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Syracuse had not thrown a touchdown to a tight end in two years. The last tight end to catch one — Aaron Hackett — is no longer on the team. That all changed on Saturday night when the Orange entered the red zone during their first possession of the fourth quarter against Louisville. Garrett Shrader dropped back on a 1st-and-goal play from the two-yard line, hoping to extend Syracuse’s lead to 23-7. 

Offensive coordinator Robert Anae dialed up a double motion route that included receiver-turned-tight-end Oronde Gadsden II. Shrader said Louisville got their play call in late, prompting both covering corners to run with the other receiver in motion. Gadsden realized he was open, so he abandoned his route and backpedaled a few yards, situating himself in the front left corner of the endzone. As a defensive lineman broke through, Shrader saw the tight end and lofted the ball up to the wide open tight end for Gadsden’s first collegiate touchdown.

“After the catch, I just threw the ball up in the air,” Gadsden said. “I didn’t know the rules or nothing, I was just so happy it was my first touchdown.” 

Anae and quarterbacks coach Jason Beck were brought in to rejuvenate a floundering, at times stagnant offensive system, one that led to Syracuse finishing near the bottom of the Atlantic Coast Conference in most passing statistics last season. Syracuse’s (1-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast) opening game against Louisville (0-1, 0-1 ACC) marked the first time the new offense would be on display. After 449 total yards — split almost evenly between rushes and passes — and a 31-7 win against the Cardinals, the updated approach passed.

The Orange quickly showcased the more balanced system on their first drive, one that stalled near the 30-yard line, but went off without a hitch prior to then. Shrader faked a handoff on the second play of the game and instead looked downfield. He locked eyes with Courtney Jackson, SU’s leading returning receiver, and connected with him for a first down at the 40-yard line on a comeback route. A few plays later, Gadsden turned around while running a fade route down the left side and caught a 15-yard reception to bring the Orange across midfield.

Syracuse still incorporated run-pass options and ensured that Sean Tucker had the ball as much as possible. But Tucker transitioned away from simply being a back that ran inside zones and power sweeps. He leaked out of the backfield on nearly every pass play to begin a rub, flat or mesh route. Shrader tended to look toward Tucker as a first option, especially during the first half when Louisville’s corners opted to shade off of the preseason All-American, giving him space to make cuts and juke out a first possible tackler.

“We started off early complementing (the run game) with a little play action stuff,” Shrader said. “Eventually we got to the point where we could throw the ball and try to get into some zone coverages.”

With a little over five minutes remaining in the first quarter and SU at its 45-yard line, Shrader pitched the ball off to Tucker on a quick two-yard cutback route, allowing three blockers to position themselves between the running back and the Louisville secondary. Tucker easily shed the first tackler and proceeded to run behind his blockers. Then he cut out and bolted toward the right sideline, hugging the white turf as he sprinted past everyone. Tucker looked at free safety Kenderick Duncan as he breezed past him and into the endzone, extending the lead to 9-0.

Gadsden said Syracuse knew that it wanted to exploit the Cardinals’ cover 0 coverage and sam linebacker, typically played by Ben Perry or Yasir Abdullah. The Orange succeeded, which is what allowed so many open receivers around the middle of the field. Devaughn Cooper, who won the starting slot receiver job out of training camp, tended to position himself in slant routes that made him open across the middle. That’s how he ended up finding the ball for the first time on a 23-yard pass on the right hash during SU’s second possession of the game. The following play, Cooper executed a slant route and quickly brought down a short pass from Shrader for seven yards.

“The key thing is to get involved with Tucker,” head coach Dino Babers said. “I thought that the offense, Robert Anae, Garrett Shrader did a good job at that.”

Shrader took shots throughout the game, one’s not typically seen from the SU starter last season. A near 40-yard pass on the first play of the second quarter to Isaiah Jones, one that he caught but out of bounds, was indicative of Syracuse’s attempt to establish itself as a passing threat. Louisville’s back end was challenged, just like Syracuse’s was all training camp.

Damien Alford didn’t even record a reception, but six different SU receivers did. Following a seven-yard scramble out of the back of his own end zone from Shrader, he saw Gadsden on a post route cutting across the middle of the field. While the throw was low, Gadsden was able to dive and wedge his right arm in between the ball and the ground, ultimately giving Syracuse a completed pass and enough space outside of its own redzone. On the ensuing play, Shrader hit Jones with a post route of his own near the 40-yard line. Jones shed a tackler and went down at the 46-yard line. The sequence didn’t include Tucker until a brief two-yard run.

“I thought Anae did a fantastic job with the offense. I thought the offense did a fantastic job,” Babers said. “Just think about what it would look like we didn’t have the drops.”

Published on September 4, 2022 at 2:08 am

Contact Anthony: aalandt@syr.edu | @anthonyalandt