SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) —

One of the big storylines coming into this week was about how the Clemson Tigers had no one to blame but themselves for their 2-and-2 start. Clemson had outplayed all four of its opponents but lost two of those games because of too many costly mistakes. On Saturday inside the Dome, it was a reversal of roles. The Tigers benefitted from their opponent making too many mistakes en route to a 31-14 victory.

Syracuse turned the ball over on two of its first three drives of the game, and the Orange quickly found themselves down 14-0. A Garrett Shrader fumble on the opening drive of the game led to a Cade Klubnik touchdown pass to Troy Stellato.

Two possessions later, a poor pitch exchange between Shrader and LeQuint Allen gave the Tigers the ball back on the SU 4-yard-line, which led to another Clemson touchdown.

Syracuse got on the board on the next possession as tight end Dan Villari caught his first touchdown pass in a Syracuse uniform. Clemson would add another score to lead 21-7 at the half.

The Orange made things interesting by getting it to 24-14 with the ball midway through the fourth quarter, but Shrader was picked off by Jeremiah Trotter, Jr. The Tigers would score on the very next play to end any hopes of a comeback.

With the loss, SU drops to 4-1 on the season. Next up for the Orange is a trip to Chapel Hill, North Carolina, to face nationally-ranked North Carolina next Saturday, Oct. 7.