sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
- Joined
- Aug 15, 2011
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Welcome to National Fried Chicken Day!
Fried chicken, also known as Southern fried chicken, is eaten today. In order to make it, chicken is usually cut at the joints into smaller pieces, and the skin and bones are left on. It is coated in batter, which is made of ingredients such as eggs, milk, flour, and seasoning. It is then pan-fried, deep fried, or pressure fried in lard or oil. It ends up with a crisp or crunchy outside and a juicy inside.
The Scottish were the first Europeans to fry their chicken in fat, although they didn't use seasoning. Many ethnic groups in West Africa made seasoned fried chicken, that they battered and then cooked in palm oil. Today's fried chicken has its roots in the American South, where African Americans combined the frying techniques of the Scottish with the seasoning methods of West Africa.
SU News
Syracuse football: our way-too-early 2023 season projections (TNIAAM; Chiappone, Ostrowski & De Guzman)
Syracuse Orange football finished 7-6 last year, riding a hot 6-0 start and securing the team’s first bowl appearance since 2018 as well as a season-high ranking of 14th on the AP polls. SU is now looking to achieve back-to-back above-.500 seasons for the first time since 2012 and 2013.
With football’s return on the horizon, it’s time to look ahead and release our way-too-early projections for the upcoming season.
Mike, Christian and I are ranking each matchup with the following labels: Solid Win, Lean Win, Toss-up, Lean Loss and Solid Loss. Mike will soon go into greater detail and preview every opponent more in-depth. For now, here are our general game predictions for ‘Cuse:
Note: SP+ offensive and defensive rankings courtesy of ESPN. All over/under win totals courtesy of DraftKings. For context, Syracuse ranks 62nd in offensive SP and 43rd in defensive SP for the upcoming season and has an O/U of 6.5 wins. Also, keep in mind that the ACC is entering year one of the new schedule model.
Sept. 2: Home vs. Colgate (SP: N/A, O/U: N/A)
Dom (Solid Win): Compared to their basketball team in recent years, Colgate’s football team won’t come close to pulling off an unthinkable upset. No excuses for the Orange.
Mike (Solid Win): They’re not Wagner levels of pushover, but an FCS squad coming off a 3-8 season should be a cakewalk to start the year. Don’t play down to them.
Christian (Solid Win): Dino Babers’ first game in charge of Syracuse was against Colgate in 2016. It was the reveal of the “Orange is the new fast” offense, and this should serve as a good run through for Jason Beck’s offense and a retooled Rocky Long 3-3-5 defense.
Sept. 9: Home vs. Western Michigan (SP: N/A, O/U: 3.5)
Dom (Solid Win): Similar to 2021 and 2022, expect Syracuse to jump out to a comfortable 2-0 start with back-to-back home games to begin the year. From here, however, things get interesting.
Mike (Solid Win): Another game that should be pretty much decided by halftime - with or without LeQuint Allen on the field.
Christian (Solid Win): The only hope Western Michigan had was the power of Tim Lester. Now that he’s no longer there, it’s another tune-up game.
Sept. 16: Away vs. Purdue (Off. SP: 91st, Def. SP: 98th, O/U: 5.5)
Dom (Toss-up): No, this is isn’t the same Boilermakers squad that finished 8-4 last season, played in the Big Ten title game and secured a bowl game versus LSU. In fact, Purdue’s SP numbers are down from the top 50-60 range to the bottom of the top-100. But this is a road game and I’m factoring in the miraculous finish from the 2022 matchup, expecting the job to be more difficult given that context.
Mike (Lean Win): This Purdue team has a LOT of turnover and uncertainty entering the 2023 season. A true first-year head coach getting tossed into a primetime game will either make for a memorable first statement of his tenure or reinforce a learning curve. Experience says to go with the latter.
Christian (Toss-up): This is where we start to figure out where Syracuse’s offensive line is. If Garrett Shrader has time to throw or find a run, the Orange should grab a win. However, if the offensive line continues to perform like it did at the end of last season, the Syracuse defense is going to be on the field a lot.
Sept. 23: Home vs. Army (Off. SP: 94th, Def. SP: 88th, O/U: 6)
Dom (Lean Win): All signs are pointing to Syracuse having the better roster and higher odds of winning heading into this matchup. If Army’s defense plays near its 2022 marker (43rd in defensive SP), however, this could play out like a defensive slugfest similar to last year’s home game versus Virginia.
Mike (Lean Win): I would have called this a toss-up a few weeks ago, but that was before the NCAA banned cut blocks and Army did away with its signature triple-read option.
Christian (Lean Win): With the triple option no longer in play, the 3-3-5 should have an easier time bottling up Army.
