sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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SU News
Syracuse Nearly a Two-Touchdown Underdog Against Notre Dame at Met Life Stadium (PS; Carlson)
Notre Dame was favored by nearly two touchdowns over Syracuse when three prominent sports gambling websites released their opening lines on Sunday evening.
Three websites listed on ESPN.com had Syracuse as either a 12.5 or 13-point underdog for Saturday's night's game at Met Life Stadium. Those lines moved upward quickly to 13 and 14 points.
Notre Dame enters the game off a bye week, unbeaten and ranked No. 8 in the country after moving up one spot in the college football polls released on Sunday. Syracuse is 2-1 and coming off a 34-20 loss to Maryland.
Syracuse head coach Scott Shafer is 4-2 in his career after losses and the Orange have shown an ability to rebound during his 16 games as head coach. Many of Syracuse's best efforts under Shafer have come when they might have been least expected.
...
One Last Look at Syracuse's 34-20 Loss to Maryland (Stories, Photos, Videos; PS; Murray)
Syracuse Offensive Miscues Spoil Red-Zone Efficiency Against Maryland (DO; D'Abbraccio)
Syracuse’s offense couldn’t seem to get out of its own way against Maryland.
Poor execution and even poorer discipline highlighted the Orange’s failures to finish its otherwise smooth drives. When asked why SU stalled out in the red zone so often, head coach Scott Shafer kept it simple.
“Because we didn’t finish getting the ball over the goal line,” was Shafer’s response.
The solution is a little more complicated than that, but regardless, Syracuse’s inability to capitalize in the red zone was its biggest flaw in its 34-20 loss to Maryland (3-1) on Saturday. The last time the Orange (2-1) played in the Carrier Dome, it was able to escape with a win over Villanova despite repeatedly swinging at the end zone and missing.
SU’s 589 yards were impressive on Saturday. Terrel Hunt rushed for 156 of them and fifth-year running back Prince-Tyson Gulley gashed the Terrapins for 138 yards on the ground.
It was only a weak offensive showing in the place it matters most — the scoreboard.
...
Three Takeaways from Terps' Win at Syracuse (testudotimes.com; Tucker)
Maryland had a comfortable road win on Saturday, beating Syracuse 34-20 at the Carrier Dome. It was Maryland's third victory of the season and their second on the road, which gives them a final non-conference record of 3-1 this season. So what did we learn from the Terps' win yesterday?
Maryland's special teams are, well, special
We've been talking a lot about Maryland's special teams play this season, for good reason. Maryland's special teams is second in the country in team efficiencies. What is team efficiencies? Let me let ESPN answer that for you:
The team efficiencies are the point contributions of each unit to the team's schedule-adjusted scoring margin, on a per-game basis. For example, a value of +8 for the defense would mean that the defense adds 8 points per game towards that margin through all its contributions while on the field (preventing points, endingdrives, forcing turnovers, etc.). Efficiencies update daily.
So essentially, Maryland's special teams have been adding 7.86 points per game to Maryland's margin. That's...pretty good.
On Saturday, Maryland had another key special teams play, blocking a Syracuse punt, their second of the season. They're tied for the lead in the NCAAin blocked punts with two and are tied for 2nd nationallywith three blocked kicks. Add in Brad Craddock being perfect on the season in field goals and extra points and the home run threat of Diggs and Likely and you can see why this unit is so special this season.
...
Syracuse vs Maryland Stock Report (testudotimes.com; Kirshner)
Stock up
Blue chippers
William Likely: Last year, Likely took steps throughout the season and got a lot better as the Terps No 2 cornerback behind Dexter McDougle. This year, he's clearly Maryland's best defensive back and one of the finest in the Big Ten. Likely was absolutelyeverywhereagainst the Orange. He made some important tackles short of the first-down marker and chased down free Syracuse runners on the last level of the defense on a couple of plays. He made the game's defining play when he intercepted aTerrel Huntpass at his own 12-yard line and returned it 88 yards for a touchdown, creating up to a 14-point swing. The Terps won by 14 points, and Likely's stock just keeps rising. He leads or is tied for the Big Ten lead in punt return average and interceptions. He's top-10 in passes defended and top-30 in overall tackles. It's time to stop looking at Likely as a talented prospect with upside and start looking at him as what he is: an elite defensive back and all-around playmaker.
Brad Craddock: Likely has been a big part of Maryland's special teams, but no one has been bigger to that unit than kicker Craddock. He averaged 65 yards per kickoff yesterday and was his usual two-for-two on field goals, including a 44-yarder that bounced off the left upright and in. That kick was his worst of the season, and it, you know, went in. His kickoffs averaged eight more yards than Syracuse's kickoff specialist, which gave the Terps a leg up from the start on field position for much of the afternoon. Craddock is the only starting Big Ten kicker who hasn't missed a field goal through four weeks, making all seven of his tries. He looks very much like one of college football's best kickers.
