The Atlantic Coast Conference fined Syracuse $25,000 on Monday and publicly reprimanded the school for faking injuries in the 34-21 road win over the Tigers on Saturday. ACC officials called Syracuse’s actions “unethical and contrary to the spirit of the rules.”
Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik made clear in his post-game interview that he was not buying the injuries suffered by Syracuse defenders in his team’s upset loss to the Orange, using air quotes when referencing the Orange players’ injuries.
“Props to them,” Klubnik said. “They stopped us on some third downs and in certain times, and then they have an injury or something like that, when we really got going.”
How did the fake injuries impact the game?
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Syracuse head coach Fran Brown led the Orange to a 10-3 record in 2024, his first season in charge, and has started the 2025 season 3-1.
The incident took place as Clemson was driving in Syracuse territory with 9:25 left in the fourth quarter. Syracuse freshman defensive lineman Nissi Ogbebor slowly dropped to the ground and laid down after a big pass completion by the Tigers. Defensive lineman Kevin Jobity Jr. also went down. The league said there was action taken by a coach on Syracuse’s sideline that indicated they were instructed to pretend they were hurt, according to game video they reviewed.
The ACC said the moves “were a clear attempt to gain an unmerited advantage by stopping the game in order to secure an injury timeout.” Klubnik agreed, despite the fact that Clemson scored a touchdown on the next play.
“That’s up to them if they want to be honest about that,” Klubnik said. “That was definitely tough for us to really get in a rhythm, and we’re playing fast and then, unfortunately, they had a guy get hurt or something, or a timeout or something like that. So hopefully everybody, I feel like we came out really healthy and hopefully they did too.”
Why did the ACC penalize Syracuse?
Eliminating fake injuries is a priority for the NCAA, as Straight Arrow News reported in August. Faking an injury to stop the clock is sometimes used to slow down up-tempo offenses that tend to confuse a defense or make them tired by running their next play quickly, sometimes without a huddle.
Starting this season, if a player goes down injured after the ball is spotted by the officiating crew and medical personnel go onto the field of play, the player’s team will be charged a timeout. If the team has no timeouts left, officials will assess a five-yard delay of game penalty. The two Syracuse players went down before the ball was spotted, so the team was not penalized during the game.
What was the response from Syracuse?
The school responded to the punishment with a statement acknowledging the violation, “Syracuse University athletics acknowledges and accepts the reprimand and fine issued by the ACC. We remain firmly committed to upholding the highest standards of sportsmanship and competitive integrity across all 20 of our varsity programs,” said associate athletics director for athletic communications, Tyler Cady.
The win over Clemson is perhaps the program’s top moment under second-year head coach Fran Brown, who referred to the university statement during his press conference on Monday.
“So those things happened in the last game,” Brown said. “We put the statement out, and I just want to stick to everything that was in the statement. That’s why I’m thankful our athletic director and everybody put a statement out, because they want us to move on and get ready for our next opponent.”
Duke is the next opponent for the Orangemen. It could be a much tougher road ahead for Brown’s team because of a real injury. Star quarterback Steve Angeli, who was leading the nation in passing, ruptured his Achilles tendon during the game and will miss the rest of the season.
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