Syracuse Football: Key takeaways from Orange's week-one loss to Tennessee in Atlanta

We knew Syracuse football was in for a challenge against No. 24 Tennessee in Atlanta, and the Volunteers proved themselves as the better team in nearly all aspects of the game. Tennessee jumped out to a 17-0 lead in the first quarter and while Syracuse kept fighting, it wasn't nearly enough to come back, with Tennessee winning 45-26 on Saturday afternoon. Here are my takeaways from the game.

My key takeaways from Syracuse football's week-one loss against Tennessee.

Syracuse was dominated in the trenches

We knew Syracuse would need a strong performance from the offensive and defensive lines against a Tennessee team that is big, physical, talented, and experienced. For the most part, that did not happen. Giving credit where it's due, I think the Orange offensive line had their moments in the running game and did improve as the game went on, but it still wasn't a strong performance. The blitz packages from Tennessee were especially troublesome, and you can see the problem with multiple spring transfers on the offensive line.

The larger problem for Syracuse was with the defensive line. There was just about no pass rush all game, even while sending pressure, and the problem originates with the front four. Yes, the group was banged up at points, but Tennessee QB Joey Aguilar had all day to find open receivers, and when there weren't any, he could leave the pocket. The Volunteer offensive line also got a good push nearly every play. The numbers don't lie - Tennessee ran 40 times for 246 yards, an average of 6.2, while Syracuse's defensive line had no sacks and only one tackle for loss.

Yasin Willis will be the focal point of the offense by year's end

I was very excited for Yasin Willis this year. The 6'1" 226-pound running back showed flashes last year as LeQuint Allen's backup, and he's put things together. Willis is a powerful runner with good speed for his size and very good vision. On the day, Willis ran 23 times for 91 yards and three touchdowns. Mind you, this all came in a game where Syracuse was trailing by multiple scores from nearly the start, with an offensive line that's still figuring things out, and one of the best defensive lines Syracuse will face all season.

I am not suggesting Syracuse will turn into an extremely run-heavy team, but this offense should still be balanced. I also think we'll see some Will Nixon, who's a good pass-catching option. But with another year of strong depth at the receiver position, we're going to soon be looking at Yasin Willis as the guy leading the Orange offense.

Elijah Robinson did not have his defense ready today

In Tennessee's first seven drives, the Volunteers had four touchdowns, a field goal, a fumble, and a punt. The fumble only came from a botched handoff and was in Syracuse territory. The Volunteer offense does put a lot of stress on a defense, and some of the defensive problems come from not yet having the right personnel, but I was very disappointed in how his defense performed. Syracuse started playing with their corners nine yards off, with two high safeties, giving Tennessee a lot of room to complete short passes to the outside and run.

Some of the personnel decisions for Robinson were also questionable. CB Demetres Samuel Jr., the highly-rated true freshman cornerback, was consistently picked on, including giving up a 73-yard touchdown before being benched for Greg Delaine and Davien Kerr. Both of them performed better than Samuel, much like what happened to Antoine Deslauriers. The true freshman looked a step slow, and the Orange were better with Anwar Sparrow Jr. and Derek McDonald.

Credit where it's due, Robinson made some adjustments, and the Syracuse defense did improve in the second half. Hopefully, he learns from this loss and improves the Orange defense the rest of the way.