...
Syracuse Nearly a Two-Touchdown Underdog Against Notre Dame at Met Life Stadium (PS; Carlson)
Notre Dame was favored by nearly two touchdowns over Syracuse when three prominent sports gambling websites released their opening lines on Sunday evening.
Three websites listed on ESPN.com had Syracuse as either a 12.5 or 13-point underdog for Saturday's night's game at Met Life Stadium. Those lines moved upward quickly to 13 and 14 points.
Notre Dame enters the game off a bye week, unbeaten and ranked No. 8 in the country after moving up one spot in the college football polls released on Sunday. Syracuse is 2-1 and coming off a 34-20 loss to Maryland.
Syracuse head coach Scott Shafer is 4-2 in his career after losses and the Orange have shown an ability to rebound during his 16 games as head coach. Many of Syracuse's best efforts under Shafer have come when they might have been least expected.
...
One Last Look at Syracuse's 34-20 Loss to Maryland (Stories, Photos, Videos; PS; Murray)
Syracuse Offensive Miscues Spoil Red-Zone Efficiency Against Maryland (DO; D'Abbraccio)
Syracuse’s offense couldn’t seem to get out of its own way against Maryland.
Poor execution and even poorer discipline highlighted the Orange’s failures to finish its otherwise smooth drives. When asked why SU stalled out in the red zone so often, head coach Scott Shafer kept it simple.
“Because we didn’t finish getting the ball over the goal line,” was Shafer’s response.
The solution is a little more complicated than that, but regardless, Syracuse’s inability to capitalize in the red zone was its biggest flaw in its 34-20 loss to Maryland (3-1) on Saturday. The last time the Orange (2-1) played in the Carrier Dome, it was able to escape with a win over Villanova despite repeatedly swinging at the end zone and missing.
SU’s 589 yards were impressive on Saturday. Terrel Hunt rushed for 156 of them and fifth-year running back Prince-Tyson Gulley gashed the Terrapins for 138 yards on the ground.
It was only a weak offensive showing in the place it matters most — the scoreboard.
...
Three Takeaways from Terps' Win at Syracuse (testudotimes.com; Tucker)
Maryland had a comfortable road win on Saturday, beating Syracuse 34-20 at the Carrier Dome. It was Maryland's third victory of the season and their second on the road, which gives them a final non-conference record of 3-1 this season. So what did we learn from the Terps' win yesterday?
Maryland's special teams are, well, special
We've been talking a lot about Maryland's special teams play this season, for good reason. Maryland's special teams is second in the country in team efficiencies. What is team efficiencies? Let me let ESPN answer that for you:
The team efficiencies are the point contributions of each unit to the team's schedule-adjusted scoring margin, on a per-game basis. For example, a value of +8 for the defense would mean that the defense adds 8 points per game towards that margin through all its contributions while on the field (preventing points, endingdrives, forcing turnovers, etc.). Efficiencies update daily.
So essentially, Maryland's special teams have been adding 7.86 points per game to Maryland's margin. That's...pretty good.
On Saturday, Maryland had another key special teams play, blocking a Syracuse punt, their second of the season. They're tied for the lead in the NCAAin blocked punts with two and are tied for 2nd nationallywith three blocked kicks. Add in Brad Craddock being perfect on the season in field goals and extra points and the home run threat of Diggs and Likely and you can see why this unit is so special this season.
...
Syracuse vs Maryland Stock Report (testudotimes.com; Kirshner)
Stock up
Blue chippers
William Likely: Last year, Likely took steps throughout the season and got a lot better as the Terps No 2 cornerback behind Dexter McDougle. This year, he's clearly Maryland's best defensive back and one of the finest in the Big Ten. Likely was absolutelyeverywhereagainst the Orange. He made some important tackles short of the first-down marker and chased down free Syracuse runners on the last level of the defense on a couple of plays. He made the game's defining play when he intercepted aTerrel Huntpass at his own 12-yard line and returned it 88 yards for a touchdown, creating up to a 14-point swing. The Terps won by 14 points, and Likely's stock just keeps rising. He leads or is tied for the Big Ten lead in punt return average and interceptions. He's top-10 in passes defended and top-30 in overall tackles. It's time to stop looking at Likely as a talented prospect with upside and start looking at him as what he is: an elite defensive back and all-around playmaker.
Brad Craddock: Likely has been a big part of Maryland's special teams, but no one has been bigger to that unit than kicker Craddock. He averaged 65 yards per kickoff yesterday and was his usual two-for-two on field goals, including a 44-yarder that bounced off the left upright and in. That kick was his worst of the season, and it, you know, went in. His kickoffs averaged eight more yards than Syracuse's kickoff specialist, which gave the Terps a leg up from the start on field position for much of the afternoon. Craddock is the only starting Big Ten kicker who hasn't missed a field goal through four weeks, making all seven of his tries. He looks very much like one of college football's best kickers.
...
