Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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38 DEC. 5, 2020 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY LOU SOMOGYI NO OFFENSE, BUT … Throughout his nine years as a head coach, Syracuse fifth-year boss Dino Babers' identity has centered on innovative, lightning-speed offenses that keep defenses on their heels and gasping for oxygen. • It began at Eastern Illinois (2012- 13) when quarterback Jimmy Garop- polo (who in 2018 signed a $137.5 million contract with the San Fran- cisco 49ers) became a second-round pick after passing for 5,050 yards and 53 touchdowns as a senior and win- ning the Walter Payton Award (the Football Championship Subdivision equivalent of the Heisman). • Next, at Bowling Green from 2014-15, Babers directed his squad to two Mid-American Conference East- ern Division titles, beat three Big Ten teams, and was 10-3 in 2015 while ranking fourth nationally in total of- fense, fifth in passing and sixth in scoring with a 42.2 average. • Hired by Syracuse in 2016, Ba- bers in 2018 guided the Orange to a No. 15 final ranking in the Associated Press poll with a 10-3 mark, the pro- gram's best in 17 years, making him a finalist for several national Coach of the Year awards. The Orange ranked 11th in the country for scoring with a 40.2 average — despite getting shut down in a 36-3 loss to College Football Playoff-bound Notre Dame. Quarterback Eric Dungey finished his career with 25 school records, in- cluding passing yards (9,340) and total offense (11,333). That's what makes this year's Or- ange offense, which has been a flight below anemic, quite the outlier. During the 1-8 start and prior to its game versus North Carolina State Nov. 28, Syracuse was 120th in pass- ing efficiency, 121st in both rushing offense (86.7 yards per game) and scoring (16.2), and 125th in total of- fense (249.7) among 127 Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams — and dead last in average time of posses- sion at 23:54. Such a drop-off often stems from attrition or injuries, and the Orange have been ravaged by both. By No- vember, it was down to what was expected to be its fourth running back and third quarterback in the preseason, and it showed in the 30-0 loss to Louisville Nov. 20 in which Syracuse had 137 yards of total of- fense (45 passing and 92 rushing). This year 's Orange might be the worst Power Five team to enter Notre Dame Stadium since Nov. 22, 2008, when 2-8 Syracuse had just fired head coach Greg Robinson. Yet, somehow the Orange pulled off a stunning 24-23 upset on Senior Day, which basically proved to be the death knell of the Charlie Weis era the following year. Don't anticipate any such upset this time. THIRD DOWNS AND TURNOVERS Where the mismatch between Notre Dame and Syracuse is most profound is with "the money down." As an offshoot of its 1-8 start with one of the least productive offenses in the country, Syracuse ranked 125th among 127 FBS teams in third-down conversion percentage at 22.7 percent (27 of 119). That plays right into Notre Dame's wheelhouse under defensive coordi- nator Clark Lea. During the 8-0 start by the Fighting Irish, they were fifth in the country in third-down conver- sion defense at 26.0 percent (27 of 104) — and two of the teams ahead of them in that category hadn't even GAME PREVIEW: SYRACUSE Top STorylineS Dino Babers has a résumé full of productive offenses, but his Syracuse attack ranks among the worst nationally in every major category this fall. PHOTO BY JAMIE RHODES/COURTESY SYRACUSE ATHLETICS