#44

[OrangeXtreme]

So someone said he shouldn't wear it and ADJW/Dino won't do it anyways. Grosssss

The Four Families?

What did the Tattaglias or the Barzinis say?

 

[Chip]

So someone said he shouldn't wear it and ADJW/Dino won't do it anyways. Grosssss

Speaking of that last word of your post, God only knows what kind of deals he made with them to retire it.

What else makes this complicated?

 

[FreakTalksAboutSU]

Did they check with the families of Gifford Zimmerman? You know, the first guy to wear the 44? Everyone else, including Jim Brown, wore HIS number. So i guess his great great great grandchildren get a say, right?

What a freaking mess we made of this. Idiocy. Gross lit the fire, Wildhack. You have a fire extinguisher in one hand, and a gas can in the other.

And you are reaching for the wrong one.

 

[Cuse181]

Get a #44 chant going tonight??

 

[wiseman3]

If Tucker never gets 44, who ever will?? The season he is having is almost unattainable level for anyone else in the near future.

 

[OburgOrange]

As the AD, Wildhack needs to be making decisions that are in the best interest of the program. NOT appeasing grumpy old guys who have little to no impact on SU football anymore. This is turning into a disaster.

The number belongs to the school. They should make the decision. It’s an honor the school bestows on the player. Past players should not be making the decision.

 

[Jeremy L.]

Who cares if we "lose Jim Browns support". What support? The dude is 85 years old and is not a good person. He hasn't been to a game in years.

Agreed. Jim Brown has been to Syracuse MAYBE like 3 times since I've followed Syracuse football, and I'm 30. I'll listen to his opinion when he decides to care about Syracuse.

 

[SUFan44]

Wildhack SUCKS. Period.

 

[storange]

Wildhack SUCKS. Period.

There is a well thought out insightful post.

 

[UnknownOrange]

Sean needs 100 yards rushing to pass...

Rob Konrad.

 

[Trueblue25]

Why even say that?

I get it if prior 44 wearers are the major roadblock.

But why go on radio and confirm it’s currently shut down?

You’re killing organic fan generated hype. Another kick to loyal fan’s shins. Dumb

 

[SUFan44]

There is a well thought out insightful post.

I don't need to be insightful because he sucks.

Make a decision. Don't rely on others to make it for you.

#44 belongs back out on the field. The best RB we have had in two decades with a real shot at an NFL career wants it. Why not inject some life into a lifeless program, for $0?

Because a woman beater says no? Give me a break. Has Jim Brown even donated to the program?

 

[Trueblue25]

At some point you gotta give something back to the fans and CNY

 

[FreakTalksAboutSU]

At some point you gotta give something back to the fans and CNY

I swear, I fully expect Wildhack to tote out Jake's famous "one horse town" line at this point...

 

[Trueblue25]

I swear, I fully expect Wildhack to tote out Jake's famous "one horse town" line at this point...

CNY’s no different than Buffalo. Throw the fans a damn bone and we’ll show you real love.

 

[richmondcuse03]

Unless Jim Brown and Konrad are donating substantial sums to the program, I don’t really care if they don’t like the decision. Consulting with them is nonsense given how Gross handled it in the first place. You can retire individual names and jerseys but never should have done this. Could have been a ring of honor with all those who wore it. Lots of opportunities. It was short sighted then - Gross did it to get attention for a team that was awful. And it hasn’t given any benefits since.

I don’t get the logic behind this. Only excuse I can half way buy is if they use it as a reason to keep tucker from transferring. But we’re better off giving it to him sooner.

 

[SkyTopBus44]

Nothing would be gained by any such misdirection. All this shows is a lack of direction with the AD. It seems almost like they are afraid of giving out the jersey. There really is very little downside to putting it back into circulation. The worst that happens is that whoever gets it doesn't live up to the hype, which would only be noticed by a small universe of SU fans and alums. But, there is definite upside if they were to give it to Tucker and he keeps going the way he has to date and gets some serious national attention.

The major downside is if you have a domestic abuser like Chase Scanlon wearing the number. Oops we already did that with #22 in lacrosse!

 

[Trueblue25]

As a younger STH who’s hung with the program for 20 years of a lot of absolute garbage this is really disappointing.

I never got to see a great Syracuse football program. I never saw a real 44. We’ve never had a cultural piece to rally behind during my fanhood.

 

[raf4488]

I’m glad we have to go through this because Gross thought retiring the number was a great gimmick to slightly boost attendance for like, the South Florida game 15 years ago

 

[MSOrange]

I get frustrated with the lack of tradition at SU compared to other programs. This is a big missed opportunity, and I rarely complain. Hopefully it eventually happens, but geez.

 

[BVille44]

 

[Cuseregular]

The biggest mistake to me is that he even said this. Why, why, why, would you kill this hype that has been building? You have a very positive conversation going on about our football program and hey this hype might help sell tickets and build interest again in the football program. Hype that might help push the team over the winning football line going forward. This is a public relations killer and I think a fundraising opportunity killer. Guess what? He didn't have to answer the question if it was asked. He could have just said you will have to watch to see. What does that do? It gets people coming to and watching the games. At the very least it keeps football as a relevant topic.

Yeah see my earlier post for the reason why……

 

[UnknownOrange]

Love that he just blatantly ignores every other player (and/or family) who has worn 44.

Let me go on record: I don't give a damn what Jim Brown thinks of yet another player wearing a number he wore, since 10 players after him wore it.

John WildHACK, grow a pair. What's he gonna do... not come to any more games?

 

[Dick_in_MI]

The number belongs to the school. They should make the decision. It’s an honor the school bestows on the player. Past players should not be making the decision.

Exactly! So #44 is apparently not about Syracuse. It is about a very small number of guys and what they and their families want. You can go into any establishment on campus and buy a 44 shirt. If you told me they were selling them in the Hall of Languages, it would not surprise me. On the other hand, good luck finding a new #9 Don McPherson shirt or a new #5 Donovan McNabb shirt or a new #47 Joe Morris shirt. They changed the freaking zip code to 13044 for crying out loud and it seems as though it does not mean what we thought it did.

We have built up a whole cottage industry surrounding the number 44 and as it turns out the tail is really wagging the dog. If four families can control what is our most notable tradition, perhaps it means less than it should. Make no mistake, I have NO problem honoring the individual great #44's as players, especially Ernie Davis. None whatsoever. Beyond that, it seems like the rest of the concept is being devalued a bit.

 

[phil77]

Not the best move