The Syracuse Orange offense didn’t perform the way they wanted to against Duke. The Orange only scored three points, which marked the first time that Syracuse had failed to score a touchdown under offensive
coordinator Jeff Nixon.
That doesn’t mean that there were no positives to take away from the game. One of the brightest spots in the Orange offense came from Emanuel Ross.
The young wide receiver finally got a chance to make an impact on the field for Syracuse. He didn’t feature in Syracuse’s first three games of the season due to injury. He played against Clemson but didn’t record any stats.
But against Duke, Ross was Syracuse’s second leading receiver behind Johntay Cook. Ross caught five passes for 57 yards. And as long as Ross remains healthy, Syracuse head coach Fran Brown knows he can help the offense.
“Everything that a receiver needs to be able to do, he has that in his tool bag,” said Brown.
From physicality to accountability and toughness, Brown says Ross has many attributes that allow him to make an impact on the team. It could be very easy to ease a key player back into the lineup after injury. But Ross has taken advantage of his opportunity.
“The thing I love about Coach Fran is that when he sees you work, then he’s gonna trust what you do daily,” said Ross.
Ross was one of Syracuse’s highest rated recruits that joined the Orange in the first month when Fran Brown started as the program’s head coach. He preserved his redshirt last year but still made five catches for 78 yards in his four allowed games.
The fact that Ross almost matched his production from last year in one game this year is a testament to the work he put in during the offseason. Ross said he continued to learn his body in between seasons to get stronger, faster and more physical. Most importantly, Ross improved his blocking game the most, which Brown noticed.
Ross’ improvement in the offseason was also boosted by the introduction of Myles White to the receivers coaching room. Both White and previously wide receivers coach Ross Douglas have worked in the NFL. That brought pro coaching experience to the Orange receivers room, which Ross has used to accelerate his improvement.
“He always says finish in a dominant position,” said Ross.
Most importantly, Ross seems to be a trusted target for Rickie Collins. Syracuse’s new starting quarterback has admitted that he’s still building on his relationships with the Orange wide receivers. Ross said the transition from Steve Angeli to Collins was easy to make. Ross also said that Collins’ natural arm strength made the quarterback switch easier to handle.
With Collins claiming that the Syracuse offense has the potential to put up 40 points per game, Ross seems to be a crucial part to that success. And he’s ready to back up his quarterback.
“We have confidence in our preparation,” said Ross.
