No. 16 Syracuse football (6-1 overall, 3-1 in the ACC) is back at the JMA Wireless Dome on Saturday, as they take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (4-3 overall) at noon eastern time on ABC.
The Orange are looking to bounce back, following a close loss, 27-21, to the No. 5 Clemson Tigers last Saturday on the road. These three players are the key players to watch for the Orange against the Irish.
Top Syracuse football players to monitor at home versus Notre Dame.
Quarterback Garrett Shrader
Shrader is looking to get the Orange back on track, following a performance where he had 167 yards in the air and 71 yards rushing that resulted in two touchdowns for Syracuse against Clemson. Shrader will need to find the holes in the Notre Dame defense, finding his wide receivers for big yards and rushing for big yards on the ground as well. He will need to avoid costly turnovers and penalties if he wants to help the Orange pick up a win at home.
Wide Receiver Oronde Gadsden ll
Gadsden is the key receiver for Shrader to find in tough situations, as he showed against the Tigers when he had 86 receiving yards. Gadsden will need to break through coverage of the Irish defense, make big plays down the field, and use his speed and agility to create opportunities to get the Orange into scoring positions early and late in the game.
Running Back Sean Tucker
Tucker will need to be a huge factor for the Orange in this game against the Irish. Tucker only ran for 54 yards against Clemson, not being able to create much in terms of offense for the Syracuse Orange (he only had five carries). Sean Tucker will need to find the holes in the Notre Dame defense, using his field vision to find holes to run through, using his speed to break free from chasing defenders, and getting into the end zone is critical for him in this game. If Tucker is unable to be a factor in this game, the Orange will have a tough game ahead of them.
Watch for these three players on Saturday as the No.16 Syracuse Orange takes on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at the JMA Wireless Dome at 12 pm eastern time on ABC.