Syracuse 42, Miami 38: Orange storm back in second half for win

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An epic showdown between the Syracuse Orange and the Miami Hurricanes capped off Fran Brown’s first season in the JMA Wireless Dome. After Syracuse trailed by 21, the Orange roared back in the Dome to comeback and win 42-38 over the Hurricanes.

Syracuse nearly stopped Miami on its first possession, but Cam Ward flashed the magic that showcased why NFL teams flocked to the dome to watch the Miami signal caller. He turned a broken 3rd-and-4 play into a 19-yard completion to extend the drive. From there, Hurricanes running back Mark Fletcher pounded the ball for an average of 4.5 yards per play. Fletcher found the end zone first from two yards out to set the tone for Miami.

The Orange nearly fired back in explosive fashion. Kyle McCord matched Ward’s tempo with two first down passes. He followed that up with what seemingly was a touchdown to Trebor Pena. However, Pena saw his third touchdown in two games called back. This time, a flag was thrown for an illegal formation. The Orange regrouped and forced a 4th-and-2 from the Miami 38-yard line. However, McCord’s on-target pass for Jackson Meeks over the middle was broken up by good coverage from Miami linebacker Westly Bissainthe to kill off the Orange opening drive.

Ward wasted no time with the extra field position. He led an efficient seven play, 63 yard touchdown drive that drew even more life out of the Dome. Xavier Restrepo was initially ruled out of the end zone but upon review, he crossed the plane before being forced out of bounds. Ward only missed on two passes in the first quarter.

The Orange’s second drive flamed out quickly. After McCord was sacked on the first play, he set up third and four after a long completion to Jackson Meeks down the sideline. McCord tried to scramble into open space on third down, but he was tripped up by Miami defensive end Tyler Baron. McCord lost the football but just recovered in time to save the possession.

Miami continued to carve through Syracuse’s defense on its next drive. First, Ward found Jacolby George all alone in the middle of the field on a post route for a 40-yard completion. The Hurricane running backs continued to overpower the Syracuse front, averaging 4.3 yards per carry in the first quarter. Ward’s big passes and Miami’s efficient running eventually set up a wide open three-yard pass from Ward to Miami tight end Elijah Arroyo for the touchdown. Miami led by three scores with just 12:57 left in the 2nd quarter.

The Orange fireworks were on display to respond right back. McCord utilized his quick passing and skilled receivers to go 4-5 on the following drive for 65 yards. One of the highlights were an impressive 23-yard catch from Justus Ross-Simmons where the receiver stopped and readjusted his body in a flash to pick up the slightly shorter pass. The other highlight pass was a catch by Trebor Pena where he broke a couple tackles for 26-yards and got to the eight-yard line. LeQuint Allen finished off the drive with a spinning touchdown for Syracuse’s first score of the game.

Syracuse’s defense finally found a stop on the next drive. The first tackle-for-loss from the Orange came from Justin Barron to put Miami behind the sticks. Jayden Bellamy then showcased excellent man coverage on a slant route from Miam’s Sam Brown to deny Miami on 3rd-and-5. After nearly forcing a three-and-out on Miami’s first drive, the Orange defense finally got their reward before the halfway mark of the second quarter.

McCord and the Orange offense repaid the defense in kind. This time, the Orange running game set the tempo. LeQuint Allen used his all-purpose abilities to hit holes hard up the middle and receive balls. Yasin Willis provided excellent support by moving the chains as well. McCord finished off the drive with a nine-yard touchdown pass in the left corner of the end zone to Jackson Meeks to bring Syracuse to within one touchdown.

Syracuse found another key stop on the ensuing Miami possession. After another big Ward completion against zone defense, the Orange stuffed two rushing plays before the two-minute timeout. Duce Chestnut broke up the third-down pass to set up a two-minute drill for the Orange. However, a third-down pass for Gadsden was just out of his reach. A Miami penalty prevented the Hurricanes from doing anything else at the end of the half.

Both quarterbacks in the first half showcased the reason why pro scouts were in attendance for today’s game. McCord went 16-24 for 156 yards and a touchdown in the first 30 minutes. Not to be outdone, Ward went 11-16 for 184 yards and two touchdowns.

Trebor Pena led the Orange assault out of the halftime break. He first dominated a one-on-one battle down the left sideline for a 50-yard catch. Pena followed that up on the next play with a fade to the pylon and he caught the ball falling down for a 25-yard touchdown to light the Dome on fire.

The momentum quickly faded as Cam Ward took advantage of a common weakness throughout the game. Miami receivers routinely found themselves open in the middle of Syracuse’s zone defense. Three separate passes over the middle went for 20, 17 and 27 yards to drive the Hurricanes down the field. Fletcher picked up his second touchdown of the game in controversial fashion. Many fans in the Dome and Fran Brown thought that a Miami player jumped the snap early. Brown argued and pleaded with officials long after the play finished.

The Orange would not go away quietly as McCord led another drive down the field with some help from Allen. The Syracuse running back sparked the crowd with an impressive hurdle that set up Syracuse in the red zone. McCord tossed his third touchdown of the game, finding Meeks to once again tied the game up.

The game continued to swing back and forth in momentum. A holding call against Miami negated a 55-yard run, and Fadil Diggs followed that up with a sack on Ward. Syracuse got the ball back in excellent field position and found its way to the red zone. However, Yasin Willis fumbled the ball as Miami linebacker Cam Pruitt stripped it away and recovered the ball.

Not to be outdone, Devin Grant swung the momentum right back in the Orange’s favor. He stripped Restrepo just past midfield. Grant then scooped up the loose ball and ran it all the way back for a touchdown that energized the Dome crowd to new heights.

Ward and the Hurricanes responded to start the fourth. After a holding call against Bellamy extended the drive, Ward found Restrepo alone cutting across the middle of the field for a 40-yard gain. Miami punched the ball in with Damien Martinez to tie the game back up.

McCord fired back with two big gains to Allen and Meeks to set up another Syracuse score. The Orange fought their way into the end zone with another Allen rush to retake the lead. Miami marched down the field on the ensuing drive, but an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against the Hurricanes pushed Miami away from the goal line. Miami got back to the 10 on 3rd down, but afterwards Mario Cristobal elected to send out his kicking unit with under four minutes to go on the game clock. The field goal was good, but Miami still trailed by four points.

LeQuint Allen sealed the game with one more hurdle and excellent rushing. Miami failed to stop Allen from gaining first downs and the Orange closed out the game in dramatic fashion to secure the 42-38 win.

McCord finished with 380 yards on 26-36 passing with three touchdowns. Ward finished with 349 yards on 25-36 passing with two touchdowns. Allen had 22 rushes for 82 yards and six catches for 61 yards. Pena finished with six catches for 128 yards.

Syracuse finishes Fran Brown’s first season with a 9-3 record and await their bowl selection.