The next day: Syracuse beats NC State in ‘defensive battle’ to earn bowl eligibility

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Mikel Jones was on Marshall Street last Friday when fans told him they would storm the field if Syracuse defeated NC State. At first, he didn’t believe it. But when it actually happened the next day, Jones said it didn’t feel real.

Fans last rushed in 2017, when SU upset then-No. 2 Clemson 27-24. After NC State quarterback Jack Chambers heaved the ball near the goal line on the last play of the game and Derek McDonald batted the ball to the turf, the first sold-out crowd of the year spilled onto the Dome turf.

The Orange’s 6-0 start has been highlighted by Oronde Gadsden II’s game-winning catch versus Purdue, Garrett Shrader’s career-high 287 passing yards against UConn and Andre Szmyt’s 5-for-5 performance versus Virginia. But key defensive plays like Mcdonald’s have also been sprinkled into the best start since 1987 — Caleb Okechukwu’s pick-six against the Boilermakers, Steve Linton’s strip sack on Louisville’s Malik Cunningham and Eric Coley’s bat-down to halt UVA’s last drive.

Saturday’s contest was a “defensive battle,” head coach Dino Babers said. NC State is the next closest to Syracuse in the conference’s rankings, giving up an average of 13.2 points per game. Babers compared the matchup to a scene in “Creed 2”, when the two boxers keep one foot each in the middle of a tire, sending body blow after body blow at one another.

“You saw two of the top three defenses going,” Babers said. “Sometimes you have to throw some body punches in there.”

Tony White’s 3-3-5 defense is the best in the ACC and the sixth-best defense in the country, allowing just 10 touchdowns this season. The run defense is also the 11th-best nationally, allowing 95.0 yards per game.

NC State’s offense entered the game after losing quarterback Devin Leary for the season and running back Demie Sumo-Karngbaye for the weekend. Sumo-Karngbaye was the Wolfpack’s leading rusher, splitting carries with Jordan Houston. Houston started Saturday’s contest, running straight down the middle on NC State’s first play. Houston picked up four yards, but before the whistle sounded, Jones pulled Houston right back to where he started the play five yards behind the line of scrimmage.

The Wolfpack started Charleston Southern graduate transfer Jack Chambers, who provided another rushing threat against SU’s defense. Early in the matchup, Chambers’ agility on the ground showed.

With a 1st-and-10 in the first quarter, Syracuse sent Marlowe Wax barreling at Chambers from the right side. Chambers avoided the pressure, spinning away from Wax and running down the right sideline for a first down.

Chambers dropped back a few plays later, pump-faking a dump off pass to Thayer Thomas before coming back to running back Jordan Houston on a designed screen. McDonald, who returned on Saturday from an injury, charged at Chambers from the left side, but Chambers let go of the ball just in time.

Houston picked up 18 yards, and third-string running back Demarcus Jones II came into the game for NC State. The Orange stuffed Jones twice before forcing Chambers to scramble to the 3-yard line on a 3rd-and-goal.

The Wolfpack elected for a field goal, surrendering its closest chance for a touchdown. In the fourth quarter, with another 3rd-and-goal at the 13-yard line, the Wolfpack sent all their receivers into the end zone.

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Chambers tried to escape the pocket with no open options, but fled backwards. When he ran to his right, Okechukwu blocked the path to the sideline. When Chambers ran back left, Jatius Geer, who had successfully beat out two offensive lineman, dove for his ankles. Chambers stumbled past Geer, but Kevon Darton provided the final obstacle from the front, and Chambers hesitated before he was brought down by Geer, Okechukwu and Darton.

Chambers had been scrambling more, and as a byproduct, a few SU starters began cramping or had to leave because of minor injuries. Williams, Jones, Leon Lowery and Duce Chestnut all left at one point.

Williams was out for the rest of the game, but most of the starters came back onto the field after Sean Tucker scored with two minutes left in the game. On the first play of the drive, Okechukwu broke in the pocket first while Geer came from Chambers’ backside. Focused on Okechukwu, Chambers never saw Geer coming as he was sacked for a loss of three yards.

The Wolfpack started passing, which worked enough to place them with a 1st-and-goal on the 9-yard line. Jones had spent the majority of the game roaming around from gap to gap in a variety of the blitz packages the Orange have utilized. For most of the game it hadn’t worked, and with the fatigue making the game feel more like a long summer run, Jones didn’t want to be wrong.

