On Saturday, Tucker had his fewest carries in a game since 2020, when he made his debut. An 11-point second-half lead over No. 5-ranked Clemson slipped away from Syracuse, with one of the best running backs in the nation not getting the ball enough.
In the Orange’s 27-21 loss at Clemson, their top running back had just five carries. It was a head-scratcher that Tucker, a running back averaging 5.4 yards per carry, only ran the ball five times.
A lack of discipline from the defense contributed to 10 penalties by the Orange. Clemson, despite four turnovers and benching their starting quarterback, capitalized. Meanwhile, while the Tigers were thriving in the second half, the offense for Syracuse was mostly stagnant. Six of their seven offensive possessions after halftime resulted in a punt.
In a game where Syracuse let an 11-point lead slip away, Tucker’s low usage shouldn’t be swept under the rug.
Head coach Dino Baber’s explanation afterwards only adds to the frustration.
“The biggest thing is a lot of that stuff was read handoffs where the quarterback is reading,” Babers said. “They made it so that the quarterback would run the ball more so the quarterback would take a lot of shots and get physically beaten up. It was a good scheme. They took the ball out of Sean’s hands and put it into Shrader’s hands.”
Clemson may have taken the ball out of Sean Tucker’s hands, but it’s Babers and offensive coordinator Robert Anae’s job to find a way to put it back in his hands.
A run game in the second half would’ve came in handy to help an offense stuck in the mud like SU’s was. Moreover, Tucker has the skill set to break a long run at any given moment.
In what became a tight game, Syracuse didn’t get the ball to all of their playmakers. Clemson (No. 4 rushing defense in the nation) is tough against the run, however, that’s what in-game adjustments are all about.
Tucker came into this weekend’s action needing 130 yards to crack the top 5 of all-time rushing leaders in Syracuse history. Against Clemson, he finished with just 54 yards on the ground.
Babers and Anae did find a way to get Tucker the ball in the passing game (5 catches, 18 yards, one touchdown). However, failing to run the ball with him against Clemson because of a “good scheme” is ridiculous.
Anthony Rushing is on Twitter @TonyRushingNY
Baseline Sports NY is on Twitter @Baseline_NY
