While the Notre Dame football team gets ready to take on Miami with CJ Carr under center, one of the guys the freshman signal caller beat out made his debut for his new team. Steve Angeli moved on to Syracuse this spring after it appeared he wasn't winning a starting job in South Bend. On Saturday, he started for the Orange against the Tennessee Volunteers and had an up-and-down performance with his new squad.
Syracuse's offense produced 26 points over the final three quarters of its 45-26 loss to No. 24 Tennessee on Saturday here at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. After falling behind 17-0 in the first quarter, the offense found its groove in the no-huddle and had a running back average 4 yards per carry. The only issue? Football games last four quarters.
How former Notre Dame QB performed in Syracuse’s opener loss
The former Notre Dame quarterback probably wasn't to blame for all of his struggles. While a fumble was returned for a touchdown, it was the product of an offensive line that saw him sacked five times.
Angeli also threw an interception that proved costly early in the game. However, he also completed 23 of 40 passes for 274 yards and a touchdown. There were times when he absolutely looked like the quarterback Notre Dame fans saw off and on, especially when he had to step in for an injured Riley Leonard in the playoffs last winter.
It was far from a perfect outing for the former Notre Dame football star. However, he showed enough that there's got to be hope from Syracuse against UCONN next Saturday.