jimmythegreek
The opening odds start here
Syracuse -28 over Connecticut (bought half):
Perhaps years ago in basketball that this rivalry was popular in the Big East, but certainly times and conditions have changed decades later. Now a part of the ACC, the Syracuse Orangemen (3-0) look to continue their undefeated season when they host the Connecticut (1-2) Huskies out of the AAC from the Carrier Dome. Last week the Orange got off to a positive start in conference play by knocking off Florida St 30-7. Tommy Devito filled in for injured starter Eric Dempsey and completed 11/16 passes for 144 yards and a TD. Dontae Strickland (13-36 2.7 1 TD) added a 13 yard scoring run, as did Devito from 3 yards out to open the second half. Ravian Pierce caught 3 passes for 34 yards including Devito’s 3 yard scoring toss, and Andre Szmyt was successful on 3 chip shot field goals. Syracuse tallied 25 first downs and outgained the Seminoles 441-240. It was a rough afternoon for Deondre Francois (18/36 178 1 INT) who was sacked 5 times by the 'Cuse defense. Francois did account for the only Seminoles TD with a 2 yard scamper midway through the 4th quarter but still recorded negative rushing yardage overall. Meanwhile Connecticut picked up their first win of the season albeit against FCS Rhode Island 56-49. David Pindell (20/27 308 4 TD 1 INT) also ran for 137 yards on 26 carries (5.3) including scoring runs of 6 and 17 yards, the latter getting the Huskies on the board. Heron Maurisseau caught a 74 yard bomb from Pindell but it was Kevin Mensah (25-1445.8 2 TD) who broke a 49 all tie with :57 remaining scampering 22 yards to paydirt for the game winner. JaJuan Lawson (23/34 351 4 TD 1 INT) kept things interesting throughout and found Tyler Burke on a 6 yard scoring pass, Burke’s only reception leading UConn back from a 14 point deficit. Isaiah Coulter (10-156 1 TD) and Aaron Parker (7-128 1 TD) also caught TD passes and combined for 17 catches and 284 receiving yards overall. Lawson (13-85 6.5 2 TD) also ran for 2 scores and was responsible for 6 of the Rams 7 TD’s overall. Both teams combined for 1,123 total yards but also committed 7 turnovers.
Dungey (37/64 477 7 TD 1 INT) left the win against FSU in the second quarter after getting poked in the eye but should be starting this Saturday. If not it will be Devito getting the start. The 6’4" 225 senior in Dungey has great field vision and better than average height sporting a cannon which has gotten him off to a flying start at the helm for the Cuse. Jamal Custis (15-265 3 TD) is his top target and will look to better his 4 catch 56 yard performance against a much more vulnerable pass defense and secondary in UConn. Sean Riley (10-81 1 TD) also had 4 catches last Saturday and possesses blistering speed along the sidelines and corners to make up for his 5’8" frame. The real bulk of the offense comes from a one-two punch in the running game led by Dungey (35-277 7.9 1 TD) who will not waste time in calling his own number in the option, or feeding it off to Moe Neal (57-230 4.0 2 TD) who gained 75 yards in the win over the Seminoles. Strickland (33-109 3.3 5 TD) is more of a red zone short yardage go to specialist as evident of his 5 scores thus far. Syracuse has a top 20 rushing offense in the country averaging 257 ground yards per contest. That does not bode well for a Huskies defense which has allowed nearly 300 yards per game defensing the run, or near the bottom in the nation. Their pass defense is not much better yielding another 375 yards on average, and in their first 3 games the team allows nearly 56 points per contest overall. Billy Crocker, Connecticut’s defensive coordinator hasn’t done much to exemplify the lack of success of a 4 man front as UConn has let opponents control the line of scrimmage as well as operate fast catching personnel off guard. Tajh Herring Wilson and Keyshawn Paul are going to have to do a better job at the corners needing the ability to make plays against opposing offenses.
There never seems to be a lack of confidence for Pindell (58/89 656 6 TD 3 INT) even if last week’s first win came against FCS Rhode Island. The problem is that in his other 2 FBS starts, he puts up points and gains yardage in bunches with the contest seemingly out of reach. Connecticut isn’t going to try and beat the opposition looking to air the game out and playing at a break neck pace, but make no mistake they do have some weapons. They have a balanced receiving core led by Kyle Buss (8-129), Aaron McLean (10-102 2 TD) and Hergy Mayala (11-99 2 TD). This trio could be a mild test for Syuracuse pass defense, which hasn’t exactly stopped the opposition yielding 270 such yards per contest. Pindell, like Dungey is not shy calling his own number with 334 yards, a 5.4 average rush per carry and 3 scores thus far. Plus Pindell also has Mensah (55-285 5.2 2 TD) to carry the bulk of the load as well as provide protection. What will be a huge test is finding similar success against the Orange’s run defense which gives up only 115 yards on the ground per game. The combination of leading tacklers Kielan Winter and Evan Foster, who each had 11 last week could make things rougher for Pindell, who will also have to avoid the quickness and agility of Kendall Coleman who recorded 2 sacks against FSU.
Syracuse may not have reached its peak yet due to a lack of action within the ACC, but that may change once they complete their breeze through the non-conference campaign. Whether it’s Dungey or Devito at the helm, either of the tandem could have a big day exposing UConn’s inability to stop both the run and pass. Connecticut cannot afford to fall behind early, as their tempo does not exemplify run and gun. Syracuse isn’t exactly totally up tempo either, but their presence against the run could create turnovers by the opposition leading to short fields and a smorgasbord of points. While we’re laying a bunch here, all the Orange need to do is avoid any letdown factor, which after last weeks’ confidence building win, will likely not kick in.
