Disaster in Death Valley: The Disappointing Trip to Clemson for Syracuse Men’s Soccer
By Josh Richardson | @joshrichy_04
September 27th, 1998. That was the last time Syracuse Men’s Soccer lost by five or more goals. SU lost 5-0 to UConn down in Storrs, CT almost three decades ago. Unfortunately for the Orange, the timeline can move up to October 25th, 2024, after the 6-1 loss to #3 Clemson. It was an ugly contest from start to finish. The Tigers scored within the opening two minutes of each half. Syracuse appeared to be completely outmatched from kickoff to the final whistle. The big question is: What happened to the national championship program from two seasons ago?
Man Down
SU already trailed Clemson 1-0 after the opening five minutes. It didn’t help that in the 15th minute, forward Michael Acquah picked up a Red Card after elbowing a Clemson defender. After that minute, almost all hope of Syracuse pulling off an upset was gone. It’s hard enough to beat the #3 team in the country, it’s even harder when you have to play with only 10 guys on the pitch. 10 minutes later, the Tigers scored their second goal. And then another five minutes after that. And then another 3 minutes after that. It wound up as a 4-1 deficit for Syracuse at the half, and it only got worse in the second 45.
Keeper, Keeper
It’s easy to see the scorecard at the end of the match and blame Tomas Hut for allowing six goals. But when playing down a man, it objectively isn’t all his fault. Some of it can easily be chalked up to Clemson just being a better team, and less about the mistakes made by Syracuse. Multiple Tigers goals came off perfect crosses inside out of range for any possible Orange defense. After Hut came out with 25 minutes to go, Jason Smith made one save and pitched a shutout for the final third of the match.
Next Up
So what can be more difficult than playing the third ranked team in the country? How about the second ranked team to end the regular season? On Friday, Syracuse hosts #2 Pitt from SU Soccer Stadium. The Panthers have been one of the best teams in the nation this year, not just with their 12-3 record, but with the quality of wins. Pitt has five wins this season against ranked programs. The key for Syracuse? Play with nothing to lose. The expectations from the beginning of the season are long gone. SU began the year at #25, made it as high as #7, and have been out since the end of September. The message needs to be to just play as hard as you can. You make the ACC tournament anyway, you probably aren’t making the NCAA tournament. Just end the season on a high note by playing free, confident and prepared. Kickoff from SU Soccer Stadium is set for 7 against the Panthers.
