The next day: Syracuse defense remains elite in 1st Power 5 matchup of 2023

Get the latest Syracuse news delivered right to your inbox. Subscribe to our sports newsletter here.

The Orange caused four turnovers in their statement win over Purdue on Saturday. Marlowe Wax led the way with his first career interception, two forced fumbles and 11 total tackles. 

Up 21-7 at the end of the first half, Purdue quarterback Hudson Card dropped back to pass on 1st-and-10. SU’s Alijah Clark jumped Deion Burks’ post route, popping the ball up for grabs. Wax came down with it and went out of bounds after a 14-yard return.

“It was really easy,” Wax said of picking the batted ball. “Give all the credit to No. 5 — Cinco — he made a great play.”

Seven separate SU defenders had at least five tackles against the Boilermakers. To complement Wax’s career night, Jeremiah Wilson made a career-high nine solo tackles. Justin Barron also had 10 total tackles and forced two fumbles.

The Orange pass rush got to Card twice and forced a fumble both times. It was a dominant performance at every level as the Orange didn’t allow a single play over 25 yards. 

To begin the 2023 season, Syracuse’s defense has allowed the fourth-fewest points per game in the Football Bowl Subdivision and rank sixth in turnovers. Pro Football Focus ranks them as the sixth-best defense nationally, with the third-highest coverage grade and fourth-highest tackling grade. 

After giving up just seven points across the first two games, SU’s defense kept rolling in West Lafayette. They allowed three touchdowns in the 35-20 victory, but Syracuse dominated at all three levels. 

The front seven was particularly bothersome for Purdue’s offensive line. Syracuse clogged the gaps, allowing just 2.5 yards per carry. Card was often flushed out of the pocket, finishing with -4 rush yards on eight attempts.

SU has now won its first three games by a combined score of 121 with a turnover margin of four, ranking 15th in the nation.

“Can’t get enough of them,” Babers said of the turnovers. “The way they played, the way they handled the rushing yardage, that was a good offensive line, good quarterback with some dynamite receivers and that quarterback has legs as well.”

The game was won when…

Shrader went untouched for a 28-yard touchdown to put the Orange up 15 with three minutes remaining. On the shotgun read-option, Shrader pulled the ball from LeQuint Allen Jr. and curled around a diving Will Heldt to jog comfortably into the end zone. 

Then, to run out the clock, Shrader executed the same play-action fake on the goal line. After faking the give, Shrader hid the ball from the defense behind his hip before taking off down the left side.

Shrader ran 39 yards before sliding down past midfield. Six more yards would have broken the SU record for quarterback rushing yards in a game. 

Quote of the night: Babers on offensive fakes

“We like to believe that we’re the faking capital of the world,” Babers said. “Those guys do that on the practice field all the time. And when they do it on the practice field I have a punishment if I don’t know who has the ball.”

Babers declined to share the punishment but said the players love to watch it. 

The Orange pounded the same read-option concepts throughout the game. Shrader took what the defense gave him and his decision-making and fakes were immaculate. 

Stat to know: 7

The Boilermakers fumbled seven times on Saturday. Card lost three of his four fumbles, all in the first half, and SU scored on the ensuing possession of each.

Then, Purdue’s preseason All-American running back, Devin Mockobee, fumbled twice in the fourth quarter. Both were recovered by the Boilermakers after reviews.

Game ball: Garrett Shrader

Shrader’s career-high 195 rushing yards on 25 carries were the most by a Syracuse quarterback since Eric Dungey in 2018. He also set a personal record for rushing touchdowns with four. 

Three final points:

Rocky Long’s impact

Everyone on the SU sideline has raved about new defensive coordinator Rocky Long’s in-game adjustments. After the game, Wax said that Long made up a new play at halftime. Based on what SU was running, and the success it had, Long saw an opportunity to make a play happen. He spent two minutes running the defense through where everyone needed to be. They ran it, and it worked, Wax said. 

“Coach Long has seen a lot of football, so he knows how to do those things,” Wax said. “That’s the first time a DC has come in and just created a whole new play.”

Turning defense into offense

The Boilermakers’ first three lost fumbles all turned into six points for Syracuse. Each of SU’s three first-half touchdown drives came directly off fumbles by Card. 

“When they’re playing like that, all flying to the ball and getting turnovers, we owe them a touchdown,” Shrader said.

Receiver drops

While Shrader had a career game on the ground, it was a day to forget through the air. He finished 14-28 (50% completion) for 184 yards, no scores and one interception. A lot of catchable balls were dropped on Saturday.

On a slot fade to the right side, Umari Hatcher beat his man off the line to get open downfield. Shrader’s toss hit the sophomore in stride, but he couldn’t come up with it. After the game, Babers said the evening sky was a factor in the drops, especially on deep balls, as receivers have grown accustomed to the Dome’s lighting and white ceiling.

D’Marcus Adams and Isaiah Jones also couldn’t corral potential touchdown passes on jump balls near the sideline. Without Oronde Gadsden II, who announced he would miss the entire season with an injury before the game, the receiving core struggled to make plays on the ball. That will be something to watch going into Atlantic Coast Conference play.

Next up: Army

Army’s offense is essentially just smash-mouth football. They rank second in the nation with 158 rush attempts through three games, collecting more yards per game than Syracuse, which ranks 10th in the nation. To beat Army, Syracuse has to win the line of scrimmage on defense.

The Orange did that on Saturday against Purdue, holding Mockobee to 31 yards and 2.6 yards per carry while forcing two fumbles. Expect a heavier reliance on the blitz against a Black Knights offense that ran the ball 86% of the time last year.