Syracuse (1-1, 0-1 Atlantic Coast) played competitively with No. 13 Louisville (2-0, 1-0) for the middle part of Friday’s game, but UofL outplayed SU for the rest of the contest. Louisville went up 21-0 within the first five minutes of the game and ultimately won, 62-28.

Here’s a look at where some players and units stood out.

Stock up

Amba Etta-Tawo, redshirt senior wide receiver

It’s hard to think that Amba Etta-Tawo’s stock could’ve risen at all after catching 12 passes for 210 yards and a touchdown in the season opener against Colgate. He was even named the conference receiver of the week for his efforts. In Week 2, Etta-Tawo hauled in 12 catches for 103 yards and two scores against a much better Louisville defense. He was an outlet for quarterback Eric Dungey on broken plays and rollouts.

The most important thing to note here is the consistency. One game could’ve been a fluke, but through two weeks he’s one of only two players in the nation with more than 300 receiving yards.

Parris Bennett, junior linebacker

There were plays where Parris Bennett looked bad — particularly one where a missed arm tackle at about the 10-yard line resulted in a Louisville touchdown and left Bennett face first in the turf, smacking his hand on the ground. But that applies to nearly everyone on defense on Friday.

Despite his miscues, Bennett forced two fumbles — one of which was in the red zone — and finish second on the team with seven tackles.

Syracuse’s conditioning and tempo

Four separate times — three times in the red zone — Louisville players fell to the ground with what looked like cramps while Syracuse was quickly driving. The Orange’s offense and defense did not have any of the same problems. SU head coach Dino Babers was upset with the stoppages. After the game, Syracuse defensive tackle Steven Clark said he thought some of the instances were fake.

Stock down

Syracuse’s secondary

On the first play from scrimmage, Louisville dual-threat quarterback Lamar Jackson hit receiver James Quick up the seam on the left side for a 72-yard touchdown pass. Quick burned Syracuse safety Antwan Cordy up the middle of the field. Two offensive plays for the Cardinals later, Jackson found receiver Jaylen Smith on a similar route, just on the other side of the field. Smith got inside safety Kielan Whitner for the 61-yard catch. Whitner described it as a “nightmare” scenario for the SU defense. Jackson picked apart the zones, and receivers often ran open across the middle of the field.

To make matters worse, Cordy, a starting safety, and Juwan Dowels, a starting cornerback, were both injured in the game and did not return. With cornerback Wayne Morgan still recovering from an injury in training camp and safety Devon Clarke coming off one as well, SU is very thin at defensive back.

Jordan Fredericks, sophomore running back

Jordan Fredericks is listed as the No. 2 running back on the depth chart, but it’s clear he’s not the No. 2 option. The Orange has opted for a rushing attack of primarily Dontae Strickland and Moe Neal. Fredericks had the longest run of the day (29 yards) but got only three carries — all in the fourth quarter when the score was already 62-28. His time in the backfield prior to that consisted mostly of blocking assignments.

Fredericks was the No. 1 running back a year ago but lost the spot to Strickland after gaining weight and suffering an injury in the spring.

Published on September 11, 2016 at 8:22 pm

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