Tag: Dino Babers

Syracuse’s Dino Babers explains personal foul call in loss to Rutgers football

Syracuse football head coach Dino Babers explains his confusion over his personal foul penalty in a loss to Rutgers football.

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One play after Syracuse head coach Dino Babers had a personal foul called against him along the sidelines, Rutgers football running back Kyle Monangai ran for an 11-yard touchdown and a 7-0 lead for the Scarlet Knights. That moment in the third quarter was perhaps the tipping point for Rutgers, who beat Syracuse 17-7.

The penalty call on Babers turned a looming third-and-long from just outside the red zone into a first down on Syracuse’s 11-yard line. Monangai’s touchdown run on the very next play was a dagger for Syracuse after a strong defensive effort up until the midpoint of the third quarter.

“I’m 60-years old and it was my first personal foul penalty,” Babers told reporters after his team’s loss.

“And I’ll say the exact same thing that I always say: none of us are worth 15 yards in a game.”

Babers did not lash out at the referees following the game, even as he explained the leading up to the play that caused the personal foul call. Had it not been for that moment and the fresh set of downs following Babers’ penalty, Rutgers might have had to settle for a field goal.

Deserved or not, the whole game changed when Babers was whistled for his conduct on the sidelines.

“I’m not quite sure what happened. I thought I saw a play – and I’m trying not to get fined,” Babers said.

“I thought I saw a play where we tackled a guy and he got pushed back. I’m sitting there waiting, I saw a personal foul called. I didn’t see a targeting. I’m trying to figure out how the personal foul got called.

“When they came over and told me, they told me the back was picked up and body-slammed. I didn’t see it…I’m like “I didn’t see anybody body slam anybody.’ I got a personal foul penalty called against me…As far as I know – I know I’ve never had a personal foul penalty called on me as a head coach. I know I’ve never had one called on me as an assistant coach. And I’m pretty doggone sure I’ve never had one called on me as a player and I’ve been playing since the 60s. So, I didn’t use any profanity but I guess my English was too strong.”

Rutgers football’s 2-0 start hinged on a surprising moment from Syracuse’s Dino Babers

Rutgers football is 2-0, thanks in no small part to a surprising loss of composure from Syracuse head coach Dino Babers.

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The biggest moment from Rutgers football’s 17-7 win over Syracuse on Saturday didn’t happen on the field. It was a meltdown moment from Syracuse head coach Dino Babers that had a large part in turning the game towards Rutgers.

It may well have shifted all the momentum towards the Scarlet Knights.
With the game scoreless and 7:22 left in the third quarter, the end result turned on what would be a poor moment from Babers. Rutgers was piecing together their best drive of the afternoon and had the ball on the Syracuse 22-yard line. Facing a third-and-14, Rutgers quarterback Noah Vedral threw an eight-yard completion to wide receiver Shameen Jones that should have seen the offense coming off and the Scarlet Knights kicking unit running out onto the field.

Instead, offsetting penalties were called resulting in Rutgers facing another third-and-long.

Not fast.

That’s when Babers did the inexplicable, berating the officiating staff and earning an unsportsmanlike penalty that moved the ball up to the Syracuse 11-yard line. On the next play, running back Kyle Monangai bounced outside, found space and Rutgers had a 7-0 lead.

“Yeah, I didn’t, I didn’t see it, I don’t know how it happened but, you know, I know that’s one of the points of emphasis this year is coaches,” Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano told reporters after the game.

“I had my own issues.”

Babers had Syracuse playing relatively well up until that point, even as they (like Rutgers), struggled at times to move the ball. It was a shocking loss of cool from Babers, who doesn’t have a reputation as being particularly hard on game officials or excessive on the sideline.

Schiano might have been referencing his own argument animated discussion with the officials a few moments before. The Rutgers head coach, although visibly frustrated, did not draw a penalty.

In his postgame press conference, Schiano wouldn’t go into details about what got him upset with the officials.

“It doesn’t matter. I’ve often said that I made more mistakes today – you know, I was so mad at myself the way I coached. And so, who am I to think that these officials – and they’re going make mistakes too,” Schiano said.

“We all make mistakes. It’s just in the heat of the battle you get upset when you think that you were wronged. But look, everybody’s got a job to do, we’re all trying to do it. I felt the officials, really did a pretty good job. Just a grimy game. It was tough.”

What has Syracuse’s Dino Babers worried? Rutgers football’s speed on offense

Rutgers football has speed on offense and special teams, something that Syracuse head coach Dino Babers said his team will need to counter.

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After watching Rutgers season opening win, Syracuse head coach Dino Babers walked away impressed with the Scarlet Knights. In particular, Babers said that Rutgers is a fast team on offense as well as special teams.

