Observations from SU’s loss to BC: No Shrader, massive penalties
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Syracuse hasn’t been in a close game all season. It’s either been blowouts in its favor or not. That changed against Boston College on Friday night.
A classic Northeast rivalry lived up to the billing. There was an announcement of Garrett Shrader not starting less than an hour before game time. SU fans booed the referees on nearly every drive. SU suffered plenty of injuries, including ones to Caleb Okechukwu and Jakob Bradford. Syracuse and BC drives ending in back-breaking turnovers as well as nine SU penalties. A combined completion percentage of 50% between Carlos Del Rio-Wilson and Thomas Castellanos also filled the night.
All of the wackiness needed a wacky ending. For the most part, the two teams delivered. But it went in Boston College’s favor. Castellanos led the Eagles on a 71-yard drive late in the fourth quarter and ran in easily for a score from seven yards out. On the next drive, Del Rio-Wilson’s first pass attempt was intercepted on a tipped ball.
Here are some observations from Syracuse’s (4-5, 0-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) 17-10 defeat to Boston College (6-3, 3-2 ACC):
No Shrader
Not even an hour before the Orange’s matchup with the Eagles, Shrader was ruled out. A team spokesman confirmed that Shrader would not play due to an injury sustained during last week’s loss to Virginia Tech.
In that game, Shrader went 12-of-18 for 137 yards and a touchdown. But the performance was marred by negative 42 rushing yards and 10 points for the Orange in the 38-10 blowout loss.
While Shrader played the whole game, he’s had issues before staying on the field. In the loss to Florida State, Shrader was pulled from the game as he suffered a bout of food poisoning, according to Babers.
Shrader spent the game on the sideline, wearing his jersey and sweats, talking to Del Rio-Wilson throughout the game. When the offense huddled up on the sidelines before going out for its first drive of the game, Shrader was in the thick of the huddle. He also wore a headset as he stood on the sidelines, joined by offensive coordinator Jason Beck, who was on the sidelines the first time this season.
Carlos Del Rio-Wilson, the rusher
Immediately on Del Rio-Wilson’s first drive, Beck made it clear that Syracuse would run the ball for the majority of the night. The Orange finished with 13 more rushing attempts than pass attempts against the Eagles. SU was efficient on the ground game, finishing with 209 yards.
On the first snap, SU ran a wildcat play to LeQuint Allen Jr. as Del Rio-Wilson ran a sweep route. Throughout the drive, Del Rio-Wilson ran for 10 yards on a combined three carries, though Allen Jr. was the one picking up the two first downs on the opening drive before a poorly thrown interception.
But Del Rio-Wilson’s legs provided Syracuse its only score of the game. After Allen Jr. had three rushes for 38 yards, Del Rio-Wilson ran straight up the middle virtually untouched for a touchdown on a quarterback draw. His rushing ability kept the Orange alive on various drives, finishing with 67 yards on the ground.
Carlos Del Rio-Wilson, the passer…
Through Syracuse’s first five drives, Del Rio-Wilson didn’t complete a pass beyond the line of scrimmage. He went 2-for-7 passing for 10 yards and two interceptions by the 8:47 mark in the second quarter. Del Rio-Wilson had two more picks on a day where he went 7-of-17 for 37 yards and finished with a quarterback rating of 12.4.
On the first interception, the Orange ran a play action, but BC cornerback C.J. Clinkscales read the play perfectly and got an interception on Del Rio-Wilson’s first pass play. When the Orange had a chance to tie the game on their final drive, SU’s quarterback threw his fourth and final pick of the game. Jones got a hand on it and then free safety Cole Batson grasped the ball. The interception led to fans heading for the exits.
Massive impact penalties
Penalties, once again, continue to be an issue for Syracuse. In the loss to BC, it finished with nine.
The Eagles’ first score came off a penalty as Castellanos fired a pass to the end zone on a corner post. But Jason Simmons Jr. got called for pass interference on the play. On the very next snap, Castellanos had a play-action rollout on the goal line and found Owen McGowan for a touchdown, giving the Eagles a 10-7 lead.
In the third quarter, after the Orange stopped the Eagles on their opening drive, the offense sputtered with successive false start penalties before Del Rio-Wilson threw a wobbly incomplete pass to Isaiah Jones. On the ensuing Jack Stonehouse punt, there was an illegal block in the back penalty.
After a fake punt from Boston College midway through the fourth quarter kept its defense on the field, Castellanos almost gave the ball away again. On a botched snap, Castellanos escaped and picked up a few yards. But linebacker Anwar Sparrow hit Castellanos late and got flagged for unnecessary roughness.
Missed chances for interceptions
Three times versus BC, all in the first half, Syracuse defenders had an opportunity to take advantage of poor throws from Castellanos.
During the Eagles’ opening drive, Castellanos threw to Dino Tomlin on an in-route. Rover safety Justin Barron read the play and had an open interception, but he couldn’t hold onto the ball and he crouched down in frustration. On the very next play, Castellanos almost threw an interception again, this time to Sparrow. But the ball went through Sparrow’s hands.
On the third Boston College drive, it was Isaiah Johnson’s turn to make an almost-interception. Johnson turned around when his receiver didn’t and the ball hit off his hands.
Late in the second quarter, Jaeden Gould made a diving attempt for a Castellanos pass that went over his receiver’s head. All Gould could do was lie down on the field in despair.
