Syracuse Football: Top 10 Plays of Week 3 Versus Central Michigan

4. Sean Riley Returns Kickoff 64 yards

It kills me to say this, but this one does not have video to go with it. However, take it from me that this play was unbelievable as I watch it from the stands. It definitely deserved a spot in the top three this week.

The Chippewas of Central Michigan had just scored a touchdown to take back the lead at 17-10. Sean Riley received the kickoff from Central Michigan at the 4 yard line. He would get a nice block along the right sideline near the 20 yard line so he followed it.

From there he evaded and juked past a defender using his speed at the 25. At the 30 yard line, he slipped to the left, right towards Central Michigan defenders. Luckily, he quickly got around a block to the right that yet another Syracuse special teams player had set for him.

After that, he proceeded to travel along the right sideline. He would use his speed to get past the first and hoping that the one blocker he still had yet in front of him would hold out against the last man to beat.

Riley would continue to kick it into high gear as he approached the Central Michigan 45 yard line, across the 50. As a result though, this put his blocker in the dust and let the defender chase after him. That defender would eventually end up catching Riley at their 32 yard line. It was return of 64 yards after a kickoff of 61 yards.

It was an amazing return and showed Central Michigan they needed to be more careful when kicking to him. They now knew  he was a threat to return it long each time he got the ball. Riley would be such a threat that later in the game Central Michigan would opt not to kick his way on punts. A lot of that strategy probably stems from this play here, as they feared his ability to make plays with his feet and run past them.

Hopefully the Orange will continue to benefit from this type of play from Riley going forward. It would be a huge boom for the Orange throughout the rest of the season. It was an absolutely awesome kickoff return, and one I am very sad there is no video of. If you watch the replay of the game on the WatchESPN app, it starts around the 1:08:54 mark. (Or 7:52 left in the second quarter)