Steve Angeli’s second touchdown pass of the game went 11 yards to Justus Ross-Simmons in a 34-31 comeback victory against North Carolina State on Saturday afternoon in Raleigh, N.C.
Syracuse (5-5, 2-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) wiped out a 15-point hole in the final 5 1/2 minutes, beginning with defensive end Tunmise Adeleye’s 18-yard return of an interception.
Calvin Russell II caught 17 passes for 137 yards with a touchdown. Angeli was 27-for-42 for 272 yards in the Orange’s fourth victory by three or fewer points.
CJ Bailey threw for 211 yards and a touchdown and ran for a touchdown for NC State (4-6, 2-5), but he had the costly interception. Duke Scott ran for 127 yards and a touchdown a day after NC State announced that former quarterback Philip Rivers will become the head coach next season.
It took NC State only four plays to cover 75 yards for a touchdown to begin the second half. Set up by Scott’s 62-yard run, Bailey threw 12 yards to Chance Robinson for the points.
Davion Gause took a direct snap for a 2-yard touchdown run to cap a swift three-play touchdown drive. That TD came two plays after a 69-yard pass from Bailey to Davion Dozier, marking the longest play of the season for the Wolfpack.
Syracuse responded with an 11-play drive, ending on Tylik Hill’s 13-yard touchdown run.
After the teams traded punts, Scott ran 32 yards for the Wolfpack’s third touchdown of the third quarter. That was a three-play possession going 53 yards.
But when Syracuse defensive end Tunmise Adeleye returned an interception 18 yards for a touchdown with 5:12 left, the Orange were within 31-26 although a two-point conversion play failed.
Then, Syracuse took possession at the N.C. State 49 with more than three minutes remaining on the way to the winning touchdown.
Syracuse ate up more than seven minutes on the game’s opening possession, scoring on Tripp Woody’s 31-yard field goal. NC State had only one possession in the first quarter.
Bailey scrambled 9 yards for NC State’s first points with 3:40 left in the first half. That 14-play, 81-yard drive included a fourth-and-9 conversion when Bailey connected with Keenan Jackson for 26 yards.
Woody’s 35-yard field goal with 10 seconds left in the first half made it 7-6.
–Field Level Media
