Syracuse (1-0) did exactly what it was supposed to do in its 50-7 season-opening win over Central Connecticut State (0-1). The Orange scored two touchdowns in the first 5:22 of game play and never looked back in the blowout victory.

Here are three quick reactions from the game.

The boy who cried pocket passer

Once again, Eric Dungey made his yearly preseason declaration that he would run less this season. It was apparent very early on that, at least in Week 1, that wouldn’t be the case.

In the first half Duney ran five times, and there were moments he ran well. SU’s first touchdown was a Dungey keeper on a read-option. On one rush, he surveyed the field for deep shots, saw nothing, scrambled for six yards and went out of bounds untouched.

But other times, Dungey took unnecessary hits. On one play, he spun past a defender and ran up field, but got knocked over by a CCSU defender instead of sliding. On the Orange’s first drive of the second quarter, a third down pass play went awry. Instead of throwing it away Dungey tried to scramble and took a hit as he fell into the ground.

The most notable play came midway through the second period. Dungey ran to his left as a Blue Devil defender came to tackle him low. Dungey somersaulted through the air, landing squarely on his backside. It elicited some oos and ahhs, and also some groans, from the SU fans.

Shortened return

Syracuse’s defense undoubtedly changed last season after Week 2, when Antwan Cordy went down for the season with a fractured arm. He was a sparkplug in SU’s secondary and without him, the Orange defense struggled.

But early in the first half of this game, Cordy went down with an injury. He went to the locker room and came back onto the sidelines in crutches and with a black boot over his right leg.

Last Monday, head coach Dino Babers said that Cordy getting hurt last season could have been a blessing for him. It allowed him to have an extra year to mature and learn the defensive scheme and to play at SU. Now though, it’s unclear how serious this injury might be and when Cordy will come back. Graduate transfer Jordan Martin played in Cordy’s place the rest of the way at safety and Sean Riley went back for the majority of punt returns.

Home run hitter

Moe Neal made his debut with a bang last season. Early in the second quarter against Colgate, Neal took a handoff and burst through a hole for a 49-yard touchdown.

He started working with the wide receivers during spring ball. By training camp he was listed as a running back again. He had another big play to start and this season, and this one ended up coming on a passing play.

Late in the second quarter, Neal lined up in the backfield next to Dungey. Before the snap he split out and lined up near the left sideline. He stopped and turned about five yards from the line and caught the pass from Dungey. With one quick juke he evaded a CCSU defender and ran down 52 yards for the touchdown.

Neal will still mostly play at running back. But he’s one of SU’s most versatile and explosive offensive weapons who can be a big-play threat moving forward.

Published on September 1, 2017 at 10:25 pm

Contact Tomer: tdlanger@syr.edu | @tomer_langer