Saturday was strange for a lot of reasons, none bigger than a divorce from a thirty-year marriage to the Big East. Orange fans spent the day excited for the showdown in the L.A. Coliseum, celebrating SU’s first basketball commit and then wondering how things would change with the move to the ACC.
Fans came out of Saturday’s game against USC feeling just as weird. Unlike the frustration felt after the win against Rhode Island, there was a light satisfaction after the Trojans loss. Despite losing by 21, the Orange had played up to expectations, stayed competitive throughout and not embarrassed itself. If SU plays to its capabilities, it should be in every game and have a shot at the Big East title. Without further ado, this week’s Fizz 5:
- Syracuse’s play-calling is still out of whack.
SU is throwing the ball way too much and thus the passing game isn‚Äôt as effective as it should be. Ryan Nassib threw the ball 37 times for the 2nd week in a row but for only a six-yard average and one TD. By comparison, Matt Barkley threw it 39 times for an eight-yard average, 5 TD‚Äôs and (like Nassib) no picks. Clearly Barkley was throwing to better talent and against a worse defense. But an underrated part of the disparity is the Trojans ran the ball 33 times, keeping the SU defense on its toes. The Orange ran the ball only 21. This needs to change for balance purposes and so Antwon Bailey and Prince-Tyson Gulley have more chances to make plays. Speaking of…
- SU needs to find its playmakers.
One thing SU did very well in the first two weeks despite inconsistent performances was find its playmakers. Alec Lemon and Van Chew put up great numbers and Bailey had 25 carries against Wake. While Nathaniel Hackett was able to get Bailey in space as a receiver, something The Fizz has been begging for, Chew only had three catches. Surely some credit has to go to USC’s talented DB’s, but for a guy with that much speed, Nassib has to force feed him the ball. Same goes for getting Dorian Graham a few extra touches and upping Bailey’s carries.
- SU needs to get better coming through in the clutch.
This game changed late in the first half when SU decided to go for it on 4th down. Good play call, good throw, Chew missed the ball. Turnover on downs. USC then marched the other way and missed a field goal. The score didn’t change but the momentum SU could have had was clearly gone. The game felt different. The defense also failed in a few key spots. USC was an absurd 10-14 on 3rd down. A defense that can’t get off the field has no shot of winning.
- Believe it or not, the secondary is improving.
“Hey you idiot, they gave up 5 TD passes!” But the coverage was there for most of them. As opposed to completely blown coverages, SU was often just a step late against superior competition. The Orange was facing an absurdly accurate, nearly NFL-ready quarterback in Matt Barkley who was dropping dime after dime over the outstretched hands of SU defenders. The Orange was also covering elite athletes who may play on Sundays soon. Unfortunately, Brandon Reddish did not have a good day. I called for more Reddish. He played. He got burned for a TD. Maybe if he had played more against the lesser opponents he would have been more prepared? But the coaches see him in practice every day and I don’t. Perhaps he’s not ready just yet.
- SU isn’t out of “the Woods” just yet.
SU really struggled keeping up with the dynamic USC wideout. There is little shame in this since Woods leads the nations in receptions. But the inability to stop one playmaker is something that could cause problems again. Eric Page is a dynamite WR for Toledo, who has the ability to take it the distance. Woods was able to get chunks against the Orange. It’s critical Page isn’t allowed to do the same, along with other weapons SU will face this year like Tavon Austin at WVU and Devin Street at Pitt.
There’s still a lot of questions about how good this team is. Toledo should teach us a lot. Getting Chan Jones back would help immensely and¬†a win gets the Orange halfway back to a bowl before conference play starts. Back to the Dome we go.
Posted: Craig Hoffman
9 responses to “The Fizz 5: What We Learned About Syracuse In the Loss to USC”
what we learned was simple: despite usc being on probation, at year 3 of marrone, we still have a immense talent disparity, especailly with offense linemen and defensive backs. as noted previous, usc second time is gonna be better at thi s point,then su starters. and u cant beat a USC pro style set with i formation, with the su version. not a way in the world, despite all his illustrous statements, that marrone is gonna beat BAMA, LSU, Miami, et al with the pro set i formation.gonna have to do a freak” offense. ala navy /GT triple opton, WVU/orygun” spread run opton or kansas/missouri spread pass opton. and dont ask for something,u may get it. namely, a unhappy tenure in the acc ala ole boston college.
