SYRACUSE, NY -- Senior wide receiver Van Chew's four-yard touchdown catch in the first possession of overtime Thursday night helped propel the Syracuse Orange to a remarkable 36-29 come-from-behind victory over the visiting Wake Forest Demon Deacons in a season-opening non-conference contest at the Carrier Dome.
The Orange, who trailed 29-14 with 11:02 to play in the fourth quarter, used two TDs, which came just 1:19 apart, and a two-point conversion to begin their the season 1-0. The first TD came when senior fullback Adam Harris caught a four-yard pass from quarterback Ryan Nassib with 8:26 remaining. The extra point by kicker Ross Krautman cut margin to 29-21.
Then, after the SU's defense forced the Demon Deacon offense to go three-and-out and with a few Orange timeouts in between, senior running back Antwon Bailey took the seventh play of SU's next possession 53 yards for a TD. With Wake Forest still ahead, 29-27, Chew caught a three-yard pass from Nassib, which was intended to be thrown away, but Chew somehow snagged and kept in bounds. The Orange then were successful on the two-point conversion to tie the game at 29.
The Demon Deacons lone possession of overtime came after Chew's TD, and it ended when a pass towards the end zone sailed wide.
The Syracuse football schedule features the Orange hosting Rhode Island at the Carrier Dome next Saturday (4:30 p.m.). The following week SU travels to the west coast to take on the USC Trojans (8 p.m. on FX).
SB Nation New York blogged live from the Carrier Dome during Thursday night’s home opener against Wake Forest. Check back to SBNY for post-game reactions and the most up-to-date news on the Orange. Also, follow along on Twitter at SBNationNY and Jared_E_Smith.