sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
- Joined
- Aug 15, 2011
- Messages
- 25,387
- Like
- 109,974
Today is a day to celebrate all that is great about former Post-Standard sports columnist Bud Poliquin.
Ways to participate:
Play golf with a persimmon head driver
Go to the opera (but wear a baseball hat)
Randomly blurt out a Poliquin favorite word or phrase
Suggestions: Whiz bang, mix in a salad, burg, huzzah, ink stained wretch, (feel free to add more Poliquin words and phrases as you see fit);
Bud's Thank-You Column
Poliquin thank-you column: 2nd career option worked out pretty well
If no one would pay me to play ball, perhaps somebody would pay me to write about those who did.
SU News
Myles Cecil Excited About Syracuse Offer, Looking to Visit (SI; McAllister)
Syracuse football only has a few scholarships left for the 2022 roster, but would like one of them to go to a defensive lineman that can add experience, leadership and depth. The Orange recently offered Cal Poly transfer Myles Cecil. Cecil entered the portal on January 21st and has already picked up several offers. In addition to Syracuse, Hawaii, Tulsa, Vanderbilt and Virginia Tech have extended scholarship opportunities. He is also hearing from Virginia.
The 6-3, 285 pound defensive lineman racked up 43 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks and one interception during the 2021 season. He was named to the All Big Sky Conference Third Team as a result. He has one year of eligibility remaining.
Cecil says he was in contact with Syracuse for about a week before the offer, and was excited when it came.
"(My reaction was) no way," Cecil said. "Coming from a small school, FCS, you can only dream of an opportunity like this."
The interest from Cecil in the Orange is real. He says he plans to take an official visit after the dead period ends (the last day of the current dead period is February 28th). When he is on the visit, he knows exactly what he is looking for in order to see if Syracuse is the right fit.
"Definitely looking for a coach that can bring the best out of me," Cecil said. "As well as a winning program and a place where there is proper depth and I'm not being brought in to be a filler back up third string type deal."
...
Isaiah Johnson Honors His Late Sister With Syracuse Commitment (SI; McAllister)
Syracuse football picked up a commitment on Monday from Dartmouth transfer cornerback Isaiah Johnson. All Syracuse caught up with Johnson to find out with the Orange was the best fit to continue his collegiate career.
"My biggest thing going in was development," Johnson said. "Finding a place where I could be comfortable in the system and environment, but the most important thing is just getting better. So the next time I take a chance at the league, it's my best shot and I can put my best foot forward. Looking at the resume of the coaching staff, looking at the people they have there, the players and the culture, it was the right place for myself to go and develop. A year, two years ago they had three DBs alone in a single year go to the NFL. One corner, one rover and one safety.
"One of them was kind of my body type (Ifeatu Melifonwu) and he's actually out in Detroit. So I got to watch him in the league. That factored in with when I went on my visit it was a great vibe. A great overall atmosphere. So I felt comfortable and I had conversations with my parents, especially my dad. He's been the person going through this process the closest with me. After talking about it and praying about it, it was the right fit and I made the call."
The call was made on February 7th, a very personal day for Johnson. His sister's birthday.
...
Syracuse football lands commitment from Dartmouth DB transfer Isaiah Johnson (247sports.com; Bailey)
Syracuse football landed a commitment from Dartmouth defensive back transfer Isaiah Johnson on Monday. He announced his decision on Twitter.
The 6-foot-3, 205-pound Johnson has two years of eligibility left. He received an offer from the Orange in late December and took an official visit in late January. He also picked up scholarship opportunities from Western Michigan, Charlotte, Tulane, Grambling State, Miami (OH), Colorado, Massachusetts, Tennessee-Martin, Eastern Kentucky, Samford and Youngstown State.
Johnson was a multi-year contributor at corner for the Big Green, racking up 55 tackles, including 2.5 for loss, last fall to go along with one interception and team-highs of seven pass deflections and six break-ups. Before the Ivy League's 2020 season was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, Johnson opened the 2019 season as a starter for Dartmouth, though a broken fibula in the team's opener sidelined him for the year. He appeared in nine games as a true freshman, recording seven tackles.