Irish Mist??????????????????? What I saw in the syracuse – USC game was this…. On offense, the play calling said…..let’s keep it close and not get blown out…….. We were not aggressive enough….. Why did we not try to stretch the field? Throw the ball down the field …even if it is not complete…. the threat is there…. We passed underneath too much… USC DB’s just sat on the under routes in the second half. All of the above is easier said then done.. I know. As for the running game…. We need to mix in some power, big back plays, what’s up with the big 240lb Freshman RB from Colorado?
Our offensive play calling needs to be more aggressive….Nassib looks good….. are you telling me, we have no wideouts who can stretch a field vertically? If we don’t make those changes… we are going to be in a dog fight all year…. we don’t have a shut down Defense this year.
DA finally you take on HCDM-THANKS!!! Jones would not of made a difference. He surely wasn’t Mean Joe Greene against WF either. Our talent level is below standard. And that’s HCDM fault. He’s got this thing about “building men” from scratch. Well those kids out there looked like they were made out of straw!!! But they did play their hearts out but the talent level is just above WF’s and RI’s. Bailey is a bust so far this year, but mainly that could be the O-line’s fault. The secondary is just not good enough for D-1 play. All the CB/S’s got beat badly. We are going to the ACC going to the ACC. Hell he can’t recruit against lower BE teams yet either. GEZZZZ!!!
Terry –
I just don’t even know what to do with you anymore. I said the playcalling was out of whack. I never said anything about the talent level, recruiting or anything you just brought up. The DB’s actually played alright, but USC is just simply better. Marrone has pulled this program from hell (aka being coached by Groobers) and he should be applauded for doing so. He’s not perfect. Never said he was. But let’s pump the breaks on a Marrone-bashing. Thanks as always for the comments and for reading!
Dr Bill – Agreed on Ameen-Moore (RB from CO). I’ve wanted to see him or Jerome Smith all year. Balance balance balance.
I agree that we need to stretch the field and I reject the notion that we don’t have the talent to do it. Our WRs are the best we’ve had in YEARS. Nassib is also slingin the ball like a true NFL prospect. What we need for this passing game to come together is for the line to give Nassib time to set up in the pocket. It’s nice that he can throw on the run, but you simply can’t go long without time to set up. Getting our o-line in order would do wonders for our running game too, though I’d still like to see A-M getting more touches as well.
As for D, our secondary definitely was improved. If there was any deficiency, it’s because they are still a pretty banged up unit. Once everyone is healthy on D, it’s going to completely change the complexion of this team.
i agree with dr bill, more of the fullback sized guy from colorado. and to beat heavy duty i formation teams like bama, lsu, usc et al, u got to go ory-gun” a total freak” opton offense. and i have seen opton qbs sling the ball acrrurately ong distance down the field while on the run. and i am simply stating, that like grob, marrone is now a product of the nfl. never take chancees, throw dink passes and hope for the best, and the cheezy and boring west coast offense. u have to come up with better solutions when u know that big dogs are gonna alwasys have better personnal.
Irish Mist….Well said….If you look at the N.O. Saints, where HCDM cut his teeth as an OC, they have a variable, diverse, attach, mix in the run game with short slants and deep passes…they do it all…that is th O that HCDM brought to the Cuse, Nassib looks like he can imitate Brees(poor man’s imitation)…. So what is our problem?
to win big now, gonna have to a have a vince young or cam newton, somebody who is super star opton qb who can carry su type talent on his back.a marvin graves, mcpherson/mcnabb on steroids. unfortunately for us, we were a victim of our own sucess with freeze opton. WVU,VT, UT,ory-gun” florida, et al starting beating the bushes for larger, faster versions of our qbs.who could beat u with their feet and arms too. gotta get wild. triple opton, wildcat, run spread. i think that is why marrone is seeing the light and trying to recruit what appears to be local n y opton qb types.a’int no way we are gonna beat lsu, usc, bama, or acc teams running pro set” i formation.way, too much talent on those teams. use bailey as wingback, flankerback, wildcat guy, and the freshman from colorado as i back.
Notice to all the experts. USC has been a minor league NFL franchise forever. They’re in my top 5 all-time dirtiest athletic programs. There’s no way Cuse will ever become a similar football factory. Florida, Alabama, LSU, USC will accept kids who have criminal records, but if they can play ball, they’re in. Will Syracuse ever do that?