Syracuse University
3-3 , 0-2
Wake Forest
6-0 , 4-0
'Cuse Battles, But Comes Up Short vs. #19 Wake in OT
10/9/2021 7:39:00 PM | Football
Syracuse quarterback Garrett Shrader and freshman running back Sean Tucker combined for 353 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns but it was not enough as No. 19 Wake Forest defeated the Orange (3-3, 0-2 ACC), 40-37, in overtime Saturday night at the Carrier Dome. The Demon Deacons improve to 6-0 and 4-0 in the ACC.
The Orange forced overtime with a 94-yard scoring drive that started with 2:21 left in regulation and ended with 28-yard touchdown pass from Shrader to Tucker with 21 seconds left. Andre Szmyt's extra point tied things up, 34-34.
In overtime, Syracuse scored first, with a 38-yard field goal by Szmyt to go up 37-34. Wake's Sam Hartman then found Perry in the back left corner of the end zone with a 22-yard pass to end the game. Syracuse posted a season-high 514 yards of total offense (the most against an ACC opponent since posting 559 at Boston College in 2018) and the Orange's 354 yards on the ground were the most since 2014.
Tucker finished with 153 yards on 26 carries and two touchdowns to go with three receptions for 29 yards and another score. It was his fourth-straight game of 100+ rushing yards, tied for the second longest streak in program history behind Curtis Brinkley's had five straight in 2008. Tucker has rushed for 100 or more yards in eight out of 15 career games.
Wake Forest scored on the game's opening possession after driving deep into Orange territory, but the 'Cuse defense limited the damage to just a field goal. The Orange pulled ahead later in the frame, with a six-yard Tucker run capping a nine-play, 76-yard scoring drive midway through the first. Syracuse scored again to open the second quarter on a 24-yard strike from Shrader to Queeley.Â
The Orange opened a pair of 11 point leads in the first half, with the second coming after an A.T. Perry 46-yard catch from Sam Hartman, but Shrader dove in from five yards out on the ensuing drive to maintain the Orange's lead at 21-10. Harman made it a one score game with 48 ticks left to send the teams to the locker room at 21-17.
A Wake Forest field goal and a 69-yard touchdown pass from Hartman to Perry on the first two drives out of the locker room gave them their first lead at 26-21, but Tucker put the Orange back on top once more, capping a five play, 76-yard drive with a 14-yard run.
Things heated up in the final four minutes of regulation with each team exchanging scores. Wake Forest went ahead, 34-27, with a 10-yard rush by Christian Beal-Smith and a successful two-point conversion pass to Jaquarii Roberson. A turnover by the Orange put the ball back in Wake Forest's possession but the SU defense forced a three-and-out to set up the Orange's 94-yard scoring drive to force OT.
After Szmyt made his field goal, the Perry pass did the Orange in. It's the second-straight loss on the final play of the game for SU and third-straight game that the decision has been on the game's final play, after a last second field goal lifted 'Cuse past Liberty before a pair of ACC losses.
Shrader is just the third Syracuse quarterback since 1979 to post back-to-back 100-yard rushing games, finishing with 178 yards on 29 carries and one touchdown. He completed 15 of 27 passes for 160 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions.
Freshman Stefon Thompson led the Orange with nine total tackles, six solo. Szmyt tied the Syracuse career scoring mark with seven points on Saturday bringing his career total to 334, set by Nate Trout (1996-99).Â
Syracuse returns to the Carrier Dome Friday, Oct. 15 when the Orange host Clemson at 7 p.m.Â
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Team Stats
WFU 3, SYR 0
WFU - Sciba,Nick 22 yd field goal 9 plays, 75 yards, TOP 02:49
WFU 3, SYR 7
SYR - Tucker,Sean 6 yd run (Szmyt,Andre kick), 9 plays, 78 yards, TOP 03:34
WFU 3, SYR 14
SYR - Queeley,Anthony 24 yd pass from Shrader,Garrett (Szmyt,Andre kick) 11 plays, 77 yards, TOP 05:27
WFU 10, SYR 14
WFU - Perry,A.T. 46 yd pass from Hartman,Sam (Sciba,Nick kick) 6 plays, 77 yards, TOP 02:21
WFU 10, SYR 21
SYR - Shrader,Garrett 5 yd run (Szmyt,Andre kick), 10 plays, 71 yards, TOP 04:56
WFU 17, SYR 21
WFU - Hartman,Sam 1 yd run (Sciba,Nick kick), 8 plays, 31 yards, TOP 03:39
WFU 20, SYR 21
WFU - Sciba,Nick 40 yd field goal 10 plays, 20 yards, TOP 04:56
WFU 26, SYR 21
WFU - Perry,A.T. 69 yd pass from Hartman,Sam () 1 plays, 69 yards, TOP 00:12
WFU 26, SYR 27
SYR - Tucker,Sean 14 yd run (), 5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 02:09
WFU 34, SYR 27
WFU - Beal-Smith,Christian 10 yd run (Roberson,Jaquarii pass), 11 plays, 73 yards, TOP 03:45
WFU 34, SYR 34
SYR - Tucker,Sean 28 yd pass from Shrader,Garrett (Szmyt,Andre kick) 11 plays, 94 yards, TOP 02:00
WFU 34, SYR 37
SYR - Szmyt,Andre 38 yd field goal 6 plays, 5 yards, TOP 00:00
WFU 40, SYR 37
WFU - Perry,A.T. 22 yd pass from Hartman,Sam () 2 plays, 25 yards, TOP 00:00
