Clemson Football Scouting Report: An In-Depth Look at Syracuse

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SYRACUSE, NY – SEPTEMBER 22: Eric Dungey #2 of the Syracuse Orange passes the ball against the Connecticut Huskies during the fourth quarter at the Carrier Dome on September 22, 2018 in Syracuse, New York. Syracuse defeated Connecticut 51-21. (Photo by Rich Barnes/Getty Images) /

Who are some players that we may not know about from the Syracuse side of things that we need to have our eyes on Saturday?

I’ll try to give you a few on offense, defense and special teams. Let’s start off with the offense, Syracuse doesn’t have Steve Ishmael (all-time yardage leader) or Ervin Philips (all-time reception leader) that they had last season so they have to rely on some unproven commodities. Two smaller guys who have made huge impacts are Nykeim Johnson and Sean Riley who are both listed at 5-foot-8 and change. They bring quickness, explosiveness, and huge play-making ability.

On defense Andre Cisco is college football’s worst kept secret. He leads the entire nation in interceptions (four) and has as many as the entire Syracuse team had combined last season. Usually they say members of the secondary are rejected wide receivers who can’t catch, that hasn’t been the case for Andre who is the first true freshman to start at safety since 1985.

Special teams I already mentioned the name but Sean Riley is one of the top returners in college football when he’s focused. He had 290 all-purpose yards last week against UConn and he’s among the leaders in ACC history in returning yardage. Riley is so agile and dangerous in open field, his special teams prowess could be an underlying storyline in field position on Saturday.

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