Observations from SU’s loss to Georgia Tech: Limited Shrader, Gill Jr.’s costly fumble

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Syracuse tried to trip another opponent up with its wildcat offense. The Orange ran for 392 yards against Pittsburgh, but against Georgia Tech, SU didn’t fool anyone at first. It had to rely on its two best playmakers on offense — running back LeQuint Allen Jr. and tight end Dan Villari — with Garrett Shrader being more limited than last week.

It seemed as though Syracuse could pull off the run-heavy, wildcat offense again with Allen Jr. and Villari. The two helped the Orange to 64 total yards (50 rushing) on the opening drive that put them into the red zone. Villari took direct snaps and threw screen passes, while Allen Jr. bullied his way for first downs on short-yardage situations. But penalties forced SU to rely on Brady Denaburg for a 44-yard field goal.

For the rest of the half, though, Villari and Allen Jr. got stuffed, with Georgia Tech’s Kyle Kennard stuffing the holes that worked against Pitt. Meanwhile, GT quarterback Haynes King and running back Jamal Haynes punished SU’s defense with explosive touchdowns.

Villari and Allen Jr. responded with incremental rushes before both getting 11-yard pickups to set up the Orange in the red zone. On a first-and-goal, Villari stiff-armed a defender to break to the right side and into the end zone. After another three-and-out for Georgia Tech, Allen Jr. had a 53-yard punt return that led the Orange to their second touchdown of the third quarter. It was also Allen Jr. who scored on a one-yard run, making the score 24-16 after a bobbled hold on the extra-point attempt by punter Jack Stonehouse.

With under eight minutes left in the game, Allen Jr. and Villari drove the Orange down the field again, with Villari finding Damien Alford for a first down. Eventually, Allen Jr. scored again from a yard out. But on the two-point conversion, there was some motion before Allen Jr. held onto the ball. Georgia Tech read it well and the rusher tried to throw but got nothing.

The failed two-point conversion became costly with seven minutes and 40 seconds remaining. Multiple Syracuse penalties and King and Haynes’ legs gave GT multiple first downs to let the clock keep ticking. King gave SU a taste of its own medicine with a fake pitch before rushing into the end zone for a 19-yard touchdown to make it 31-22. After Luke MacPhail threw a pick, GT ran the clock out.

The Yellow Jackets clinched a bowl game for the first time since 2018, while the Orange have one more chance to make the postseason next week against Wake Forest.

Here are some observations from Syracuse’s (5-6, 1-6 Atlantic Coast Conference) 31-22 loss against Georgia Tech (6-5, 5-3 ACC):

A more limited Garrett Shrader

All Shrader could do was watch. When Babers was interviewed during the break between the first and second quarters, he said the Orange were “going to have to play it by ear” with Shrader. Still, he remained on the sideline until the end of the first half. The only play he got was the kneel-down after the referees added two extra seconds before intermission. Against Pitt, Shrader was a decoy. Versus the Yellow Jackets, he got a chance to do that two times, only in short-yardage situations.

Once, he did it on an Allen Jr. one-yard touchdown run, the next on another Allen Jr. run on a fourth-and-1 that picked up three yards.

Without Shrader and his backup Carlos Del Rio-Wilson, who wasn’t on the travel roster, the Orange went with an offense led by Allen Jr. and Villari.

Penalties — gasp — hurt the Orange again

Pitt and Boston College may be Syracuse’s biggest rivals, but the Georgia Tech game seemed more physical than any of them. This physicality from both teams resulted in penalties, especially ones that ended up hurting the Orange.

On a second-and-11 on SU’s second drive, Allen Jr. got a sweep and made a cut before crossing the goal line. But the referees called two penalties on Umari Hatcher for holding and unnecessary roughness. As this happened, Allen Jr. was hit late after getting to the end zone. The referees flagged Hatcher and not Georgia Tech.

Syracuse’s defense had started to limit GT, with a three-and-out on the Yellow Jackets’ fourth drive of the game. On a fourth-and-1, King fooled Anwar Sparrow on a hard count for an offside. Two plays later, King threw a 53-yard touchdown.

As the Orange needed another stop down by two in the fourth quarter, Alijah Clark jumped on Eric Singleton Jr. too soon, giving the Yellow Jackets a first down as part of a clock-killing drive. Babers tried to tell his defense to calm down, but there was another first down before King and Haynes drove downfield to kill the clock and score again. After the Yellow Jackets picked off MacPhail’s pass, the Orange had three more penalties on the final drive of the game — one on Jason Simmons Jr. and two on Kevon Darton.

In total, the Orange committed a season-high 12 penalties, part of a continuing problem that hasn’t improved.

Yellow Jackets sting Jason Simmons Jr. twice

While the Orange’s offense fluctuated in efficiency, the Yellow Jackets finished with 386 total yards and scored two first-half touchdowns. Both GT scores had SU’s Simmons Jr. involved. And not in a good way.

On Georgia Tech’s 10th offensive play, King threw a screen pass to Haynes behind the line of scrimmage. Simmons Jr. and Derek McDonald were in front of him, but the tailback cut back and found a seam up the middle. From there, he bullied his way into the end zone for the opening score.

Then in the second quarter, King showed off his arm with a 53-yard touchdown bomb for Dominick Blaylock. The receiver seemingly took advantage of a miscommunication from Simmons Jr., who was two steps behind Blaylock when he caught the ball. Simmons Jr. tried to make a last-ditch tackle before Blaylock crossed the goal line.

Gill Jr.’s one big mistake

On five kick returns, freshman Darrell Gill Jr. impressed with 135 return yards. On his returns, he consistently found gaps and always ended up near the 30- or 40-yard lines.

But on the first play of the second half, Gill Jr.’s lone mistake proved costly. He took another return up the right side before Paul Moala ripped it out of his hand, and Georgia Tech recovered the fumble. On the Yellow Jackets’ first play after the fumble, Haynes burst for a 30-yard touchdown to make the score 24-3.

The Orange scored their first touchdown of the game on the next drive, given a premium position by a Gill Jr. return of 29 yards. Yet, his fumble gave the Yellow Jackets enough to beat Syracuse.