Turns out, the Syracuse Orange did need all those quarterbacks.
The Syracuse Orange traveled to Charlottesville and gave the Virginia Cavaliers a scare, taking a 17-7 halftime lead. However, the Orange once again couldn't establish anything offensively in the second half, the special teams disappointed once again, and the defense could not hold on. The Cavaliers roared back to score 21 straight points and eventually win 28-25.
Here are our takeaways from another Syracuse ACC loss
Syracuse did a great job to set Malachi Nelson up for success in the first half. The running game allowed Nelson to build a rhythm with screens and short passes. That unlocked his confidence to take some shots to Umari Hatcher, who once again, proved he is Syracuse's best offensive player.
However, due to factors such as Virginia defensive adjustments and weather, Nelson lost a bit of consistency in the second half. The running game also didn't do him favors in the second half, especially with more red zone failures and play calling issues.
Nelson's talent that made him the No. 1 overall recruit in high school is still there. If he's needed again (as long as he isn't injured), Syracuse should be fine at quarterback. However, I would expect Amari Odom to be the starter moving forward, as long as he's healthy as well.
Editor update: About that…
The biggest loss for Syracuse this past offseason was probably one fans had no idea happened at the time.
It was Ethan Stangle entering the transfer portal for his graduate season.
Stangle is now Alabama's long snapper, and Syracuse could really use him right now. Fran Brown Jr. is just not cutting it at long snapper. Not all of the kicking issues are on him, but there have been too many inconsistent special teams snaps for it to be a coincidence.
The Orange football team may need to make a call to the Orange fútbol team. Can Ian McIntyre loan Fran Brown the use of Bryson Rodriguez for the weekends? Does Maya Naimoli want to follow in the footsteps of Sarah Fuller? If it wasn't already, the Orange kicking level is at DEFCON 1 now. Once again, points left on the board due to missed field goals could've cost Syracuse a win.
This has been yet another game where Syracuse has looked like a completely different team after halftime. The Orange seemingly can't adjust to the halftime adjustments that their opponents make. Syracuse entered the games against Cal, UConn and Virginia with the lead at halftime. The Orange lost the games to Cal and Virginia, and you could argue that they should have lost to UConn.
What makes it particularly frustrating for fans is that Syracuse looks very good in the first half. The Orange have showcased complementary football, and even in the first half against the Cavaliers, kept the penalties to a minimum. However, another second half collapse leaves a very sour taste in the mouths of Orange fans.
