Syracuse Football: Top graded players against Florida State

Syracuse fans know all about the four-star quarterback that had offers from some of college football’s big boys prior to arriving on the hill at Syracuse.

On Saturday, DeVito made an unreal throw to Orange senior receiver Jamal Custis late in the second quarter, who was pushed out of bounds at the one-yard line after making the catch.

The Syracuse quarterback showed great touch on the pass and put it in a spot where only Custis could make a play. The Florida State defender had no chance to try and make a play on the ball. Unfortunately, the Orange couldn’t convert and ended up just settling for a field goal after the impressive throw and catch.

In the second half, after having to punt on their first drive, DeVito was able to lead Syracuse down the field and this time, he made sure the Orange got in the end zone.

The young quarterback kept the ball on 3rd and Goal from the four-yard line and with some hard-nosed running, he got into the end zone to score Syracuse’s first touchdown of the game. Give DeVito some credit, he put his head down on the goal line and powered through a defender for six.

On the next scoring drive, the Orange backup signal-caller dropped another dime to Custis on the sideline for a 33-yard gain.

What made DeVito so impressive on Saturday was his quick release point. That is why the Syracuse coaches love him for this system.

He is able to get the ball out of his hands quickly, and get it to the receivers in space. On bubble screens, DeVito doesn’t windup, rather he flicks his wrist and the ball is already out and into the receiver’s hands.

It’s nice to see that his play in practice has started to transfer over to the playing field for DeVito. His time will come next year, and with all the talented young receivers in the program, DeVito will be a star in this system.

This freshman should have Syracuse fans excited for his future. Howard only touched the ball six times on Saturday, but on those six touches he gained 71 yards, an average of 11.8 yards per touch.

The Mississippi native has a low center of gravity and great balance. Even though senior rusher Dontae Strickland looks for contact a lot, he does not always drive through it. Howard on the other hand, is tough to bring down and arm tackles certainly will not do the trick.

Howard checked into the game in the third quarter when Tommy DeVito was under center for Syracuse. Howard would normally get reps with DeVito in practice and it says a lot about the young running back that the coaching staff trusted him out on the field with DeVito on Saturday.

On the ground against Florida State, Howard had five carries for 55 yards including a massive play that set up the second touchdown by Orange tight end Ravian Pierce. Howard found a hole on 3rd and short, made a man miss, and he was off to the races before being dragged down around the three-yard line.

He even made a nice catch out of the backfield that was a little surprising. Normally, a true freshman running back isn’t necessarily ready to make big plays catching the ball out of the backfield.

Instead, Howard picked up 16 yards on the play and gained a crucial first down for Syracuse. Expect to see a lot more of the young Orange running back going forward in the future, especially if DeVito is the one under center.