Syracuse Strong claims supremacy in the battle for New York over Upstate Predators

Syracuse,New York-This was the third meeting between the Predators and the Strong this season. Syracuse won the first matchup 26-12 but lost the second one 28-15.

The third matchup in the quarterfinal round of the National GDFL Regional Playoffs was set to settle the score. 

It was a sloppy contest that was mired with penalties, mistakes, and some chippiness between the two bitter rivals. 

Ultimately the Strong defense proved too much for the Predators as they only scored one touchdown the entire contest and it came on a broken play one-on-one on the outside. 

Defensive back Jeff McDuffie was the player of the game registering two interceptions during the contest and nearly hauling in a third. All of those turnovers came in the first quarter and set the tone.
Syracuse got on the board for their first touchdown on a third and long play early in the second quarter. Shakem “Buck” Buckmon chucked up a pass deep and found wide receiver Joshua Thomas who hauled in the touchdown reception that made it 9-0 after an earlier Tom Standnicki field goal.

They notched another field goal at the end of the half to make it 12-0 When it rained it poured and that was certainly the case offensively. 

Joshua Thomas delivered another big play that set up Syracuse for another scoring opportunity which they cashed in on a quarterback sneak to make it 18-0. 

Syracuse had two more massive plays on offense that deserve some spotlight:

    •    Running back Rashad Burns had a monster run in the second half that featured broken tackles, a massive trucking of an Upstate defender, and an exciting finish.

    •    On another third and long play in the third quarter Dewayne “Flash” Gordon found an outlet pass and broke several tackles as he dove into the endzone for the final score of the contest. 

Syracuse won this game 25-6, but it was anything but pretty. The Strong improved their all-time series record to 6 - 1 over the Upstate Predators. 

The Strong has a lot of things to work on this upcoming week as they move to the next round of the GDFL playoffs. 

The Strong will now get one more additional home game at Sunnycrest Field as they welcome the Huntsville Rockets of Alabama on Saturday, August 27.