ATLANTA, GA — The Syracuse Orange (3-5, 1-4) are once again in the loss column after falling to the No. 7 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (8-0, 5-0) 41-16 at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
For the first time in 35 days,
Syracuse held a lead in the game, but it was a short-lived upset bid. A forced turnover by the defense less than a minute into the action led to a field goal and the Orange’s only points in the first half, with the Yellow Jackets buzzing away the rest of the way. Georgia Tech scored 17 straight points in the second quarter, and that deficit proved too much to overcome for the Orange, who have now dropped four in a row.
When all was said and done, Syracuse’s offense did muster 381 total yards, albeit most of that came in the second half when the game was out of reach. Rickie Collins finished 17/29 for 224 yards and one touchdown in the air, plus 14 carries for 41 yards on the ground. Yasin Willis had 10 carries for 71 yards. Darrell Gill Jr. led all Syracuse receivers in receptions (five) and yards (55) with one touchdown catch, followed by Johntay Cook (two catches for 45 yards) and Dan Villari (one catch for 35 yards).
Georgia Tech’s offense had over 500 total yards, led by Haynes King, who threw for over 300 yards and three touchdowns plus another 91 rushing yards and two scores. The Yellow Jackets had over 200 yards of rushing offense, with King and Malachi Hosley (eight carries for 81 yards) doing most of the work there. Eight different Georgia Tech receivers caught at least two passes.
Less than a minute into the game, the Orange got the start they desperately needed. On just the second play of Georgia Tech’s opening drive, Chris Peal ripped the ball out from receiver Isiah Canion and David Reese recovered it. A 41-yard run by Yasin Willis set up ‘Cuse with first and goal on the one-yard line, but a pair of false start penalties pushed the offense back and led to Tripp Woody converting on a 27-yard field goal. The Orange went up 3-0, the team’s first lead in any game since September 20.
The Yellow Jackets’ offense quickly responded. Syracuse’s defense definitely bended, allowing Georgia Tech to drive over 70 yards down the field, but a dropped pass by Josh Beetham followed by an incompletion stalled the Yellow Jackets drive at the Syracuse three-yard line. The game was back to a tie (3-3) with six minutes to go in the first quarter, and it would stay that way heading into the second after Syracuse went three-and-out on its next two drives.
Another double-digit play drive saw the Yellow Jackets move down the field, led by a couple of six-to-eight-yard runs by King. In a crucial fourth and one situation, Georgia Tech opted to go for it and not just converted, but King found Beetham for a 21-yard catch and run into the end zone, putting the Orange down 10-3 with under 12 to go in the first half. At this point since Willis’ 41-yard run, Syracuse’s offense had ran nine plays for just 10 yards in its three drives.
Syracuse’s offense next time out did see a few positive plays, highlighted by a 12-yard scramble by Collins and an 11-yard catch in open space by Willis, but a sack by Georgia Tech and a Syracuse holding penalty forced the Orange to punt once more. Meanwhile, the Yellow Jackets kept on rolling as the second quarter continued. A nine-play 65-yard drive ended with King connecting with Beetham for his second TD of the game, putting ‘Cuse in a 14-point hole (17-3).
In their last drive of the first half, the ground game finally got the Orange back into Georgia Tech territory after a 14-yard run by Tylik Hill and an eight-yard run by Nixon, but on third and then fourth and short, Syracuse was stuffed. Three chunk plays, including a 25-yard run by King and a 20-yard run by Malachi Hosley, set Georgia Tech up for a chip shot field goal. Syracuse trailed 20-3 entering the second half. The Orange (118) had over 200 fewer yards of total offense compared to the Yellow Jackets (322).
The Orange came out of the locker room and quickly capitalized on their next possession. All it took was two plays and 41 seconds, and Syracuse was finally end in the end zone thanks to a 41-yard catch by Johntay Cook followed by a 34-yard reception from Darrell Gill Jr. for the touchdown.
The defense had a chance to force Georgia Tech to punt in its own territory after a sack by Kevin Jobity Jr. led to a third and 12 situation, but King scrambled away from the blitz and found Zion Taylor for 14 yards and the conversion. Shortly after that, Dean Patterson caught a screen pass and took it down the field for 37 yards and a touchdown, quickly putting the Orange down by 17 points again (27-10).
After Syracuse had its fourth three-and-out of the day, Georgia Tech blew the door open. Hosley ran down the middle for over 25 yards, then King lobbed the ball up to Stockton for 33 yards. One play later at the goal line, King dashed past the Orange defense, extending the Yellow Jackets’ lead to 34-10.
Collins and the offense would eat up the remaining time left in the third quarter, moving from its own 11 down to the Georgia Tech 16-yard line over the next five minutes. A 35-yard catch by Dan Villari started off the 13-play drive, but the Orange walked away empty after the Yellow Jackets forced and recovered a fumble on a run by Collins.
After forcing Georgia Tech to punt, Syracuse did finds its way back in scoring range. An 11-yard catch by Gill got the drive going and the Orange went 81 yards down the field in 14 plays. Nixon ended the drive with Syracuse’s second touchdown of the game on a one-yard run. That said, a failed two-point conversion kept the Orange’s deficit at three scores (34-16) with eight minutes left, and an insurance touchdown score by King all but put ‘Cuse to bed.
Syracuse remains winless against Georgia Tech on the road in program history and drops to 3-3 in the Fran Brown era against AP top-25 opponents.
Up next for the Orange is a return to the JMA Wireless Dome for a Halloween night matchup versus the North Carolina Tar Heels.
