Syracuse Football: Dino Babers gives blunt assessment after blow-out loss
By Neil Adler
In his post-game press conference after Syracuse football was drubbed at Louisville on Saturday afternoon, head coach Dino Babers didn’t sugarcoat the Orange’s performance.
He was disappointed in his players, and he personally took responsibility for the outcome against Louisville, too.
Now, a lot of my fellow ‘Cuse fans took to social media after the Orange lost 41-3 to the Cardinals, and many of them absolutely hammered Babers.
The most frequently discussed theme among fans, at least from my perspective, is that Syracuse football was coming off a bye week, with extra time to rest and prepare, and then the ‘Cuse (5-5, 2-4) threw up a dud versus Louisville (5-5, 3-4).
Of course, Babers and his coaching assistants aren’t the ones actually playing on the field, however, I did find it frustrating that the Orange, which has suited up in numerous close contests during the 2021 stanza, was so dominated on offense and defense after the week off.
Syracuse football head coach Dino Babers wasn’t happy with his team’s performance.
"When Babers addressed media members following the ‘Cuse defeat at the hands of the Cardinals, he said in part, “To me, we have to get better. We have to get better everywhere. We’ve got to get better in the run game, we have to get better in the throw game. We’ve got to get better,” according to an article from SyracuseOnSI publisher Mike McAllister."
Considering that against the Cardinals, the Orange struggled on both sides of the field, I agree with Babers’ assessment. How Syracuse football reverses course from that awful loss and rebounds versus N.C. State on the road this coming Saturday remains to be determined.
Babers also noted that the ‘Cuse got beat on defense, on offense and in special teams, and to him, it wasn’t one particular component to primarily blame for the squad’s 38-point setback.
"“As a family, we did not perform extremely well. You can break it up to defense, offense and special teams. I thought we got beat in all three phases. That comes down to kids being fresh, kids being motivated and coaching. You pick your choice,” Babers added."
A loss on the road to Louisville, a team that has done well versus the Orange in recent years, would have been understandable. Throughout the 2021 campaign, Syracuse football has squeaked out some close wins, and it has fallen multiple times by three points.
So for me, it’s not that the Cardinals beat the ‘Cuse. It’s how they beat the Orange. Total domination in all facets of this Atlantic Coast Conference clash.
And because Syracuse football coaches and players had extra time to prepare, that’s what makes this loss equal parts surprising, frustrating, disappointing and, frankly, unacceptable.