Rutgers beat Temple 61-14 this past Saturday in a game where the offense wasn’t necessarily lights out but was efficient. A strong defensive effort, including five forced turnovers, as well as big contributions on special teams, helped spur Rutgers to a blowout win.

Early in the third quarter, the Scarlet Knights held a 26-14 lead over the visiting Owls. Rutgers then began to roll over a tiring Temple side, in particular dominating along the lines to get the win.

Syracuse played a tighter game, beating MAC opponent Ohio 29-9 on the road in what was a loud and festive environment.

“They’re a good team they scored a lot of points. They scored and they got on them in the second quarter, really close to halftime and then they extended it in the third quarter,” Babers told reporters on Thursday.

“Once they had them they took them out – you know once they got them on the ropes, they took them out.

“So, this is an explosive crew. Their skill is really, really good; really fast. They can do things on kickoff returner and [with their] punt returners. This is a very, very skilled unit…We had some opportunities in the Ohio game when some guys got out and we could run them down and it gives you a chance and you have an opportunity to play goal line defense, and our defense did a fantastic job of keeping them out of the end zone. If they get out, they’re going to be really hard to go get. They’ll probably get all of it so we got to really get really cross our t’s and dot our i’s.”

Against Temple, junior wide receiver Aron Cruickshank had a big afternoon on special teams for Rutgers. He had two punt returns for 55 yards and had four kickoff returns for 113 yards.

Syracuse’s Dino Babers on recruiting “that city” of New Jersey ahead of Saturday’s Rutgers game

Syracuse head coach Dino Babers discusses the importance of recruiting New Jersey ahead of Saturday’s game against Rutgers.

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Syracuse head coach Dino Babers underscored that Saturday’s game against Rutgers football is a big win for the program given how both states recruit the same region. This includes “that city” of New Jersey, according to Babers.

With the return of Greg Schiano as head coach at Rutgers, recruiting New Jersey has become a priority once again for the Scarlet Knights. The same can be said for Syracuse, a program that comes down south to tap the deep talent pool in the Garden State.

So Saturday’s game at Syracuse is a big one for Rutgers to further cement themselves in their home state. The Orange would like to make further inroads in New Jersey, putting plenty on the line for both programs beyond just an out of conference win.

“You know, I think it’s really obvious that New Jersey has a lot of good players and that not only us but other schools go in there and recruit that city as well,” Babers told reporters this week.

“Some of our most explosive players on this team are from New Jersey. So, we understand that it’s a recruiting battle. I think recruiting is a little bit different now because I think there’s a lot of people who go all over the country, and it’s more, it’s more international recruiting as we got people from Hawaii on our football team.

“So that being said, New Jersey guys go all over the place. It’s not like the old days, everybody would stay at home, but it’s a very important recruiting area, there’s no doubt about it and it’s one of the top recruiting areas for us.”

The humor behind these comments, of course, is that New Jersey is a state and not a city. In addition, Hawaii is part of the United States and, despite not being part of the contiguous 48 states, is not considered “international.”

The irony behind the comments is that Babers was a former running back at Hawaii for five years beginning in 1979. He then began his coaching career with his alma mater as a graduate assistant in 1984.

Last year, Syracuse had just one player from New Jersey in their recruiting class, four-star defensive back Darian Chestnut. For the 2022 class, there are two players from the state among the dozen verbals to Babers’ program.

Babers hopes to right the ship at Syracuse

For Syracuse football things have devolved rapidly over the past two seasons. In 2018, the Orange went 10-3 and won 10 games for the first time since 2001 and it looked as if head coach Dino Babers had resurrected a dormant program. But the next …

For Syracuse football things have devolved rapidly over the past two seasons.

In 2018, the Orange went 10-3 and won 10 games for the first time since 2001 and it looked as if head coach Dino Babers had resurrected a dormant program. But the next season Syracuse missed a bowl game and in 2020 the team dropped to 1-10 its worst mark since Greg Robinson’s first season in 2005.

Clemson travels to the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y. for another Friday night bout on Oct. 15 at 7 p.m. and here is what to expect from the Orange.

Last meeting: In 2020 Clemson rolled Syracuse 47-21 at Memorial Stadium on Oct. 24 to win its third straight contest with the Orange and seven of the last eight in the series since they joined the ACC in 2013.

Last season: Syracuse went 1-10 and finished the year on an eight-game skid that included a loss to Liberty and a 30-0 shutout at Louisville.