Sept. 30: Home vs. Clemson (Off. SP: 65th, Def. SP: 34th, O/U: 10)
Dom (Toss-Up): Syracuse is 2-9 all-time versus Clemson and hasn’t won since that all-time home upset in 2017. In back-to-back seasons, however, the Orange have lost both matchups versus the Tigers by a combined nine points - including a heartbreaking loss last year. If any insane upset will happen for the Orange, this is the game for it to happen.
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Syracuse's Special Teams Must Be Special (orangefizz.net; Griffin)
During Syracuse’s 1-6 meltdown at the end of last season, there were many issues to blame. A lethargic run defense. Injuries. Lack of discipline. No reliable receivers behind Oronde Gadsden. As glaring as all of those are, one key aspect of football that the Orange failed in has been swept under the rug a bit. SU’s special teams down the stretch were not good at all, and it’s an issue that must be addressed quickly if Dino Babers hopes to get to a second consecutive bowl game.
Every aspect of special teams has to succeed for the unit to be considered a good one. Two issues in particular arose near the end of last season.
As things sit right now, Brady Denaburg is the primary candidate to take over for Szmyt. The Florida native was SU’s kickoff specialist down the stretch last season and has solid placekicking experience- he was a perfect 44-for-44 on PATs and hit a 57-yard FG as a senior in high school. There’s a lot of unfair pressure on Denaburg given who he is replacing, but he has to give the position something it simply did not have with Szmyt- consistency.
Starting with the punt return unit, flashback to the regular season finale in Chestnut Hill. Syracuse has lost five in a row, and is already down 3-0 after a strip sack on its first set of downs. The last thing you need is a blocked punt, and that’s exactly what happened. Boston College stormed through like it was nothing, and went up 10-0 because of it. The Orange wound up winning the game, but if something like that had happened against NC State or Purdue, a win was not in the cards.
You’d think SU would work to fix such issues come the Pinstripe Bowl, right? Well, Minnesota ran a kickoff to the Syracuse 25-yard line in the 3rd quarter and went on to score what wound up as the deciding touchdown. Head scratching, isn’t it?
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https://www.si.com/college/syracuse/recruiting/how-new-york-states-new-nil-law-impacts-syracuse (SI; McAllister)
New York State modified its NIL law and it appears to strip power from the NCAA. Here is how the modification reads:
(d) An athletic associated, conference or other group or organization with authority over intercollegiate athletics, including but not limited to the NCAA, shall not and shall not authorize its member institutions to:
(i) prevent a college from participation in intercollegiate athletics because a student-athlete in attendance has previously earned or intended to earn compensation for his or her name, image, or likeness;
(ii) entertain a complaint, open an investigation, or take any other adverse action against a college for engaging in any activity protected in this section or for involvement in a student-athlete's name, image, or likeness; or
(iii) penalize or prevent a college from participation in intercollegiate athletics because an individual or entity whose purpose includes supporting or benefitting the college or its athletic programs or student-athletes violates the collegiate athletic association's rules or regulations with regard to a student-athlete's name, image, or likeness.
All Syracuse spoke with a legal source in order to get further clarification on the impact of this modification.
"Just reading it on its face right now, it sounds like the NCAA can't do anything in New York to enforce anything having to do with NIL," the source said. "State law would trump any private regulations the NCAA has with its member schools in New York."
The source did indicate the NCAA could attempt to circumvent state law by bringing a case at the federal level in order to attempt to gain authority over punishing what it deems are violations of its rules. However, the source stated a federal NIL law would have to get passed in order to do that.
It is worth noting that the NCAA has lost every case related to student-athlete compensation, treatment and NIL that has been made its way to the Supreme Court. Could this mean the NCAA would shy away from taking cases to federal court?
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Tim Bourret "The 315" 7-5-23 (ESPN; radio; The 315)
Clemson Radio Network analyst Tim Bourret joins Brian Higgins to preview Tigers football as a part of Brian’s ongoing series going behind enemy lines to cover all of Syracuse football’s upcoming opponents.
Keeping Up With The 315 7-5-23 (ESPN; radio; The 315)
Brian Higgins begins the show with his understanding of New York’s new law which essentially renders the NCAA useless as it pertains to regulating NIL. Then, an ode to Joey Chestnut after the competitive eater won his 16th mustard belt this weekend scarfing down 62 Nathan’s hot dogs and buns on the 4th. Later, Brian’s thoughts on Yankees reliever Jimmy Cordero being suspended for the remainder of the MLB season.