He paused in his tracks before settling in the A-gap directly next to the ball. After it was snapped, Jones took off. No one blocked him as he dragged Chambers to the turf nine yards behind the line of scrimmage, keeping NC State still touchdown-less by the end of the game.

“We’re going to keep showing people what we’re capable of,” Jones said.

The game was won when…

While NC State rarely produced offense at points in the game, the Orange were still one explosive play away from losing their lead. Syracuse took over on offense with seven minutes left in the game and took off roughly five minutes off the clock as it worked downfield. 

Gadsden made a crucial grab on 2nd-and-20 before Damien Alford hauled in a 34-yard catch at the 42-yard line. Two plays later, Sean Tucker broke out to the left sideline, guided by two blocks from Shrader, to score his sixth rushing touchdown of the season and give SU a 24-9 lead. 

Quote of the night: Garrett Shrader

“Gotta keep the legs moving baby.”

When asked about the fans storming the field, Shrader said that Gadsden had been overwhelmed from the amount of photos he had taken with fans. Shrader took another approach to the celebrations, using his regular skills on the field of scrambling to avoid being stopped for photos by too many people.

Number to know: 9

There are now nine remaining undefeated FBS college football teams in the country. The Orange are ranked lowest on the list at No. 14, but they remain the only ACC team to stay unbeaten except for No. 5 Clemson. The rest of the teams are in the top-10 of the AP rankings.

Game ball: Oronde Gadsden II  

It’s hard to not give the game ball to Gadsden. He led the Orange’s receiving core, again. He set a career-high in receiving yards, again. He set a career-high in receptions, again. And he tied a career-high with two touchdowns, again.

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Shrader now has a primary receiver threat in Gadsden for the first time in his career at Syracuse. Gadsden towers over most defensive backs and has the speed to get past most linebackers. He’s helped out as a lead blocker in the running game, too. 

“He’s consistently good, not occasionally great,” Babers said.

Three final points:

Shrader’s mistakes 

Shrader entered Saturday’s matchup with one interception this season. Against NC State, he threw two and explained both of them postgame. On his first, Shrader said he expected an offsides penalty to be called after seeing the referee reach into his pocket. But a flag wasn’t called. For his second, he said Aydan White made a good play on a ball Shrader had lofted for Devaughn Cooper on the right sideline.

Shrader has had a few close calls this season. He had two picks overturned against Purdue and he’s routinely thrown to his first read without checking for incoming defenders. With Clemson next week though, Shrader admitted that those turnovers won’t fly. 

“We left 21 points out there,” Shrader said. “We’re going to need those next week. We can’t afford to turn the ball over twice and give Clemson two more opportunities like that.”

Bowl Eligible 

The Orange headed into their final three games last season needing one more win, but they were blown out in all matchups against Louisville, NC State and Pittsburgh. This season, SU has already beaten the first two of three teams, facing the Panthers on Nov. 5.

The reason for Syracuse’s inability to get over the hump last year was because of its close defeats earlier in the season, Jones said. The Orange lost three straight games by three points, making costly mistakes on both sides of the ball. But this year, with Jones and Williams back, a reliable No. 1 receiving option and the return of the “old” Szmyt, Syracuse is back in a bowl game and set to finish .500 or better for the first time since 2018.

“We’re just getting started,” Jones said.

Tucker’s record 

Sean Tucker moved up to sixth on Syracuse’s all-time rushing list, passing Floyd Little. He came into the night after a career-high 232-yard rushing performance against Wagner with three touchdowns. But before that, Tucker’s production fell off (briefly).

Against Purdue and Virginia, Tucker ran for a combined 102 yards (he was not pleased with his performance). On Saturday, he continued his success from last week’s onslaught with 98 yards on 14 carries.

Next up: No. 5 Clemson 

When Syracuse upset Clemson in 2017, it was 3-3 and still ended the season 4-8. The win was one of the biggest in Babers’ tenure at Syracuse, but it was meaningless in the long run. This year, it’ll be the first time in history that two teams with at least six wins and no losses are playing in Death Valley, but defeating the Tigers won’t be just a formality. With the Orange’s hot start, a win is very much possible and could propel SU into the top-10 of the AP poll heading into the back half of the season.