Goal-line stand shows SU defense’s potential
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. – Derrell Smith can trace the change back to those four plays in the Syracuse red zone. That quartet of plays where Syracuse did the seemingly impossible: kept the mighty Penn State offense from gaining a measly two yards in Beaver Stadium.
‘It gave us a whole lot of confidence,’ Smith said. ‘There may have been some players on the field who were like, ‘Well this is Penn State, blah blah blah, but after that drive everybody realized they put on their pants like we put on our pants, and they put on their shoulder pads like we put on ours, and they are just regular people just like we are.’
In what several defenders said could be an identity-finding moment for the Syracuse defense, the unit’s goal-line stop in the second quarter highlighted a solid performance by the defense in Saturday’s 28-7 loss at Penn State. After the Nittany Lions exploded for 162 yards on their first two drives, they compiled only 156 the rest of the game and scored just 28 points.
‘I believe that we showed we’re not chumps,’ Smith said. ‘We came here to play. We weren’t going to lay down to nobody, and I think we set that statement.’
It seemed as if the Syracuse defense could be in for a long day after Penn State went 79 yards in seven plays on its opening drive to take a 7-0 lead. On the 49-yard touchdown pass from Daryll Clark to Evan Royster, safety Max Suter made an ill-advised move inside Royster’s route to try for an interception and whiffed. Safety Mike Holmes, backing up the play, failed to put a body on Royster in open space, and he scooted into the end zone.
On the second drive, Penn State methodically moved down the field from its own 4-yard line to set up shop at the Syracuse 2. The first two plays were a Royster rush for a yard and Joe Suhey being stone-walled by Bud Tribbey. On third-and-goal from the 1, Clark couldn’t sneak in up the middle for the score.
After the squads switched sides to start the second quarter, Penn State elected to go for it on fourth down. Clark fumbled the snap and Holmes dove on the ball to give Syracuse possession. The Orange defense ran off the field pumping its arms, screaming and giving hugs to assistant coaches. Against the odds, the defensive unit that melted down the stretch against Minnesota last week, came up with a huge stop.
‘It showed we’re not going to give up no matter what,’ nose tackle Art Jones said. ‘We could’ve been out there 20 plays, but as soon as that goes in the red zone, we got to get after it.’
After that goal-line stand, a different Syracuse defense roamed in Happy Valley. Penn State suddenly had three-and-outs. There was pressure on the quarterback, and Kevyn Scott even made an acrobatic interception, pulling the pigskin from the hands of Derek Moye. The Nittany Lions’ offense could not score at will. Penn State only led, 14-0, at halftime, and its last touchdown of the game came as the result of an interception that gave PSU the ball at the Orange 2-yard line.
Had the Syracuse offense shown any signs of life Saturday, it could’ve been a game thanks to the defense’s strong play. The Orange’s only touchdown – a 16-yard touchdown reception by Donte Davis – was set up by a fumble recovery by the Syracuse defense at the Penn State 16-yard line.
‘We kept going three-and-out, and that didn’t help the defense,’ wide receiver Alec Lemon said. ‘The defense was playing a hell of a game out there.’
Though the scoreboard may have shown a lopsided contest Saturday, the defense still senses the significance of that goal-line stop. On the road, with its back creeping closer and closer to the end zone, the line did what few teams in the country can do by stopping Penn State.
‘As a defense I think we realized we could play with anybody on defense,’ Smith said. ‘We’re just going to show everybody that we can play.’
