What a day of football. From Ann Arbor, Michigan to Knoxville, Tennessee, the country has seen high-flying offenses flourish. Unfortunately, what happened in Syracuse, New York was far from the same.
The No. 15 NC State football team suffered its second loss of the season to the No. 18 Syracuse Orange with a final score of 24-9. With many similarities to the Florida State game last weekend, defense once again ruled the day. Penalties also played a crucial part in the Wolfpack defeat.
Even though the Wolfpack (5-2, 1-2 ACC) suffered a loss, the defense was once again spectacular. One could not ask for more from this group — the players show up in every game and play their hearts out week in and week out.
With two interceptions from the stout secondary, hope for a win was still present late in the game. Unfortunately, it was not enough against the Orange (6-0, 3-0 ACC) as the offense just couldn’t keep up without star redshirt junior quarterback Devin Leary and sophomore running back Demie Sumo-Karngbaye.
The Pack’s offense looked anemic at times with graduate quarterback Jack Chambers at the helm. NC State put up 255 total yards, a season-low for the Wolfpack. Chambers looked shaky most of the game with a few flashes of brilliance in the second half, keeping the Pack in the game. In the end, he couldn’t pull it off, amassing only 160 yards passing with 58 rushing yards sprinkled in.
Another part of NC State’s offense that was lacking today was its run game. Junior running back Jordan Houston led the Pack among players not named Chambers with 44 yards on 12 carries. Houston also helped out in the screen game with 29 receiving yards. Chambers made out with a large part of his work being done on the ground. He provided a spark with the read option game, but the Syracuse defense stepped up every time.
NC State rushed for a measly 2.5 yards per carry, way below average for this talented team. This was due to many things, but one that was seen on every play was the inability of the offensive line to get a push.
The game was also a flag fest. There were 14 penalties, seven per team. They all seemed to come during crucial times, too, stifling drives and shifting momentum. False start penalties in particular were a major problem for the Pack.
“It was challenging,” said head coach Dave Doeren. “We flat out couldn’t hear anything. The crowd noise was certainly a factor in the game causing false starts.”
The Pack defense was good today, but one man crushed NC State and shut the door on any comeback — Syracuse running back and preseason All-ACC selection Sean Tucker. Tucker gashed the Pack defense, rushing for 98 yards on 14 carries. He also scored the game-sealing touchdown with two minutes remaining in the contest, truly sticking the dagger in the heart of the Wolfpack.
With the Pack falling to the Orange, the team’s record moves to 5-2 on the year. This also puts the Atlantic division crown on life alert, as it would take a miracle for NC State to win it. Luckily, next week the Wolfpack has a much needed bye week before hosting Virginia Tech on Thursday, Oct. 27 for what should be a raucous environment in Carter-Finley Stadium.
Kickoff against the Hokies is set for 7:30 p.m.