A Beverly Hills, Mich., native, Johnson previously attended Detroit County Day School, where he logged 71 tackles and eight interceptions as a senior, earning a spot on the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association All-State Division 4 First Team. Johnson also received offers from Air Force and Columbia, among others, in his initial recruitment, per his Dartmouth Athletics bio.
...
In 2022, Syracuse football scored several 4-star commits, and that rocks (itlh; Adler)
I recognize that the Syracuse football 2022 class isn’t highly rated by any means on a national scale, but my personal take is that this cycle for the Orange is quite solid. In fact, the team’s 2022 class has a couple of four-star prospects, and I like the sound of that.
The traditional National Signing Day took place on February 2. The ‘Cuse didn’t have a ton of developments occur that day, but the Orange did add three more high-school players, along with a promising transfer class of five.
All in all, per a recent press release on cuse.com, Syracuse football in its 2022 cycle picked up those three incoming freshmen and five transfers, along with the 13 players that the Orange landed late last year during the early signing period.
Prior to the National Signing Day on February 2, as I noted in this column, the ‘Cuse 2022 class was No. 73 nationally and No. 13 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, according to the 247Sports Web site, as well as No. 73 across the country, per .
Let’s take a look at some of the newer Syracuse football 2022 signees.
In a huge pick-up for the Orange, 2022 cornerback Greg Delaine flipped from Georgia Tech to Syracuse football. The 6-foot-1 Delaine, out of Fort Myers High School in Fort Myers, Fla., is rated four stars by ESPN, as well as a top-50 cornerback nationwide in the 2022 cycle. That’s a massive addition for the ‘Cuse.
The two other incoming freshmen who the Orange secured on the traditional National Signing Day were 2022 kicker Brady Denaburg and 2022 defensive lineman Kevin Jobity Jr.
The 6-foot Denaburg, from Merritt Island High School in Merritt Island, Fla., held other scholarship offers from teams such as Air Force and Rhode Island. He checked in at No. 12 in these national kicker rankings.
Jobity is an Empire State prospect who hails from the Buffalo area. The 6-foot-4 Jobity, who goes to Maryvale High School in Cheektowaga, N.Y., acquired more than 20 offers but ultimately decided on Syracuse football.
Between Delaine, 2022 defensive end Francois Nolton Jr. and cornerback Alijah Clark, a transfer from Rutgers, the Orange has three players in its 2022 class who were rated four stars by at least one recruiting service. I love that.
The 6-foot-4 Nolton, who picked the ‘Cuse over offers from heavyweights like Alabama, USC, Auburn and LSU, is already enrolled at SU and previously went to Miami Edison Senior High School. Per ESPN, he is four stars and the No. 30 defensive end in the 2022 class.
...
Syracuse Football: Breaking down the 2022 schedule, Connecticut Huskies (itlh; Fiello)
Before the Syracuse football 2022 schedule was released, I said that despite the tough teams on the schedule, I thought this team could still have success and be a bowl team based on what I have seen so far this offseason. And when the schedule came out, it does appear difficult but I still stand by it.
So I sat down and decided that instead of just saying that I believe it again, I wanted to break the games down one by one and give you the information you need to decide for yourself. I will go game by game with fun stats like head-to-head outcomes, players to watch, my way too early rating of difficulty, and a few other notes that might help.
Here are the teams scheduled and links to those that are already published in case you missed one:
Louisville
UConn
Purdue
Virginia
Wagner
Bye Week
NC State
Clemson
Notre Dame
Pittsburgh
Florida State
Wake Forest
Boston College
Breaking down the Syracuse football contest at Connecticut.
Syracuse Orange vs UConn HuskiesSeptember 10, 2022 (kick-off time and TV station TBD).
Location: Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut.
Last season head to head: did not play in 2021. Last played in 2018 and Syracuse won that one at home 51-21.
Opponent’s overall record last season: 1-11 (Beat Yale at home 21-15 for their only win last season).
Stats from their last face-off: Syracuse football QB Eric Dungey passed for 286 yards and 2 TDS and rushed for 77 yards and 3 touchdowns (build the guy a statue already). Moe Neal had 13 carries for 116 yards. Andre Szmyt was 3-3 in FG attempts. Current Seattle Seahawks player Alton Robinson had 3 sacks.
