Turnovers haunt Syracuse in 31–18 loss to SMU

The Texas sun beat down on Gerald J. Ford Stadium as Syracuse’s offense once again found itself stuck in neutral. Redshirt sophomore quarterback Rickie Collins threw three interceptions, including two inside the red zone, as the Orange fell 31-18 to SMU on Saturday afternoon.

The loss marked the first time head coach Fran Brown has dropped consecutive games since taking over the program. Syracuse fell to 3–2 heading into its bye week, while SMU improved to 4-1.

Syracuse’s opening drive set the tone for the day. After forcing a three-and-out and taking over at the Mustangs’ 42-yard line, the Orange marched to the goal line but came up empty on fourth-and-inches when sophomore running back Yasin Willis was stopped short. From there, the same mistakes that plagued Syracuse in last week’s 38–3 loss to Duke resurfaced; turnovers, missed throws and empty red-zone trips.

Collins’ first interception came on his own 10-yard line, setting up a short SMU field goal. Later in the half, another turnover deep in Orange territory helped the Mustangs extend their lead to 17–0. 

By halftime, Syracuse trailed 24–3 and had converted just one of five drives inside the 20-yard line.

“He started getting a little better,” Brown said. “He threw a touchdown pass, didn’t throw one last week, ran one in. So he’s getting better. Just got to keep working, at least his first time getting the opportunity to go behind him and lead a football team. … I got to make sure that I’m able to do that and have his back and then be behind him 100% as he’s learning and going through these rough patches of the game of football, which happens.”

Despite his coach’s support, Collins was candid about his performance.

“I have to do better executing, getting us in the right situation and getting the ball to our playmakers,” he said.

“I had to deliver the ball more accurately. I was very inaccurate today.”

Collins finished 19-of-34 for 212 yards, with one passing touchdown and one rushing score. Both came in the fourth quarter after SMU had already built a comfortable lead.

Syracuse’s defense showed improvement against the run after allowing 200 rushing yards to Duke. The Orange limited SMU to just 76 yards on the ground, but struggled to contain quarterback Kevin Jennings, who threw for over 250 yards and two scores.

Brown said there’s room for improvement across the board, starting with himself and the coaching staff. 

“I want to see the [play callers] improve, and then I want to see the players improve,” Brown said. “I want to make sure that everyone’s on the same page and everyone’s comfortable, and we play really fast. So it’s mainly the fundamentals I want to improve — blocking and tackling and catching, just all the fundamentals of football.” 

Willis echoed that sentiment after Syracuse failed to capitalize on multiple red-zone chances.

“You get a good drive going down the field, and then you get to the red zone and things don’t go your way,” he said.

“You kind of see a shift in energy with the team, but that’s something we need to get over. When things aren’t going our way, how are we going to respond to that?”

Collins connected with junior wide receiver Johntay Cook for an 11-yard touchdown late in the fourth quarter to make the score respectable, but the damage was already done. 

The Orange have now scored just four offensive touchdowns in their past three games.

Syracuse will have a bye week to regroup before hosting Pittsburgh on Oct. 18 at the JMA Wireless Dome. 

For Brown, the message remains one of patience and persistence.

“This is about growth,” he said. “We’re building something. We’ve got to keep moving forward.”