West Virginia Football: Cuse run away from Will Grier-less Mountaineers

Syracuse took down a depleted West Virginia football squad in the Camping World Bowl and did so with a dominating defense and efficient offense.

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The 29th Camping World Bowl featured two old Big East rivals, the West Virginia Mountaineers of the Big 12 and the Syracuse Orange of the ACC. There were plenty of storylines coming into the game, including senior quarterback Will Grier‘s decision to skip the game for West Virginia, joining his left tackle Yodny Cajuste in preparing for the 2019 NFL Draft. Receiver Gary Jennings also missed the game due to injuries.

Syracuse came into the game with a chance to clinch their first ten-win season in over two decades. The Orange were led by senior quarterback Eric Dungey, who has amassed over 10,000 total yards in his Syracuse career, after being a two-star QB out of high school. The Orange have had tough tests this season with matchups against two Playoff teams: Clemson and Notre Dame.

The game ended up being played the way Syracuse wanted, the pace was slowed down and the Orange were able to impose their will physically on the smaller West Virginia defense. Eric Dungy ended up with 300 yards passing and a touchdown and Abdel Adams finished with two rushing touchdowns in the Orange 34-18 win. Here are three takeaways from the game.