Possible level of difficulty on a scale of 1-10: I know some might want to say 0 or something based on their record last season but I’m giving this level of difficulty a 2. I tend to give the home team some chance at least because I’m a big believer that often crowds and being at home can add some inspiration. Also, this is a new season and a new head coach so just because UConn only won one game last season doesn’t mean it will be the same this season.
Key person on opposing team: Jim Mora. Randy Edsall is gone and the new UConn head coach is former NFL and UCLA head coach Jim Mora. Maybe he struggles since he’s been away from coaching for a few years or maybe he comes in and is successful right away. Mora has already attracted a transfer QB from Penn State who is a dual-threat and the unknown is often worse than the known.
How can Syracuse win: Since the Orange will likely be favored and it’s “their game to lose,” they have to go into East Hartford not looking past UConn and play good fundamentals. It doesn’t matter if you win by 3 or 30, just don’t get too reckless and lose this game. If Syracuse beats Louisville and comes in here too confident, this could end up being a “trap game.” Winning here is also key to fan interest because a loss will bring out the portion of fans calling for Head Coach Dino Babers to be fired (though even if they win, those same people will likely say “well it was just UConn”).
Other news, notes and nuggets:
- A former Big East foe, the NCAA has actually vacated two wins against them from 2004 and 2006. I think vacating wins is like hitting on a girl at the bar and then calling her ugly or denying it after…it did happen and nothing can change that. I lost all respect for the NCAA based on their decision on this case.
- Will Ta’Quan Roberson, the Penn State quarterback transfer I mentioned previously (who I believe had a Syracuse offer out of high school) or former Oregon/Northern Arizona transfer Cale Millen be the QB when Syracuse plays them? Cale is 6-foot-4, 210 pounds and can play in the pocket or be tough to tackle due to size if he runs. Ta’Quan is a former 4-star dual-threat recruit who only saw limited time at Penn State but could find a resurgence at UConn. There will definitely be a quarterback competition there this upcoming spring/summer.
- Is UConn a team that Syracuse football should schedule every year? I think yes. Barring ACC changes, Syracuse has a few out-of-conference games to schedule every season and my top three candidates are UConn, Tennessee and Penn State. UConn and Penn State bring history and a matchup even the casual fan knows whereas Tennessee is an SEC team that could make recruiting and viewing more desirable. You can tell recruits they’ll play an SEC team and give a fun game to fans and networks to sell. Also, UConn and Penn State aren’t a bad drive if you want to travel to support the Orange.
- Varsity > Mooyah.
- People are talking about a tough stretch of games in the Syracuse football schedule but UConn has Michigan and NC State after this Syracuse matchup, which for a team coming off a one-win season with a new coach and such might not be a favorable stretch if they’re going to struggle again this season.
Troy Nunes is an Absolute Podcast: Streaking with Juddy and Boe! (tniaam; podcast; Pregler)
Just when you were ready to write them off for the dead, the Syracuse Orange men’s basketball team has Undertaker meme’d their way back into our hearts and bubble watch with an impressive 3 game ACC win streak going into a stretch of incredibly winnable February games. Not saying it was improbable... just that we may have predicted this all last week.
As usual, Christian, Steve, and Andy hopped on the Nunesmagician Twitch Channel on Sunday night to recap the week in Orange!
In this week’s edition of the LiveCast/Podcast, the guys talked about...
- Remember when The Green Arrow came to the Dome and someone fought him? Good times...
- We’re going streaking! The Orange men’s team have won 3 in a row. What’s the key to that success? Juddy and Boe.
- What should we expect moving forward from this team?
- WE HAVE A FLEET. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.
- HOMEFIELD APPAREL (Use promo code NUNES for 10% off your first order)
- National Signing Day was this week! What did Syracuse do? Was it good? We discuss.
- Football Schedule time!
https://www.newsobserver.com/sports/college/acc/unc/article258150723.html (newsobserver.com; Brown)
North Carolina nose tackle Ray Vohasek revealed on Monday that he’s returning for a final season. Vohasek’s news means the Tar Heels will bring back nine defensive starters from the Duke’s Mayo Bowl.
Vohasek has started a combined 24 games the past two seasons. Last year, he had 38 tackles, four tackles for loss and one quarterback sack. He initially thought he’d be preparing for the NFL draft now, but instead he decided to take advantage of the NCAA eligibility waiver for another season in Chapel Hill.