30 Minutes In Orange Nation 7-5-23 (ESPN; radio; Orange Nation)
Steve and Paulie kick off the show with their thoughts on New York and other states declaring the NCAA may not penalize or investigate them for NIL-related actions and what may happen next. Later, Jordan joins the guys to discuss where Joey Chestnut’s accomplishments rank amongst those of more mainstream athletes before debating whether it would be easier to gain five yards in ten carries in an NFL game, or score 15 points in an NBA game.
After push from Syracuse, Hochul signs NIL bill that aims to weaken NCAA authority (PS; Carlson)
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a state law last week that makes it illegal for the NCAA to prohibit a New York school from facilitating name, image and likeness arrangements for its athletes and forbids the NCAA from punishing a New York school for any rule violation that involves an NIL deal.
Syracuse University pushed heavily for the law to be approved over the past two months, and the state joined Arkansas, Texas and Oklahoma in passing similar bills that create questions about how the NCAA will be able to enforce its own rules.
The NCAA has said that the flurry of state laws won’t stop it from enforcing its rules. It distributed a memo last week saying schools are expected to continue to follow them, even if state laws provide additional freedoms.
The memo said schools are members of the NCAA voluntarily and that if they don’t like the rules, they should seek to change them through the organization’s procedures.
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https://n./news/acc-spotlight-winners-and-losers-of-june-recruiting (r1vals.com; Gorney)
(The classification of Syracuse is non-sensical. Have to at least mention they added a 4 star QB. Need to change the 1 to an i to get the link work)
June is now the busiest month of the recruiting calendar and rivals the weeks leading up to signing day in December. There were 105 commitments for the 2024 class in the ACC alone last month and as part of a weeklong series looking at the winners and losers in each Power Five conference, we next move to the ACC.
Clemson only had five pledges but they’re all elite players. The Tigers beat Georgia and many others for high four-star linebacker Sammy Brown and went into Texas for elite four-star receiver Bryant Wesco. They also added WR Terrance Moore, DE Darien Mayo and DB Ricardo Jones in June.
No teams were busier in the ACC than Duke and Georgia Tech, which added 14 commitments each throughout the month. Four-star WR Koby Young from New Orleans (La.) Holy Cross and four-star DE Christopher Jackson out of Tucker, Ga., were the big victories for the Yellow Jackets. At Duke, four-star ATH Chase Tyler
was the biggest get of the month.
Boston College also deserves some praise for its June run. The Eagles added 12 of their 13 commitments last month and while they didn’t add any four-stars there were a bunch of high threes including TE Benjamin Blackburn, WR Josiah Martin
and ATH Desman Stephens.
Florida State had big-time visitors throughout the month. Lots of top prospects were in Tallahassee and it’s very likely many of them will join this recruiting class. But in the rarest of situations, the Seminoles were the only team in the ACC with zero commitments during June. Big names should be coming but when it came only to last month, zilch.
Wake Forest was not much busier when it came to pledges. The Demon Deacons already have 18 total pledges so that’s not bad but only two came in June – three-star offensive linemen Clinton Richard and Jack Hines.
Louisville didn’t make a ton of noise either with just four pledges although high three-star RB Duke Watson was a big addition.
Kevin Riley and TE Elija Lofton among their five pledges. The Hokies landed four-star Gabriel Williams and a host of high three-stars and the Panthers loaded up with nine pledges including four-star LB Cameron Lindsey from nearby Aliquippa, Pa.
Syracuse had a very busy month with 13 of its 16 commitments coming in June with TE Jamie Tremble and OL Willie Goodacre leading the way; Four-star all-purpose back Ronnie Royal leads five commitments for NC State; and Virginia had eight pledges but DE Chase Morrison is the lone high three-star.
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Cover 3 Summer School: Syracuse's season will be defined by a three-game stretch |College Football (youtube; podcast; Cover 3)
Cover 3 Summer School: Syracuse's season will be defined by a three-game stretch
Syracuse University Football Facility 1 - Virginia Mist | The Natural Slate & Quartzite Co., LLC (natslateandquartzite.com; photogallery)
Snyder’s Football Camp Helps ‘Give Back’ To Region Where He Grew Up, Thrived (P-J; Opinion)
Cole Snyder had a high school career full of highlights on Charles A. Lawson Field.
The Southwestern Central School alumni and current University at Buffalo starting quarterback will have one more on Saturday with the 2023 Cole Snyder 2023 Cecret Sauce Football Camp on his old high school field. Camp is for area youth between eighth and 12th grades.
