Calvin Russell brought five stars to Syracuse.
The phenomenal wide receiver from Miami arrived at SU as the top-rated recruit in the history of the program. It’s tough to bring more hype than that. And it’s tough to live up to the excitement so quickly any better than Russell has.
Consider Saturday in Raleigh, North Carolina, with the Orange visiting North Carolina State.
Syracuse’s offense struggled a week ago, unable to beat Clemson despite holding the Tigers to 18 points — an no offensive touchdowns — in the JMA Wireless Dome.
For offense in this one, though, the Orange didn’t disguise their intentions. They were going to go to Russell.
All he did was tie a program record on an epic day as part of an epic victory.
Calvin Russell Stats
Russell put up one of the most ridiculous stat lines in the history of the Syracuse football program.
The five-star freshman finished the game with 17 catches for 137 yards and a touchdown.
He also ran the ball two times for 24 yards — those coming on passes that were deemed to be backward, so they officially counted as runs.
Essentially, Syracuse QB Steve Angeli threw the ball successfully into Russell’s hands 19 times (with the two lateral passes counting in the book as runs), and he picked up 161 yards.
These passes were screens and crossers and contested grabs. It didn’t matter where Angeli threw the ball. Russell caught it.
Calvin Russell Ties Syracuse Record
The Orange needed every bit of Russell’s performance in a 34-31 come-from-behind victory.
In the process, he tied an SU record.
The previous record for catches in a game at Syracuse had been set by Ervin Phillips back in the Dino Babers era.
Russell’s 17 grabs will match that in the record books. And as mentioned, he had a couple other “catches” that instead were counted as runs.
It was one of the best receiving days this program has seen.
Justus Ross-Simmons Delivers
This win wasn’t just about Russell, though. In the end, it was also about Justus Ross-Simmons.
Ross-Simmons wasn’t sure he’d be eligible for this season. He had to go the lawsuit route, like many other fifth-year players in the NCAA ranks trying to get a year that they see being given to incoming freshmen also given to them.
For a while, it looked like Syracuse wouldn’t have Ross-Simmons. But he was given the chance to keep playing, and he showed up in a big way on SU’s final scoring drive.
First, when a pass to Russell on fourth-and-3 was knocked away, Ross-Simmons tracked the deflection and dove underneath it.
Then, he caught a sick jump ball for a touchdown from Angeli for the one-point lead. And when Syracuse went for 2, Angeli simply threw it up to Ross-Simmons again, and he made another incredible grab.
A former star in Rochester at East High School, Ross-Simmons began his college career at Colorado State before coming back to New York state — and Syracuse wouldn’t have won on Saturday without him, too.
Syracuse’s Calvin Russell Posts Record-Setting Day, Lives Up To Hype