Fast Fact Friday: Syracuse defense is named 'The Mob' |
The lights are bright, there's tissue paper floating all around campus, and a house is being built on Bowman field. That can only mean one thing: it's Homecoming at Clemson.
It's time for another Fast Fact Friday, and with No. 14 Syracuse coming to town, this one will be all about the Orange. Syracuse and Clemson kick off at noon on ABC. Sean McDonough (a Syracuse graduate), Todd Blackledge, and Molly McGrath will be on the call. 1. Battle of Unbeatens This will be Clemson's third game against an undefeated opponent (Wake Forest and NC State). Syracuse will play its second consecutive game against a top-15 after the Orange took down No. 15 NC State last week in the dome. This will be the first time in the 81-year history of Memorial Stadium that two unbeaten teams have squared off where each team owns a record of 6-0 or better. It's also the first time Syracuse has played in a game where both the Orange and its opponent were 6-0 or better since 1959 when the then 6-0 'Cuse team beat a 7-0 Penn State team before going on to win the National Championship. Syracuse is seeking its first win over a team ranked in the top ten since the Orange stunned second-ranked Clemson 27-24 in the JMA Wireless (then Carrier) Dome. The last time Syracuse beat a team ranked in the AP Top 25 on the road was in 2010 when the Orange beat Virginia Tech at Lane Stadium. 2. Dominanting the redzone Offensively, Syracuse and Clemson are two of the best teams in the nation inside the redzone. The Tigers join Tennesee and Ohio State as the only three teams in college football who are perfect in redzone scoring. Clemson has scored 26 touchdowns and nine field goals in the redzone. Syracuse ranks 20th in the country scoring on 26 or 28 trips. The Orange have scored 17 touchdowns and nine field goals. Syracuse's only two misses inside the redzone were late in the game against Wagner. 3. The Mob Syracuse's defense – The Mob – is one of the country's best units, ranking eighth in total defense. They are only surrendering 268 yards per game and 4.6 yards per play in games this season, which is a huge improvement since 2020. Syracuse's defense enters Saturday's game having not surrendered a touchdown since Sept. 23 and lead the ACC and rank sixth nationally in scoring defense. The Mob has allowed just 13.2 points per game this season. The Orange ranked 112th in total defense in 2020, improved to 19th in 2021, and have now catapulted into the top 10. 4. Clemson Connections Syracuse and Clemson have several connections, and some are even a little surprising. Five Syracuse players are from the state of South Carolina: WR Kendall Long (Lexington), DB Bralyn Oliver (Anderson), DB Quan Peterson (Chester), DL Chase Simmons (Little River), and DL Jatius Geer (Anderson). Syracuse linebacker Mikel Jones and wide Kyle Acker attended IMG Academy in Florida, as did Clemson's Xavier Thomas and P Aidan Swanson. Syracuse DB Aman Greenwood and DL Caleb Okechukwu played high school football with Clemson DL Tre Williams at St. John's College (Washington DC). Syracuse's Geer and Oliver and Clemson's TE Will Blackstone all played for Belton-Honea Path High School (South Carolina). Syracuse OL Josh Ilaoa and Clemson junior LB Trenton Simpson played together at Mallard Creek High School in Charlotte, NC Orange special teams coordinator Bob Ligashesky and Clemson defensive run game coordinator Nick Eason were both part of the Pittsburgh Steelers organization from 2007-09. Ligashesky was coaching special teams, while Eason was in the middle of his playing career at defensive tackle. Both earned Super Bowl rings as part of the Steelers' 2008 championship team. In addition, Clemson wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham saw action in four games during the 2009 season. 5. Sean Tucker Syracuse running back Sean Tucker is one of the best in the ACC and the country. Tucker has carried the ball 124 times for 644 yards – an average of 5.2 yards per carry and 107 yards per game – and six touchdowns. He is looking to continue his ascent up Syracuse's all-time rushing list. After the game against NC State last week, Tucker now has 2,766 yards for his career, moving him past Floyd Little and into sixth place in the Orange record book. He needs just 104 yards to move into the top five on the career rushing list.
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