fuke, and GO ORANGE!
Labels: ACC, Duke, Football, We Hate Duke
