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Head coach Dino Babers said he might have passed away three or four times from stress on the sidelines as he watched Syracuse and Purdue flip the scoreboard back-and-forth on Saturday. Following a rollercoaster 32-29 win over the Boilermakers, Babers took to the podium, complimenting a “well coached” Purdue team and noting the win came down to the kicking game, turnovers and penalties.

He ruled out receiver Isaiah Jones, likely for the rest of the year, following an injury toward the end of Saturday’s game. Then he looked ahead to Virginia, a team closely intertwined with the current coaching staff. Brennan Armstrong, someone Babers believes finished 2021 as one of the top-two quarterbacks in the conference, worked closely under now-Syracuse offensive coordinator Robert Anae and quarterbacks coach Jason Beck.

The Cavaliers enter at 2-1 after a victory against Richmond, a close win over Old Dominion and a stinging loss to Illinois. Armstrong, despite throwing for over 700 yards through three games and rushing for another 150, has only thrown two touchdown passes and has been intercepted three times in his first season under head coach Tony Elliott.

“Brennan Armstrong again, he’s one of those guys, he’s got numerous deliveries,” Babers said. “I sound like a tape recorder. He’s very, very accurate with the football.”

Replacing Isaiah Jones

Babers’ first question pertained to Jones, who came off the field holding his arm following a catch late in the fourth quarter. Jones is in his third season with Syracuse following his freshman year at El Camino College and was seeing significant playing time for the first time with the Orange. Babers said that the injury will likely slide Damien Alford up to the No. 1 slot for Syracuse. The 6-foot-6 receiver’s only catch this season was a 47-yard touchdown against UConn. 

“Damien’s going to be in the first slot, but that’s always been an ‘or’ position for us,” Babers said. “We expect some other guys to step up in there.”

Jones has been listed as the backup to Alford, despite the depth chart containing an “or,” which has led Jones to gather four receptions this season for 60 yards and a touchdown that took place early in the win over Purdue. Jones admitted after the UConn win that he doesn’t think much about what formations he’s placed in, his main thoughts are just “see ball, get ball.”

Courtney Jackson and Devaughn Cooper have emerged as big targets for Garrett Shrader, and the strong start from tight end Oronde Gadsden II could cover up the loss of the 6-foot-4 redshirt sophomore.

Familiar faces

Anae and Beck transformed Virginia into a top Atlantic Coast Conference air-raid offense. Babers said he expects it to be an “emotional” game for Anae and Beck, who groomed Armstrong into a top thrower in the country. Meanwhile, Babers knows Armstrong and the rest of the Cavalier offense is going to want to show off in front of their old coaches.

“I can ride this bike without the training wheels, without you being here,” Babers said.

Babers wouldn’t comment if the pair was working with the defense on Armstrong’s capabilities. Now, Beck is focused on the “high-strung” Shrader, leaning on the fact that they’re wired differently to bond and grow Shrader into a top-rated Pro Football Focus quarterback. Instead of scheming Armstrong into throwing for 4,449 yards and 31 touchdowns, Anae is watching as Shrader, who worked on his throwing motion this offseason, is dropping deep throws to Gadsden and dumping off passes to Sean Tucker on mesh, rub and flat routes.

Babers also said that this iteration of Virginia, under Elliott in his first season manning the Cavaliers, reminds him of his first season with Syracuse. Virginia, Babers noted, is a young team who’s looking for a marquee win against a much stronger ACC opponent.

“Tony Elliott is good, and he’s been on championship teams, is a fabulous coach, got to meet my young men,” Babers said. “I’m sure he’s ready for one of those wins to happen.”

Better outcomes in close games

While Purdue marked just the first close game victory for Syracuse in the early going of the season, Babers said that the close losses in the last few years helped the team pull out the win on Saturday. Babers mentioned the “happenings” in his players’ lives that led them to the Purdue win. Last season, three of SU’s seven losses came by three points, though Babers said Syracuse has won the majority of those close games during his time as head coach. The Orange became used to falling in close games, drawing criticism and leading to questions about his decision-making abilities and what changes he’d made prior to this season.

Babers quoted Gale Sayers – who stated that if you give him 18 inches of daylight, that’d be all he needs for success – as evidence that those close games were lost by a matter of inches. He referenced the final touchdown pass from Shrader to Gadsden. If it was six inches further, he said, Syracuse wouldn’t be 3-0. Purdue, who bested Syracuse for 485 total yards, including 188 receiving yards from Charlie Jones, was a difficult win for the Orange, but one they pulled out in part because of the experienced players who knew what it would take to win.

“I think it was a fantastic test of perseverance,” Babers said.

Published on September 19, 2022 at 2:41 pm

Contact Anthony: aalandt@syr.edu | @anthonyalandt