S
yracuse faces Clemson as an undefeated team for the second straight season. After rolling through nonconference play with a +134 scoring differential, the Orange enter Atlantic Coast Conference play just outside the AP Top 25. Head coach Dino Babers said on Monday that his team is ready, and that he’d been watching film since 2:25 a.m. that day.
SU is looking for its first win over Clemson since 2017, losing its last two matchups by a combined nine points. The Tigers enter the matchup with their worst start since 2014. Quarterback Cade Klubnik, who’s playing time last season forced out former top recruit DJ Uiagalelei, has thrown for 976 yards and nine touchdowns.
A win likely lands Syracuse in the Top 25 heading into a three straight road games — two of which look to be against top 15 teams — while a loss would bring the Orange’s losing streak against Clemson to six games.
Here’s everything you need to know about the SU and Clemson game on Saturday:
All time series
Clemson leads 9-2.
Last time they played
Syracuse entered Death Valley last year 6-0 and ranked as the No. 14 team in the country. It held a lead heading into the fourth quarter, 15 minutes away from snapping what was the longest home winning streak in the Football Bowl Subdivision at the time. In a move that caught the Orange off guard, the Tigers’ head coach Dabo Swinney benched Uiagalelei in favor of Klubnik. The No. 1 overall recruit in the 2022 class orchestrated a 15-play, 80-yard touchdown drive that took six minutes off the clock.
It was part of 17 unanswered points for Clemson, while the Orange’s offense went scoreless in the second half, ultimately falling 27-21.
“I guess we have to sacrifice a billy goat or something next time we play Syracuse,” Swinney said after the close win. “Crazy stuff happens when we play these dudes.”
In Babers’ eyes, though, Syracuse committed two costly penalties, including a late hit call on Caleb Okechukwu that allowed Clemson to continue its comeback.
The loss would kickstart a five-game skid for the Orange that landed them at 7-5. Garrett Shrader got banged up after rushing for a team-high 102 yards and taking five sacks, leading to persisting injuries and absences throughout the rest of the season.
The Tigers report
Clemson started its season with a stunning loss to Duke on Labor Day, kickstarting what has been a puzzling season for the Tigers. After easily handling Charleston Southern and Florida Atlantic, the Tigers welcomed No. 4 Florida State to Memorial Stadium. There was a chance for Clemson to correct its course and pull off a seismic upset. But the Tigers couldn’t convert in overtime.
They allowed a quick touchdown to the Seminoles, then failed to convert a wide receiver screen on 3rd-and-1. Klubnik had a man open on 4th-and-1, but his pass was tipped at the line, dropping Clemson to 2-2. Clemson still has two rushers that combined for 527 yards in Will Shipley and Phil Mafah, both of whom torched Syracuse last year.
“We don’t sit around acting like we’re the top team,” Swinney told reporters after the Tigers’ loss to Florida State.
The Tigers are certainly in a vulnerable position, but are relatively healthy and have hung tremendous wins on their nonconference opponents. They’ve also hung tight with two of the top teams in the ACC in the early stretch this season.
Cindy Zhang | Digital Design Director
How Syracuse beats Clemson
Syracuse now has the entire week to gameplan for Klubnik. Shutting down Clemson starts with making Klubnik uncomfortable. He has the 39th-best completion percentage in the FBS this season, connecting on 66.2% of passes. He’s completed 25 or more passes at above a 60% clip in three games this season. SU’s defense has become the talk of the ACC, and despite staying healthy so far, it needs to make sure it doesn’t get exposed.
Though Purdue’s Hudson Card struggled throughout the Boilermakers’ loss to Syracuse, he made some quality throws to hit receivers who were wide open. Klubnik, and a talented crop of receivers, are going to find those holes more frequently. First-year offensive coordinator Garrett Riley is also going to have an astute game plan against Rocky Long’s defense.
Offensively, the Orange need to get their run game going early, unlike what they’ve done thus far this season. Becoming one dimensional at any point against Clemson is going to cost Syracuse and lead to the Tigers exploiting what a weak nonconference schedule couldn’t. LeQuint Allen Jr. needs consistent carries and must be more of a factor in the passing game.
Stat to know: 4
Clemson’s defense has forced four interceptions through its first four games. Garrett Shrader has now thrown an interception in the last two games, including one of his worst throws at the end of the first half in Saturday’s win over Army. He’s also seen much more pressure and his sacks increase as Orange are down two potential starting offensive linemen.
If Clemson is going to shut down the Orange on offense, forcing bad throws from Shrader is going to be part of the equation. Without Oronde Gadsden II, Isaiah Jones and possibly Trebor Pena, Syracuse is entering its toughest game of the season with a thin receiving core.
Player to watch: Beaux Collins, receiver, No. 80
In his third season with Clemson, Collins has quickly emerged as one of Klubnik’s top receiving options. Swinney said after the loss to FSU that Antonio Williams, who has 145 receiving yards and two touchdowns, is going to be day-to-day. Collins has a team-leading 226 yards and 17 receptions with a touchdown, and he’ll likely see the bulk of the targets outside of the Tigers’ running backs.
Photo by Aidan Groeling | Contributing Photographer
Published on September 27, 2023 at 10:25 pm
Contact Anthony: aalandt@syr.edu | @anthonyalandt
