Get the latest Syracuse news delivered right to your inbox. Subscribe to our sports newsletter here.

Syracuse dominated in its opening game against an Atlantic Coast Conference boogieman in Louisville, who it had lost to in the last six meetings. The first install of Robert Anae and Jason Beck’s balanced offense proved successful, giving head coach Dino Babers and Garrett Shrader optimism in the game plan. With a conference win, the Orange will turn their sights to former Big East rival UConn.

They’ll travel without fullback Chris Elmore and linebacker Stefon Thompson, who both suffered season-ending injuries against Louisville, but will face a Huskies team coming off a 1-11 season. UConn enters without their starting quarterback and top receiver following injuries in the Huskies’ first game against Utah State. Syracuse enters attempting to go 2-0 for the first time since 2018.

Here’s everything you need to know about UConn before its Saturday matchup with Syracuse:

All-time series

UConn leads 6-5.

Last time they played

SU and UConn met in the midst of Dino Babers’ best season with the Orange (2018). Entering 3-0 and coming off a commanding ACC win against Florida State, Syracuse demolished UConn 51-21 in the Dome. Led by Eric Dungey, the Orange racked up 636 total yards, including 295 on the ground and 341 from the air. 24 first quarter points lifted the Orange over Connecticut in a game that was not a 50-burger anomaly, but a regular sight for SU fans that season.

The defense allowed 225 yards on the ground, including 113 from quarterback David Pindell, but rendered the Huskies’ passing game essentially ineffective. They sacked Pindell six times, led by Alton Robinson’s three. Then-freshman Andre Szmyt hit all three of his field goals to add nine points to SU’s five touchdowns, all of which came from the legs of Dungey.

Receiver Sean Riley led all players with six receptions, 120 yards and one touchdown. Gabe Horan caught the other touchdown on a seven-yard goal line fade from Dungey. The Orange went on to just barely fall to then-No. 3 Clemson and win the Camping World Bowl against then-No. 15 West Virginia.

The Huskies Report

UConn hit Football Bowl Subdivision rock bottom last season after leaving the American Athletic Conference. Jim Mora, who has NFL head coaching experience and most recently coached UCLA, is in his first season with the Huskies. Despite losing their starting quarterback Ta’Quan Roberson and top receiver in their opening game, the Huskies rebounded last week against Central Connecticut State, dropping 28 points.

True freshman Zion Turner went 14-for-22 with 172 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in his first collegiate start. Running back Nate Carter, a Rochester, New York native, has now eclipsed 100 yards rushing in both games this season, totalling 313 total yards on the ground and one rushing touchdown.

UConn’s leading receiver this season, sophomore Aaron Turner, has just 89 receiving yards on five receptions. The Huskies have experience among their interior linemen, but two of the three underclassmen on the line are on the right side.

How Syracuse beats UConn

The Orange likely have a two-pronged approach that could lead to Carlos Del-Rio Wilson getting minutes in the fourth quarter: stop the run again and keep passing the ball. Step one depends on the defensive line holding up and the linebackers coming over top to ensure Carter doesn’t reach the second level. Carter isn’t as experienced and dynamic as Malik Cunningham is, but Cunningham’s performance on Saturday demonstrated Syracuse doesn’t mind who it faces.

UConn doesn’t pose the same skill threat that the Cardinals did, but the young defensive line needs to repeat their Saturday performance, where they were “wrong, but they were wrong really actively and really fast”. If they can shut down Carter and take away the threat of Turner, the talented secondary can pick apart the true freshman in the passing game.

Offensively, it’s clear that the Anae-Beck combination is off to a tremendous start with Syracuse. Utah State dropped 31 points on UConn and the Orange can easily replicate or exceed that point total against the Huskies. Continue to rely on reigning ACC Running Back of the Week Sean Tucker and look across the middle to threats like Devaughn Cooper and Oronde Gadsden II, and the Orange will come back at 2-0 facing four straight home games.

Megan Thompson | Digital Design Director

Stat to know: 33.3% opponent third down conversion

Despite a close loss to Utah State and a comeback win against Central Connecticut State, UConn’s defense has done a good job stopping its opponents on third down. It’s a small sample size — it allowed a 41.53% conversion last year — but it’s a promising statistic for a rebuilding team searching for FBS wins as an independent. The Orange, conversely, relied on converting 6-of-11 third downs against Louisville, allowing them to extend drives and ultimately bury the Cardinals by the end of the first half.

Syracuse had a difficult time on third downs longer than five yards, and it must do better on second downs, especially against an opponent that had success stopping teams on third downs early in 2022.

Player to Watch: George Caratan, No. 16, punter

Syracuse’s defense can easily force more punts than Caratan, a true freshman, has had in his career thus far (8). But UConn found a leg that it can rely on, especially while the offense is transitioning under new leadership. Caratan averages 44.5 yards per punt through two games with one registering over 50 yards and four more pinning the opponent within their own 20 yard line.

The Orange opened their season with a 62-yard drive that started on their own 25-yard line, but four drives that began in SU’s red zone ended with either a punt or an interception. Caratan can, at the very least, disrupt a potentially humming Orange offense periodically, allowing the Huskies room to come back or maintain a lead throughout the game.

Published on September 8, 2022 at 12:48 am

Contact Anthony: aalandt@syr.edu | @anthonyalandt