Syracuse football (5-6, 1-6 Atlantic Coast Conference) continues its road trip when it visits Wake Forest (4-7, 1-6 Atlantic Coast Conference) at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday.
The largest storyline surrounding this weekend’s contest is the firing of SU head coach Dino Babers. But the ‘Cuse still has a game to play under interim Nunzio Campanile.
Ahead of @CuseFootball’s matchup with @WakeFB tomorrow, Director of Athletics John Wildhack spoke on the reasons for SU moving on from head coach Dino Babers. pic.twitter.com/d5fy2EDmzI
— WAER Sports (@WAERSports) November 24, 2023
The Orange and the Demon Deacons are second-to-last and last place, respectively, in the ACC. These two squads each have just one conference win on the season (both coming against Pittsburgh, coincidentally), but the stakes are still somewhat high for Syracuse. SU is on the verge of reaching back-to-back bowl games for the first time in a decade.
That goal is still attainable for SU: If it can win against Wake Forest, it would secure its second straight six-plus win campaign. Though it’s been an up-and-down year for the ‘Cuse, culminating in the end of the Babers era, its leaders are still focussed on the chance to play postseason football. Sophomore halfback LeQuint Allen has the second-most rush attempts in the ACC, but emphasized that he is happy to fight through that wear and tear to help his squad get that sixth victory.
“I’m ready to go to war. We still have one week and want to get a bowl game.”
Allen has been thrust into an even larger role in recent weeks, as SU quarterback Garrett Shrader continues to fight through injuries. After having just one game with over 20 carries all season, Allen has had 27 and 28 totes in his last two outings – both games he finished with over 100 yards on the ground.
The New Jersey native and the Orange offense have become very one-dimensional since Shrader’s absence. Over that span, SU has thrown on just 23% of plays – which is the fourth lowest mark in the nation behind the three (notoriously anti-passing) military academies. The Orange even used Tight End Dan Villari as their Quarterback against Pitt – and he ran 17 times for over 150 yards. One of coach Babers’ final statements as Syracuse head coach was about how satisfied he was with his team’s resiliency under such an unorthodox gameplan.
“I think there’s a lot of fight in this team. The things we have had to do the last two weeks – the way they are fighting and competing, I’m really proud of them.”
Fortunately for Wake, its rush defense is its only above-average asset. The Demon Deacons rank in the bottom four in the ACC for the following major categories: scoring offense, scoring defense, offensive yardage, defensive yardage, rushing offense, passing offense, and passing defense.
Wake has been abysmal across the board, but its run-stuffing abilities certainly bode well for an opponent such as the ‘Cuse. The Demon Deacons set out to stop LeQuint Allen and the Orange ground game when they face off on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. WAER’s coverage starts with McClurg Remodeling Countdown to Kickoff at 1:30 p.m.