“I’ve played through some pain this year and had some issues with my body and that kind of weighed into my process of making this decision of coming back,” Vohasek said. “I’m super excited to be back in Chapel Hill and I’m really excited about what this defense has and what my room has with the young guys and everything like that.”
Vohasek said he likes the potential of the Heels’ defensive line with All-ACC second team tackle Myles Murphy, sophomores Jahvaree Ritzie and Keeshawn Silver and incoming freshman Travis Shaw, a five-star recruit from Greensboro.
“The way the season went, obviously I don’t think anyone was happy with that, the team, fans, whatever,” Vohasek said. “I would like to win this division and leave Carolina on a good term. And really kind of bring back what Carolina was known for: having a great defensive line and dominating upfront as a unit.”
Vohasek is open to having his role changed after UNC parted ways with former coordinator Jay Bateman and brought back Gene Chizik to run the defense.
“All the guys that I know that have played for him, everyone speaks of him in very high regard and I’m a big fan of the system that he runs,” Vohasek said. “His resume, I mean it speaks for itself with two national championships... He knows what it takes to win the big games so it was a big part in that and I’m super excited to be part of his defense.”
...
Pitt Football: 2022 Way-Too-Early Game Predictions (saturdayblitz.com; Rose)
...
9
SYRACUSE ORANGE
November 5 Pittsburgh, PA
Syracuse has more roster continuity than any team in any power conference, as only star defensive end Cody Roscoe leaves. Other than Roscoe, nearly the entire defense is back for another year. Offensively, all-American running back Sean Tucker returns after setting the Syracuse record for rushing yards in a single season.
With so many players back, Syracuse should improve markedly from their 5-7 record a year ago. However, this Pitt team still holds a pretty solid talent advantage and should get the win at home.
Final score: Pitt 30, Syracuse 17 (Pitt 8-1, 4-1 in ACC)
What does the addition of Josh Gattis mean for Miami? - ACCSports.com (accsports.com; Geisinger)
Josh Gattis is back in the ACC. After three seasons with Michigan football, Gattis will head to Miami and become the program’s next offensive coordinator, replacing Rhett Lashlee. Gattis will also coach the wide receivers.
This is obviously a major get for first-year head coach Mario Cristobal. Gattis won the 2021 Broyles Award, honored as the top assistant coach in college football.
Back in early December, after much speculation, Cristobal was hired away from Oregon. For two months now, the program pushed forward without an offensive coordinator, although there seemed to be some potential last month with Kendal Briles.
Regardless, Diaz prioritized recruiting; he hit the ground running, both on the prep level and with graduate transfers. That patience paid off big time, too.
With Michigan uncertain about the status of head coach Jim Harbarugh — who interviewed for head coaching positions in the NFL with Miami and Minnesota — it seemed like Gattis had a chance to become the program’s next head coach. However, things shifted quickly with those two NFL positions; Harbaugh elected to return to Ann Arbor.
Now, Harbaugh must start back over — sans his ace offensive mind.
Gattis, 38, grew up in Durham — just off Tobacco Road. After a star-studded prep career, Gattis emerged as a key defensive star for Jim Grobe at Wake Forest. During the 2006 season, Gattis (82 tackles, five interceptions) helped power a defense that pushed Wake Forest to an ACC title.
Back in 2010, Gattis also spent a season as a graduate assistant for Butch Davis at North Carolina. Since then, he’s rapidly climbed the coaching ranks. In fact, Gattis was in consideration for the head coaching job at Virginia — before Tony Elliott finalized a deal.
During the 2021 season, Michigan shocked the college football landscape; the Wolverines boosted an electric rushing offense, which finished the year as the No. 16 in scoring offense (35.8 points per game). According to ESPN, Michigan ranked No. 8 nationally in adjusted offensive efficiency. Gattis is credited with modernizing Michigan’s offense.
...
Links, News and Rumors 2022-02-08 (RX; HM)
Links, News and Rumors 2022-02-08
The 2022 NFL Pro Bowl is over (last weekend), but Fox tweeted out this nice infographic:Virtually every ACC team was represented: Pitt, Louisville, NC State, Boston College, Clemson, Virginia Tech, Florida State, Notre Dame, Miami, Syracuse, North Carolina, even Duke. In fact, the only teams not represented were Georgia Tech, Virginia, and Wake Forest.
