3 things to watch for in Syracuse's game against Western Michigan

Syracuse football will play its second game of the season Saturday when it hosts Western Michigan. The team is looking to start the season 2-0 for the second consecutive year.

In the 2023 opener, the Orange dominated Colgate. They won the game 65-0 which was the biggest margin of victory since 1959. SU also totaled 677 yards of offense, the most in program history.

The Broncos also come in to game two 1-0. Western Michigan defeated St. Francis 35-17 in week 1.

Here's everything to know about SU's week two matchup:

Against Colgate, Long's 3-3-5 defense pitched a shutout in an overall impressive performance. SU held the Raiders to 106 yards and forced three turnovers including a pivotal pick-six by Jeremiah Wilson.

Because of the defensive alignment, players were flying all over the field allowing Colgate quarterback Michael Brescia to do very little in the air and on the ground.

Saturday's game against Western Michigan will be a tougher task for the Orange defense. Western Michigan's offense is full of experience as the starting offensive line is all upper class men and quarterback Jack Salopek was a starter for the majority of the season in 2022.

Against a better offense in week two, SU will once again rely on its defensive line to create pressure in the backfield. Three sacks against Colgate including a big third down sack by Marlowe Wax put the Raider offense in a deficit they could never recover from.

If the Orange hope to repeat week one success in week two, Long's defense will need to be all over the quarterback once again. It will be interesting to see what the defense has for an encore in game two.

SU's offense exploded in Game 1 of the 2023 season, totaling 677 yards of offense which was enough for the most in a single game in program history. The air attack specifically was magnificent against a weak Colgate defense.

The Orange passed for 406 yards against the Raiders. While star receiver Oronde Gadsden got his usual high catch rates and yard totals, it was the other receivers that turned in unexpected great performances.

Umari Hatcher led the way with 105 yards and a touchdown. Isaiah Jones found the end zone twice and caught three passes on 71 yards. Kendall Long, Damien Alford, and Darrell Gill Jr. also scored receiving touchdowns in the route against Colgate.

While all of these players had productive days against Colgate, it's still fair to be critical of them as Colgate is likely the worst opponent the team faces this season. As SU plays bigger, more difficult secondaries, it will be imperative for these players to step up alongside Gadsden.

One of the players will eventually establish themselves as the clear number two option. The game against Western Michigan will be another step in seeing who of the SU receivers separates themselves.

Western Michigan and Syracuse have faced off in football twice in history. Both times, the Orange defeated the Broncos in offensive shootouts.

In 2018, Syracuse won 55-42. The offenses combined for 1,181 total yards in the game in a true offensive battle in Kalamazoo.

A year later, the matchup came to Syracuse where a similar result happened. SU won 52-33. In 2019, the team's once again combined for over 1,000 total yards.

Going into the third ever matchup between the Orange and the Broncos, it's possible that we could see yet another offensive explosion from both sides. Syracuse's offense showed last week that it has the capability to put up yards and points at a great rate.

However, the SU defense is unlikely to give up a large sum of points if it plays the way it did in Week 1.

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