Syracuse’s 4 completions in loss to North Carolina are its fewest in ACC game

Syracuse, N.Y. — Syracuse’s poor passing game in Friday night’s 27-10 loss to North Carolina set a new standard for futility.

The Orange’s four completions are its fewest in an ACC game since the school joined the conference in 2013.

The previous low of five came twice under former coach Dino Babers, most recently in the Orange’s 28-13 victory against Pittsburgh at Yankee Stadium in 2023.

That game will long be remembered for tight end Dan Villari lining up at quarterback and bulldozing his way to 154 yards on 17 carries. Villari completed 3-of-5 passes that afternoon in the Bronx. Injured quarterback Garrett Shrader and running back LeQuint Allen completed the other two.

Shrader also completed just five passes in a win against Boston College in 2021, when the Orange rode All-American tailback Sean Tucker for 207 yards on 27 carries.

Friday’s loss to the Tar Heels was a new low in Fran Brown’s second season.

The coach benched high-priced LSU transfer Rickie Collins this week in favor of a walk-on freshman who is also suiting up for the men’s lacrosse team.

Joe Filardi finished 4-for-18 (22%) for 39 yards and a 40.4 passer rating in his first appearance.

Despite completing just one pass by halftime — on a trick play — to freshman Darius Johnson, the Orange led the Tar Heels, 10-6, behind linebacker Anwar Sparrow’s 51-yard fumble return for a touchdown.

North Carolina outscored the Orange 21-0 in the second half. It became the last FBS team in the country to score 21 or more points this season, according to ESPN.

In its media guide, Syracuse lists four instances in which it completed no passes in a game. The most recent came in 1956 against Penn State.