Syracuse pulled off a seemingly improbable upset, taking down No. 17 Virginia Tech, 31-17, in the Carrier Dome on Saturday. The two teams were tied 17-17 in the final quarter, but the Orange charged ahead with two touchdowns on the next two drives and its defense stopped VT with a three-and-out and turnover on the Hokies’ last two drives.

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

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Eric Dungey

Eric Dungey finished the game 28-for-53 with 311 yards passing, a touchdown and an interception. He ran the ball 24 times for a total of 106 yards and a score, becoming the first SU player to throw for more than 300 yards in a game while running for more than 100 yards.

Dungey hurt his right leg in the second quarter and missed one play to get checked out on the sideline, put on a brace and jog around. But the quarterback returned to the game, leading his team on two more touchdown drives late in the game and continuously running the ball despite already being battered. He was sharp on most of his short throws and mixed in deep tosses when available.

Jacob Greenfeld | Asst. Photo Editor

De’Jon Wilson

In his first start for the Orange, the graduate transfer from Colorado turned in his best performance for the team. He picked up one sack, two tackles and a fumble recovery while starting in place of a suspended Kendall Coleman.

Wilson sacked Virginia Tech quarterback Jerod Evans on VT’s first offensive play then pried the ball out of a pile on VT’s last offensive play, securing the game for SU. Even on the Orange’s interception, it was Wilson who provided the pressure to force Evans into a bad throw and just his second interception of the year.

Christopher Fredrick

The redshirt freshman defensive back recorded four tackles, including one for a loss, in his first career start in place of an injured Cordell Hudson. Fredrick came up with several big hits, including a stop on third down in the first quarter. He did give up a touchdown on a throw to Isaiah Ford, but it was a near-perfectly thrown ball dropped in over the receiver’s shoulder.

All in all, Fredrick turned in a solid day while being thrust into the spotlight after hardly playing a defensive snap prior.

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MORE COVERAGE:

• What we learned from Syracuse’s upset win
• Syracuse’s win over Virginia Tech shows glimpse into the future
• Watch Dino Babers go nuts in the locker room after SU’s victory

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The defense as a whole

Syracuse’s defense turned in its best game of the season, holding a Virginia Tech team that averaged nearly 40 points coming into the game to just 17. The big mistakes that plagued the team in previous games were gone and replaced by big stops.

SU recovered a fumble, grabbed an interception and stopped the Hokies on fourth down in its own territory. VT finished just 4-for-13 on third downs and its quarterback, Jerod Evans, threw just his second interception all year.

Kiran Ramsey | Digital Design Editor

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Cole Murphy

Cole Murphy finished just 1-for-3 on field goals, including one that was blocked. His first kick attempt of 53 fluttered midway into the end zone after hitting someone upfront. The next one boomed through the uprights from 51 yards away, a career long, but then his third sailed wide left from 51 again.

He would’ve had another miss if not for a last-second timeout. In the second quarter, SU initially elected to kick a field goal from 50 yards away. The snap came with a second left on the play clock and the kick hit off the right upright to miss, but the Orange had called a timeout right before the snap.

“We weren’t great on field goals,” head coach Dino Babers said, “but you know what? We didn’t need the field goal tonight.”

Jordan Fredericks

In the same week that he was added to the two-deep depth chart at running back, Jordan Fredericks did not get a single snap, nor did he line up at running back once. Dontae Strickland handled the bulk of the running back duties with Moe Neal getting a little bit of time.

Fredericks’s offensive duties were limited to a lead-blocking role at the goal line on a fourth down play that Syracuse did not convert.

Published on October 16, 2016 at 9:25 am

Contact Jon: [email protected] | @jmettus