Syracuse hosts Pittsburgh in key game for Orange
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) >> It’s not necessarily a make-or-break moment for Syracuse, but when longtime rival Pittsburgh visits on Friday night there will be plenty at stake for the Orange.
Winless after two games in the Atlantic Coast Conference, Syracuse (3-3) needs a victory to start the second half of the season on the right foot with three road games ahead.
“We know where we are at and I think the big thing here is this — everybody has a responsibility to get better,” Orange coach Dino Babers said. “This is the entire football team, coaches included. Everybody has a responsibility to get better. We are going to find out where we are at.”
Pittsburgh (4-2, 1-1 ACC) is riding a three-game winning
streak and is coming off a bye week. Syracuse lost 16-10 at North Carolina State eight days ago, failing to score a touchdown for the first 57 minutes but still within reach at the final horn.
The Orange have lost only once in their last nine games in the Carrier Dome, 41-6 to then-No. 1 Clemson in this year’s home opener last month.
“We know we’re in for a dogfight,” Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi said. “We know it will be hot, we know it will be stuffy, we know it will be loud one way or another. And, you know, the Orange will be ready for the Panthers. They always are.”
Other things to know when Pittsburgh visits Syracuse on Friday night: IN A RUSH Pitt’s pass rush is thriving even without injured defensive linemen Rashad Weaver and Keyshon Camp, and that’s not good news for the Orange’s injury-plagued offense, which has allowed 26 sacks of quarterback Tommy DeVito, most in the ACC. The Panthers are tied with Virginia at the top of the conference with 27 sacks.
Sophomore Jaylen Twyman, thrust into a starting role after Weaver went down during training camp, leads Pitt with six sacks and this week was added to the watch list for the Chuck Bednarik Award, given annually to the best defensive lineman in the country.