Evanston, IL -- (Sports Network) - Showing he's back to full health, Northwestern running back Tyrell Sutton ran for 144 yards on 21 carries to lead the Wildcats to a 30-10 season-opening win over the Syracuse Orange.

Sutton ran for 1,000 yards as a freshman and sophomore, but injuries limited him to just seven games last season. Northwestern (1-0) quarterback C.J. Bacher threw for 215 yards and three touchdowns on 23-of-35 accuracy.

Andrew Robinson had a rough game under center for Syracuse (0-1), going 14- for-28 for 103 yards and an interception.

Syracuse drove 63 yards in 10 plays on the opening possession, with Patrick Shadle converting a 36-yard field goal to spot the Orange a 3-0 lead.

Wildcats linebacker Quentin Davie sacked Robinson in the end zone with 12:22 to play in the first half, making it a 3-2 game.

Later in the second quarter, NU took a 9-3 lead when Bacher found Jeremy Ebert for a 16-yard scoring strike.

Sutton lost a fumble at the NU 13-yard line on the opening possession of the third quarter. Three plays later, Curtis Brinkley scored on a two-yard run to give Syracuse a 10-9 lead.

But Northwestern took over from there. Bacher capped off a 76-yard drive with a 12-yard touchdown pass to Sutton, putting the Wildcats back on top, 16-10 with 8:14 remaining in the third quarter.

Later in the third quarter, Brendan Smith picked off Robinson and returned it 26 yards to pay dirt.

Northwestern iced the game with a 12-play, 80-yard drive in the fourth quarter, punctuated by Bacher's two-yard touchdown pass to Josh Rooks.

The Orange had just 11 first downs and were outgained, 484-225 in total offense.