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Following a late bye week that came nine games into the season, Syracuse is preparing to face Louisville on Saturday. Head coach Dino Babers returned for a weekly press conference and said the Orange “needed a break” both physically and mentally. Several players went home during the week off, Babers said, while the head coach was spotted recruiting over the weekend.

“We did not practice that much. We needed that time to heal,” Babers said. “We got a couple of practices in, but the main thing is making sure these guys heal up and give us an opportunity for the final three games of the season.”

Here are three takeaways from Babers’ press conference ahead of SU’s game against Louisville:

Notable injured players

Without the bye week coming earlier in the season like usual, various Syracuse players were forced to either miss games due to injury or play through their injuries. While quarterback Garrett Shrader fought through a physical game against Virginia Tech that left him wearing a boot postgame, offensive linemen like Chris Bleich and Carlos Vettorello have each missed games this season.

When asked about the status of Vettorello — a third-year starting lineman who has played both tackle and center — Babers said he is expected to miss the remainder of the season. Vettorello rolled his ankle on Oct. 23 against Virginia Tech and missed the Boston College game.

Babers also added that starting punt and kickoff returner Trebor Pena is expected to miss the season’s last three games. Pena also missed the game against the Eagles and was wearing a sling in a picture posted on Twitter by receivers coach Terrence Samuel. Wide receiver Courtney Jackson filled in for Pena against BC and scored SU’s first punt or kickoff return touchdown since 2018, going 64 yards to put Syracuse up 21-6 in the third quarter.

Fullback Chris Elmore also missed the Boston College game, but Babers declined to comment on his status on Monday morning. Elmore has only appeared in four games this season after missing the first four weeks due to a non injury-related reason. The 6-foot, 265-pound Swiss Army knife has suited up at several different positions for the Orange over his career and has made immediate impacts on SU’s running game when he has appeared this season, typically serving as a lead blocker for Sean Tucker.

Looking ahead to Cunningham, Louisville

Syracuse’s defense has struggled in recent years against Louisville, giving up at least 30 points in five of the last six meetings against the Cardinals. In 2019, UL dropped 56 points on the Orange.

This year’s Louisville offense is led by quarterback Malik Cunningham, who has rushed for 15 touchdowns and nearly 700 yards this season. Cunningham ranks seventh in the Atlantic Coast Conference in rushing yards despite being a quarterback, and the Alabama native also leads the league in touchdowns.

“I think Malik is unique. I haven’t seen anybody catch him … Malik is so fast,” Babers said. “So I just think he’s one of the most dynamic players in the league.”

Cunningham’s dual-threat abilities resemble those of Liberty quarterback Malik Willis, whom Babers and Syracuse faced in September. In that game, SU recorded six sacks and only allowed 21 points in a three-point home win. Babers said he thinks Willis and Cunningham are different from each other, especially as passers, saying that Willis has a stronger, “NFL” arm, while Cunningham is the faster of the two.

“Malik is really fast. He’s really hard to handle, so they both have their God-given talents, but I think it’s a little different between those two,” Babers said.

Babers said Syracuse will try to contain Cunningham by putting a lot of defensive players around him and continuing to hit and contain him. Cunningham is one of the players who will put up big numbers no matter what, but SU will have to control him and not let him have “one of those career days against you,” he said.

Returning from bye week

Coming off two straight wins over Virginia Tech and Boston College that featured strong second-half performances, Syracuse will return to face Louisville after two weeks off. Babers said the toughest part about returning from a bye week is that the team missed contact in practice for a whole week.

Babers noted the early parts of Saturday’s game against Louisville will be “crucial” since it can take time to get acclimated to being in-game again. The head coach said sometimes coaches need to put players “in a fight” that forces them to be physical with opposing players.

“Instead of letting them dance around the ring and shadow box and jab, you need to just put them toe to toe and make some calls where they’ve got to get into a fight,” Babers said. “It gets their juices going, so to speak, so they can start off faster.”

When asked if the week off disrupted Syracuse’s momentum from its last two wins, Babers said he wished the Orange hadn’t entered the bye week after back-to-back wins, but he was still happy the week came when it did, especially when considering SU’s mounting injuries.

“To come back and get locked back in for your final contest I think is good,” Babers said. “I wish it hadn’t been as it was, but now that it’s been here and it’s gone, I’m glad it came.”

Published on November 8, 2021 at 5:22 pm

Contact Connor: [email protected] | @csmith17_