CBS Frames $4M ACC Head Coach Into Questioning Fran Brown & Syracuse’s Integrity

34-21 was the final scoreline at Memorial Stadium in Clemson as the home team lost to an unranked side in Syracuse. Not many had expected Syracuse to defeat Clemson, but when Steve Angeli started connecting those passes and Yasin Willis started to garner those first downs on the ground, Clemson ran out of options. However, despite that statement victory, Fran Brown has mounting concerns after Steve Angeli’s season-ending injury. That has been exacerbated by a noteworthy fine by the ACC, after Syracuse was found to be “faking injuries.” The development is huge since a prominent ACC head coach had earlier raised concerns about teams faking injuries, signaling it’s not just limited to Syracuse.

“The actions by the two players—especially with the concurrent action by the coach in the team area—were a clear attempt to gain an unmerited advantage by stopping the game in order to secure an injury timeout,” the ACC said in its statement and fined Syracuse $25,000. The specific instance came with 9:25 left in the game, as Syracuse’s Nissi Ogbebor and Kevin Jobity were alleged to have faked injuries for an injury timeout. Syracuse’s fine may look meagre, but it has started a widespread discourse regarding teams employing sly tactics to gain advantage.

Duke head coach Manny Diaz, reportedly on a $4 million contract, along with other coaches like James Franklin and Dan Lanning, had appeared in a video on CBS Sports, where Diaz had picked teams faking injuries as his “pet peeve” inside college football. When Diaz appeared on the video after Franklin, his answer was simple as he said, “faking injuries.” The head coach then described why it annoys him. “It’s just bad for the integrity of the game,” announced Diaz.

After the fines by the ACC, Syracuse Football didn’t contest the decision and focused on “moving on” instead. The program released a statement and wrote that it “accepts the reprimand and fine issued by the ACC.” However, the statement didn’t stop others, like Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik, from giving a scathing statement, indicating that Fran Brown’s team might have faked injuries more than once in the game.

“They stopped us on third downs, and then they would have an injury when we really got going. That’s up to them if they want to be honest about that,” said Klubnik. As for Syracuse, they are 3-1 on the season, with their sole loss coming against the SEC’s Tennessee. Moving forward, though, it might be difficult for the team since Angeli, Syracuse’s QB1, had just announced that he was out for the season after his Achilles surgery. That surely makes things tricky for Syracuse, as games against Duke and Georgia Tech are lined up in the upcoming weeks. Now, as far as ‘faking injuries’ is concerned, it isn’t Syracuse’s first infraction.

Syracuse Football gets flagged for foul play by two announcers against Tennessee

In the opening game of the season against Tennessee, Syracuse lost 26-45. However, the matchup became highlighted since the teams were alleged to have faked some injuries. For instance, on Tennessee’s one big play, safety Demetres Samuel went tumbling on the ground as trainers rushed in to attend him. ESPN’s announcer Bob Wischusen and Louis Riddick called out Fran Brown’s team for wasting Tennessee’s play, faking an injury.

“This isn’t a good one. This one looks blatant, where he just kind of hit the dirt. I know they’re trying to crack down on this kind of thing—faking injuries. I don’t want to assume anything about any player, but this one, to me, looked suspicious,” said Riddick. Within some time, Demtres Samuel also “miraculously” made a comeback, coming on the field, which also signaled foul play from Syracuse. So, it seems the Duke game in Week 4 might just be interesting, as we would see Manny Diaz facing off against Syracuse, who are facing repeated fake injury allegations.

On paper, the game surely looks tilted towards Syracuse, considering their win against Clemson. But in the absence of Steve Angeli, the Orange has to make due with QB2, Rickie Collins, who has just 99 yards to his name this season. Duke, on the other hand, is coming off a solid 9-4 season in 2024, even though this year they are 2-2 overall, losing games against Tulane (24-34) and Illinois (19-45). Overall, we can surely expect a tense game at JMA Wireless Dome.