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It’s hard to read too much into the Syracuse Orange’s win over Albany last weekend. However there is some encouraging news in the first-down numbers from the game. I’ll leave the offensive line breakdowns to Steve but despite the final score it was clear Syracuse
After ditching the run too early in the Rutgers loss it appeared that Syracuse was going to repeat that philosophy as Sean Tucker only touched the ball twice on the first seven first-down snaps. After Albany returned an interception for a touchdown, Sterlin Gilbert went back to the ground game the rest of the half with varied success.
First Down Offense vs Virginia Tech
| Run or Pass- 1H | Yards | Run or Pass- 2H | Yards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Run or Pass- 1H | Yards | Run or Pass- 2H | Yards |
| Run (Tucker) | 2 | Run (Shrader) | 3 |
| Run (Tucker) | 6 | Run (Tucker) | 0 |
| Run (Tucker) | 2 | Pass (Queeley) | 17 |
| Run (Tucker) | 7 | Run (Shrader) | 5 |
| Run (Tucker) | -1 | Run (Tucker) | 1 |
| Run (Shrader) | 2 | Pass (Incomplete) | 0 |
| Pass (Cooper) | 7 | Run (Tucker) | 3 |
| Pass (Tucker) | 1 | Pass (Incomplete) | 0 |
| Run (Shrader) | 9 | Run (Shrader) | 0 |
| Run (Shrader) | 9 TD | Run (Shrader) | 5 |
| Pass (Jackson) | 18 | Pass (Incomplete) | 0 |
| Pass (Jackson) | 12 | Run (Shrader) | 3 TD |
| Run (Shrader) | 23 | Run (Tucker) | 0 |
| Pass (Incomplete) | 0 | Run (Shrader) | -3 |
| Pass (Incomplete) | 0 | Pass (Jackson) | 9 |
| Run (Jackson) | 12 | ||
| Run (Tucker) | -2 | ||
| Pass (Incomplete) | 0 | ||
| Pass (Tucker) | 13 | ||
| Pass (Alford) | 45 TD | ||
| 1st Half | Plays | Yards | Avg yards per play |
| Run | 9 | 59 | 6.55 |
| Pass | 6 | 38 | 6.33 |
| Total | 15 | 97 | 6.47 |
| 2nd Half | Plays | Yards | Avg yards per play |
| Run | 12 | 27 | 2.25 |
| Pass | 8 | 84 | 10.5 |
| Total | 20 | 111 | 5.55 |
| Game Total | Plays | Yards | Avg yards per play |
| Run | 21 | 86 | 4.1 |
| Pass | 14 | 122 | 8.71 |
| Total | 35 | 208 |
The second half showcased more of the playbook as Dino Babers gave Garrett Shrader a fair shake at grabbing the reins at QB. The Orange went tempo on one series and picked up chunks of yardage on quick passes to Courtney Jackson and DeVaughn Cooper. It seemed like the intent of those plays was to give those receivers a chance to make a case for more opportunities moving forward.
Albany was clearly over-matched but the numbers generated in the second half will hopefully serve as a reminder to Gilbert and Babers this Friday. The Orange offense works better when they can run the ball and then use the pass when the defense isn’t keying on it. We’ll see if they remember the lesson.