‘We just got punked’: Syracuse allows 235 rushing yards in blowout loss to Duke
Syracuse was gashed on the ground in its 38-3 blowout loss to Duke, allowing a season-high 235 rushing yards. Avery Magee | Asst. Photo Editor
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Fran Brown doesn’t pull any punches. When something goes wrong and his team fails to execute, Brown doesn’t beat around the bush. He feels a responsibility to keep his players accountable so the standard at Syracuse remains high.
So when discussing SU’s porous run defense against Duke Saturday, Brown got right to the point.
“We just got punked,” Brown said postgame. “It shouldn’t look like that. It’s not good. It’s not how it’s supposed to be, but we have to make sure that we use our shoulder pads.”
A week after dominating in the trenches against Clemson, Syracuse (3-2, 1-1 Atlantic Coast) was bullied by Duke (3-2, 2-0 ACC), falling 38-3. The Orange were gashed for 235 rushing yards, their most since allowing 313 against Boston College last year.
In his first career start, true freshman Nate Sheppard ran for 172 yards on 15 carries, spearheading a Duke rushing attack that averaged 6.4 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Syracuse’s run game was absent, only totaling 85 yards on the ground.
It was hard for Brown to think of a more concrete answer to his team’s struggles in the trenches. He said at points, defenders were spilling — meaning hitting the opponent with the opposite arm — when they should’ve been boxing and vice versa.
Technical mistakes like that opened up holes through Syracuse’s defensive line. The Orange got in the backfield at various points to stop the run but were consistently slashed on the ground for big plays.
Thirteen of Duke’s rushes went for at least seven yards, including a 49-yard touchdown from Sheppard in the first quarter, the longest play of the game by either team.
Duke created a gap on the right side of its offensive line, sealing off linebacker Gary Bryant III. With a head of steam, Sheppard ran right in between Cornell Perry and Antoine Deslauriers, who both whiffed on their tackles. They were the only Syracuse players to get close to Sheppard as he sprinted into the end zone to put Duke up 10-3.
“That performance that you’ve seen out there today was not good,” Brown said. “I have to make sure that I coach my players a lot better, be able to prepare them better and have them ready to come out and be able to compete.”
Tackling was heavily emphasized throughout the offseason. Whether it was Brown, defensive coordinator Elijah Robinson or linebackers coach Robert Wright, SU knew it needed to improve in that department.
“We really spent the off season studying like the people that have tackled best over a long period of time by reaching out to them and getting their drills,” Wright said on Aug. 8.
Even if players miss tackles, Wright wants them to do so with leverage to prevent big plays. Syracuse failed to do that against Duke, with Sheppard’s early run proving pivotal.
Through five games, Syracuse has allowed 174 rushing yards per game, by far the worst mark in the ACC. No. 17 Georgia Tech lets up 166.2, while NC State is way behind with 144.8 yards per game. The Orange are also allowing 15 more total yards (464.4) than anyone else in the conference.
It’s a worrying trend for the Orange, whose elite offense masked some of their defensive shortcomings last season. The same can be said through four games with Steve Angeli, but with Rickie Collins at the helm this weekend, the Orange failed to score a touchdown for the first time since 2023. Collins totaled 229 yards, though he threw an ugly interception and looked off all afternoon.
Duke running back Anderson Castle powers through a group of Syracuse defenders. Castle recorded 42 rushing yards, adding to the Blue Devils’ 235 total on the ground. Leonardo Eriman | Photo Editor
Meanwhile, Duke quarterback Darian Mensah stole the show, especially in the first half, accounting for 203 of his 268 passing yards. He fired a pair of touchdown passes to Cooper Barkate, helping the Blue Devils lead 24-3 at halftime. While Mensah’s arm reclaimed Duke’s big lead, the Blue Devils’ rushing attack put the game away.
In Duke’s first four games, it didn’t have a 100-yard rusher. Carries were split between Sheppard, Anderson Castle and Jaquez Moore. After recording 61 yards on 14 rushes last week against NC State, Sheppard got the nod and the freshman delivered.
In the third quarter, he put the icing on the cake with a 12-yard touchdown. On an outside handoff to the left, Sheppard wasn’t touched until he reached the goal line, where he bulldozed Perry for his second score of the game. Sheppard’s touchdown made it 31-3 with 20 minutes to go, putting the game well beyond Syracuse’s reach.
The result was so embarrassing that Brown issued an unprompted apology postgame.
“I want to apologize to Syracuse, the fan base, just everyone who follows this football program,” Brown said. “The performance that you’ve seen out there today was not good. I have to make sure that I coach our players a lot better. We have to prepare them better and have them be ready to come out and compete.”
Part of Syracuse’s success in its win over Clemson was it dominated the trenches. Yes, Adam Randall finished with 130 yards on the ground, but Syracuse didn’t allow huge chunk plays at crucial junctions. Saturday was a different story. Until the Orange can prove they can stop the run, teams will continue to go right at them.
“We just gotta go out and play our brand of football,” SU safety Duce Chestnut said. “ We’re not worried about this loss. We know we’re gonna bounce back. When we did it last year, even though it’s not the same team, we got the same mentality.
