Set up in an I-formation, Florida State running back Dalvin Cook ran up to take the handoff from quarterback Deondre Francois midway through the second quarter. As soon as the ball was placed into his stomach, he planted his left foot in the ground and cut to the right, running diagonally toward the sideline.

As soon as fullback Freddie Stevenson got the block down on safety Daivon Ellison on the outside, Cook planted his right foot and cut back up the field. He scampered into the end zone untouched.

“We knew he was very dangerous when he gets to the perimeter and uses his speed, so instead of letting him get lateral as much as he likes to, we tried to keep him between the tackles,” linebacker Zaire Franklin said. “Obviously it didn’t go to well today.”

Syracuse (4-7, 2-5 Atlantic Coast) got blown out at home, losing its third straight game. Although the defense played well in spurts, it couldn’t find a way to stop Cook, one of the best running backs in the country. He ended up with 225 yards and four touchdowns on the ground — the most rushing yards and touchdowns SU has allowed to a single player all year — and was the catalyst of No. 17 Florida State’s (8-3, 5-3) offense in its 45-14 victory over the Orange on Saturday.

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• Syracuse’s offensive line struggled to protect Zack Mahoney

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Cook flashed his skills on his first carry of the game. Starting from SU’s 21-yard line, he took the second-down handoff left and seemed surrounded by Orange jerseys near the line of scrimmage. Syracuse fans started cheering, thinking SU would force the Seminoles into a third and long.

Instead, Cook bounced off his tight end, Ryan Izzo, who was blocking for him, turned toward the middle and ran for a gain of 6. Orange fans went from excited to disappointed with one explosive cutback.

“He has great feet,” linebacker Andrew Armstrong said. “Even when we do keep contain, he’s good with his footwork cutting back.”

On the next drive, his second carry of the day went for 41 yards. That passed the 19 yards he needed coming into the game to become FSU’s all-time leading rusher.

When Syracuse over-contained to try and keep Cook inside the tackles, he’d rush straight up the gut. When SU plugged up the middle, Cook would bounce to the outside and run past whoever was there.

As the game progressed he wore out the SU defense. In the first quarter, he had six carries for 55 yards, with the majority of them coming on that 41-yard run. In the second quarter, he got seven more for 49 yards and the touchdown.

“The tailback, he’s an ‘OMG’ guy,” Syracuse head coach Dino Babers said.

Jacob Greenfeld | Asst. Photo Editor

But the first half was just an appetizer for Cook. Coming out of the break with a 21-7 lead — and right after SU had scored on a Hail Mary to end the first half — the Seminoles scored two touchdowns on their first two possessions. Both times it was Cook running untouched and both runs were for more than 10 yards.

Cook became just the seventh FBS player this season to run four touchdowns and 200 yards in a game. He also became the first player in ACC history to clear the 4,000 career rushing yard marker in just three seasons.

After SU scored a touchdown to cut the lead to 35-14, kicker Cole Murphy tried an onside kick that was recovered by Florida State. The drive ended with Cook’s fourth touchdown of the game.

“He has an extra gear,” linebacker Troy Henderson said. “He has an extra gear that I don’t think anybody in the country can catch him when he gets to the sideline.”

Published on November 19, 2016 at 10:30 pm

Contact Tomer: tdlanger@syr.edu | @tomer_langer