Coaching staff: Babers returns for his sixth season at the helm as head coach of the Orange. Offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert is in his second season as offensive coordinator and hopes to have his offense back to the fast-paced style he hoped to see last season. Defensive coordinator Tony White also enters his second season and wants to see more mastery of his playbook that includes a lot of moving pieces.

Returners: On offense Syracuse returns two-year starter Tommy DeVito at quarterback who has shown a lot of promise but lacked support on the offensive line and struggled in limited action last season. DeVito’s season ended early in his fourth game after a leg injury sidelined him for the bulk of 2020. Syracuse returns most of its offense from last season including sophomore tackle Matthew Bergeron who should help an offensive line that was inconsistent at best last year. Sean Tucker, Cooper Lutz, Abdul Adams and Jarveon Howard are also back in the running back room. Watch for Taj Harris to have a breakout season at wide receiver if DeVito can get the ball out of his hand.

On defense the Orange are expected to show significant improvement in year two of the current system with a lot of returners thanks to the NCAA’s extra year of eligibility. Sophomore linebacker Mikel Jones had a breakout season last year and led the FBS with eight turnovers. Redshirt freshman corner Garrett Williams shows promise at corner and will be salty in pass protection. They also return three seniors on the defensive line and a seasoned linebacker group.

Additions: The biggest addition of the offseason was a graduate transfer from Mississippi State in quarterback Garrett Shrader. The former four star will add some competition for DeVito and has a legitimate shot at taking the starting job.

Other big pickups include offensive guard Chris Bleich from Florida and junior college standout Jakob Bradford both of which should help up front. In the running back room Adams and Howard sat out last season because of the pandemic and add extra firepower for the Orange.

On defense, Syracuse added another defensive back in Jason Simmons Jr. from New Mexico State.

Subtractions: The biggest loss for Babers and company is the depletion of their secondary group. Andre Cisco, Trill Williams and Ifeatu all left after the 2020 season and signed with NFL teams. The defense also lost linebackers Lee Kpogba because he was kicked off the team and Tyrell Richards to transfer.

Key matchup: If last season was any indication the way to beat Syracuse is to get to the quarterback. The key for Clemson to extend its streak is to get to DeVito and force him to make quick decisions in the passing game. The other unique challenge is to not get thrown off by the change in routine playing on a Friday night.

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Notre Dame vs. Syracuse: Second-Quarter Analysis

When Clark Lea stepped off the Notre Dame bus Saturday, he probably didn’t expect Syracuse to present such a challenge to his defense.

When Clark Lea stepped off the Notre Dame bus Saturday, he probably didn’t expect Syracuse to present such a challenge to his defense. In the first half, we saw that at times. A victory that appeared to be such a foregone conclusion didn’t seem like it midway through the second quarter. Then, the Irish woke up, and they now hold a 24-7 halftime lead.

The Orange started their first drive of the second quarter at their own 38-yard line and executed it to perfection. Rather than go for it all on one big play, they successfully relied on a series of runs and short passes. It paid off when Rex Culpepper connected with Anthony Queeley for an 18-yard touchdown to give their team the lead. Dino Babers said that this is his team’s title game, and that’s how it’s played for the most part.

For most of the second quarter, the Irish’s offense continued to have trouble getting anything going. On one drive, they got into Orange territory and appeared to pick up a fourth down, but Michael Mayer’s momentum carried him back behind the marker, and the Irish turned it over on downs. Everyone was waiting for anything to happen to get this unit going.

The Orange inadvertently provided a spark for the Irish when they appeared to force a three-and-out, but Kingsley Jonathan was flagged for roughing the passer. Ian Book made Jonathan pay for his mistake with a couple of first-down completions to Tommy Tremble and Javon McKinley. He put a stamp on the drive with a 28-yard touchdown run to put the Irish back in front. That’s what happens when you give a team like this second chances.

After that, the Irish we’ve come to know finally showed up. Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa sacked Culpepper and forced a fumble that was recovered by Marist Liufau. It took forever for the replay booth to confirm that, but it finally happened. Speaking of things finally happening, McKinley, the Irish’s leading receiver, scored his first touchdown of the season on a 21-yard pass from Book on the first play of the drive.

With time running out in the half, the Orange gave the Irish another opportunity when Cooper Lutz ran into Matt Salerno after Salerno had called for a fair catch on a punt. The Irish took advantage of this latest in a series of Syracuse mistakes by putting together a drive in which they marched down the field as quickly as any offense in college football is capable of. Book’s 21-yard pass to Ben Skowronek put the Irish in field-goal range, but Book decided that wasn’t enough, and he hit McKinley for a 28-yard touchdown pass with six seconds left. All of that took 32 seconds, and the Irish went into the locker room feeling much more confident about their chances of a blowout win.