I’ll have a second play coming up on Saturday later.
Perhaps years ago in basketball that this rivalry was popular in the Big East, but certainly times and conditions have changed decades later. Now a part of the ACC, the Syracuse Orangemen (3-0) look to continue their undefeated season when they host the Connecticut (1-2) Huskies out of the AAC from the Carrier Dome. Last week the Orange got off to a positive start in conference play by knocking off Florida St 30-7. Tommy Devito filled in for injured starter Eric Dempsey and completed 11/16 passes for 144 yards and a TD. Dontae Strickland (13-36 2.7 1 TD) added a 13 yard scoring run, as did Devito from 3 yards out to open the second half. Ravian Pierce caught 3 passes for 34 yards including Devito’s 3 yard scoring toss, and Andre Szmyt was successful on 3 chip shot field goals. Syracuse tallied 25 first downs and outgained the Seminoles 441-240. It was a rough afternoon for Deondre Francois (18/36 178 1 INT) who was sacked 5 times by the 'Cuse defense. Francois did account for the only Seminoles TD with a 2 yard scamper midway through the 4th quarter but still recorded negative rushing yardage overall. Meanwhile Connecticut picked up their first win of the season albeit against FCS Rhode Island 56-49. David Pindell (20/27 308 4 TD 1 INT) also ran for 137 yards on 26 carries (5.3) including scoring runs of 6 and 17 yards, the latter getting the Huskies on the board. Heron Maurisseau caught a 74 yard bomb from Pindell but it was Kevin Mensah (25-1445.8 2 TD) who broke a 49 all tie with :57 remaining scampering 22 yards to paydirt for the game winner. JaJuan Lawson (23/34 351 4 TD 1 INT) kept things interesting throughout and found Tyler Burke on a 6 yard scoring pass, Burke’s only reception leading UConn back from a 14 point deficit. Isaiah Coulter (10-156 1 TD) and Aaron Parker (7-128 1 TD) also caught TD passes and combined for 17 catches and 284 receiving yards overall. Lawson (13-85 6.5 2 TD) also ran for 2 scores and was responsible for 6 of the Rams 7 TD’s overall. Both teams combined for 1,123 total yards but also committed 7 turnovers.
Dungey (37/64 477 7 TD 1 INT) left the win against FSU in the second quarter after getting poked in the eye but should be starting this Saturday. If not it will be Devito getting the start. The 6’4" 225 senior in Dungey has great field vision and better than average height sporting a cannon which has gotten him off to a flying start at the helm for the Cuse. Jamal Custis (15-265 3 TD) is his top target and will look to better his 4 catch 56 yard performance against a much more vulnerable pass defense and secondary in UConn. Sean Riley (10-81 1 TD) also had 4 catches last Saturday and possesses blistering speed along the sidelines and corners to make up for his 5’8" frame. The real bulk of the offense comes from a one-two punch in the running game led by Dungey (35-277 7.9 1 TD) who will not waste time in calling his own number in the option, or feeding it off to Moe Neal (57-230 4.0 2 TD) who gained 75 yards in the win over the Seminoles. Strickland (33-109 3.3 5 TD) is more of a red zone short yardage go to specialist as evident of his 5 scores thus far. Syracuse has a top 20 rushing offense in the country averaging 257 ground yards per contest. That does not bode well for a Huskies defense which has allowed nearly 300 yards per game defensing the run, or near the bottom in the nation. Their pass defense is not much better yielding another 375 yards on average, and in their first 3 games the team allows nearly 56 points per contest overall. Billy Crocker, Connecticut’s defensive coordinator hasn’t done much to exemplify the lack of success of a 4 man front as UConn has let opponents control the line of scrimmage as well as operate fast catching personnel off guard. Tajh Herring Wilson and Keyshawn Paul are going to have to do a better job at the corners needing the ability to make plays against opposing offenses.
There never seems to be a lack of confidence for Pindell (58/89 656 6 TD 3 INT) even if last week’s first win came against FCS Rhode Island. The problem is that in his other 2 FBS starts, he puts up points and gains yardage in bunches with the contest seemingly out of reach. Connecticut isn’t going to try and beat the opposition looking to air the game out and playing at a break neck pace, but make no mistake they do have some weapons. They have a balanced receiving core led by Kyle Buss (8-129), Aaron McLean (10-102 2 TD) and Hergy Mayala (11-99 2 TD). This trio could be a mild test for Syuracuse pass defense, which hasn’t exactly stopped the opposition yielding 270 such yards per contest. Pindell, like Dungey is not shy calling his own number with 334 yards, a 5.4 average rush per carry and 3 scores thus far. Plus Pindell also has Mensah (55-285 5.2 2 TD) to carry the bulk of the load as well as provide protection. What will be a huge test is finding similar success against the Orange’s run defense which gives up only 115 yards on the ground per game. The combination of leading tacklers Kielan Winter and Evan Foster, who each had 11 last week could make things rougher for Pindell, who will also have to avoid the quickness and agility of Kendall Coleman who recorded 2 sacks against FSU.
Syracuse may not have reached its peak yet due to a lack of action within the ACC, but that may change once they complete their breeze through the non-conference campaign. Whether it’s Dungey or Devito at the helm, either of the tandem could have a big day exposing UConn’s inability to stop both the run and pass. Connecticut cannot afford to fall behind early, as their tempo does not exemplify run and gun. Syracuse isn’t exactly totally up tempo either, but their presence against the run could create turnovers by the opposition leading to short fields and a smorgasbord of points. While we’re laying a bunch here, all the Orange need to do is avoid any letdown factor, which after last weeks’ confidence building win, will likely not kick in.
I’ll have a second play coming up on Saturday later.