__________
I missed a couple of ACC alumni in the Winter Olympics because... they aren't playing for Team USA:
Add these two to all of the Boston College Ice Hockey players...
source: NCAA Sports: College Athletes at the 2022 Beijing Olympics
...
2022 FB Schedule FAQs (RX; HM)
2022 FB Schedule FAQs
From the official ACC release:The 2022 ACC Football Schedule: Notes and FAQs
Notes and FAQs about the making of the 2022 ACC Football Schedule:...
Best 2022 Recruiting Class by State (RX; HM)
Best 2022 Recruiting Class by State
Now that National Signing Day is past, here's a tweet from Saturday Gameday that shows the highest-ranked 2022 college football recruiting class by state:Quite a few of these are ACC teams! Here are the 10 states with an ACC member school in them...
| Best Class, ACC States | |
| State | Team |
| MA | Boston College |
| NY | Syracuse |
| PA | Penn State |
| IN | Notre Dame |
| KY | Kentucky |
| VA | Virginia Tech |
| NC | North Carolina |
| SC | Clemson |
| GA | Georgia |
| FL | Miami |
That's 6 of 9 (7 of 10 if we include Indiana) where one of the resident ACC teams had the best recruiting class in the state. Now, I'll admit that's expected in Massachusetts, New York, Virginia, and North Carolina, where there's no P5 competition. It's typical in Indiana and South Carolina as well. So, I guess what I'm saying is, the only real news here is Miami winning the state of Florida...
Kelly Gramlich and Eric Mac Lain talk ACC football - Gramlich and Mac Lain (M & G; podcast)
Episode 152: Senior Bowl Recap Part 3 -- Kenny Pickett & Sam Howell
https://accfootballrx.blogspot.com/2022/02/a-tale-of-two-2021-budgets.html (RX; HM)
A Tale of Two 2021 Budgets
One big-time, Big Ten school lost nearly $66 million in projected ticket sales for its football team because of the pandemic, while one of the bigger ACC schools fared much better...From SI: "Ohio State Athletic Department Reports Roughly $41 Million Deficit Amid Pandemic"
source: https://news.osu.edu/ohio-state-athletics-reports-financial-impact-of-covid-19-disruptions/
Ever heard the phrase "the bigger they are, the harder they fall?" Well that absolutely applied to college football teams with big stadiums during a pandemic. Especially when their conference didn't want to play a full season for television (like the Big Ten).
...
Other
The Syracuse Educational Opportunity Center wants to build a facility at 908 Montgomery St. in Syracuse to train workers for jobs in construction and other fields. This vacant commercial building on the property would be demolished. (Rick Moriarty | rmoriarty@syracuse.com)
https://www.syracuse.com/news/2022/...aining-site-but-will-ny-back-the-project.html (PS; Knauss)
City councilors today voted unanimously to approve $1.75 million for construction of a $10 million state-run workforce training center in Syracuse that would prepare people for construction jobs, commercial driving licenses and other trades.
The city’s financial commitment rounds out local funding totaling $3.3 million, which local officials hope the state university system will match two-to-one to make the project happen. At this point, however, the state funding is not assured, said Tim Penix, vice president of the Syracuse Educational Opportunity Center.
Penix said he hopes to learn this month whether the State University of New York will approve funding for the project.
The Educational Opportunity Center hopes to build a 12,000-square-foot training facility at 908 Montgomery St. and have it operating by the spring of 2023. The site is now occupied by a vacant commercial building that would be demolished.
Besides the city of Syracuse, Onondaga County officials have agreed to contribute $1.25 million. The private Allyn Family Foundation has promised $30,000.
The new training center would be down the street from the EOC’s existing training site at the corner of Montgomery and New streets, which is one of 10 centers operated by SUNY throughout the state that offer tuition-free college prep and vocational training services to adults in urban communities.
If it gets approved, the new facility would expand the EOC’s capacity to train people for jobs in the building trades, Penix said. Center officials plan to train at least 330 students a year to start, he said.
The project has taken on some urgency among local public officials because of the approaching reconstruction of Interstate 81, which will create hundreds of jobs in the area.
“We’re talking about a lot of potential employment opportunities,” Penix said.
...