In addition to Snyder, seven of his UB teammates will be at Southwestern on Saturday as well as John Kinder, a former Syracuse University quarterback who played under former NFL head coach Doug Marrone and current NFL offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett; current Southwestern coach Jake Burkholder, Alfred University linebackers coach Casey Williams and Southwestern track and field coach Lauren Swan.
“I really just wanted to give back to the community that raised me,” Snyder told The Post-Journal’s Matt Spielman last week. “I look back at my time going through high school and where I’m at now, and recognize all the people that helped me get to where I’m at … just helping me become a man. I’ve learned so much.”
Kudos to Snyder and his teammates for taking the time to spend the day working with the next generation of football players. It promises to be a day some of the area’s high school football players aren’t likely to forget — and hopefully one Snyder won’t forget anytime soon either.
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ACC News
1990 Article about Realignment (RX; HM)
1990 Article about Realignment
Here's a tweet I found interesting. It was posted in response to the question of "what triggered modern realignment"? Some point to the ACC inviting Miami and Virginia Tech, but that was a reactionto the moves which happened before, as mentioned in this long tweet (you'll need to be logged into twitter):
If you want to see the source article from the LA Times archive, here you go:
Conference Realignment Could Reshape College Athletics by Mark Maske, July 8, 1990
Here a couple of interesting tidbits [I've added bold to highlight key points]:
The OP was off on some of the timing, but he wasn't wrong about the end game.
FSU football: Where do FSU running backs rank in the ACC? (chopchat.com; Hunt)
We’ve discussed the FSU football secondary and offensive line with ESPN’s David Hale over the past few weeks.
He has both groups in the top tier of the ACC, but where does he rank FSU running backs?
I’m glad you asked.
FSU has had one of the best rushing attacks in the ACC during the Mike Norvell era, no matter the talent level at the position.
Hale went into detail on the position group on Twitter and provided the following nuggets and insight:
https://www.si.com/college/pittsburgh/football/pitt-panthers-espn-ranks-dbs-third-acc (SI; Thompson)
The Pitt Panthers will have one of the best defensive back units in the ACC next season if one ESPN analyst is right.
David Hale has helped lead coverage of ACC football for the better part of the last decade and he sees Pitt as a team with a top-tier unit of defensive backs. He ranked them third in the league, trailing only Florida State and NC State.
"Pitt led ACC in contested catch [percentage] and adjQBR and was second in adjusted completion percentage. [It returns] two really good veteran corners. The biggest question is whether they get the same production up front (second in pressured dropbacks)," Hale wrote on Twitter. "Still... Pitt had best QBR in the ACC by a wide margin when NOT getting pressure last year."
Each of the Panthers' three top cornerbacks - Marquis Williams, M.J. Devonshire and A.J. Woods - but does face some turnover at safety, where they will tap Donovan McMillon, P.J. O'Brien and Javon McIntyre to replace two multi-year starters in Erick Hallett and Brandon Hill.
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Clemson Football: 3 reasons the Tigers will make the playoff in 2023 (saturdayblitz.com; Newbold)
Clemson football finished 2022 with an 11-3 record and as ACC champions once again as they ran the table in conference play, but it was no doubt a disappointing season for Tiger fans as they have grown used to championship contention over the past few seasons.
Tiger Nation has been a bit spoiled the past few years with Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence under center leading to two national titles in a short span.
The transition from Lawrence to DJ Uiagalelei was a bumpy road for the Tigers. Thankfully, Cade Klubnik got the opportunity to show what he can do later in the season. Klubnik put together a couple of very impressive performances, and while his experience is little, the Tigers take some momentum and optimism about the potential of the offense into the 2023 season.
The ACC schedule has posed one or two challenges per year for Clemson over the past several seasons, and 2023 should be no different. Things seem to be lining up for Florida State to be a solid contender for an ACC title, and North Carolina brings a high-powered offense led by quarterback Drake Maye. South Carolina beat Clemson in a heartbreaker last season, and that will be the final game of the regular season. The Gamecocks will be tough again, and this game could be an important one for the Tigers to get.
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Is the Big Ten targeting ACC teams North Carolina and Miami? The latest reported CFB expansion news amid the arms race with SEC (sportskeeda.com; Pensabene)
The Big Ten has been one of the biggest college football conferences and is rumored to be linked with a few programs. The teams potentially trying to jump to a Power Five conference would be the Miami Hurricanes and the North Carolina Tar Heels.
What are the chances that one or even both programs will be joining the Big Ten as the conference tries to get to even footing with the Southeastern Conference? Let's dive into both teams and discuss the likelihood of the programs joining the conference soon.
Jim Williams @JWMediaDC
According to my contacts in the @SEC they would consider @FSU @ClemsonUniv & perhaps @UNC - but not @CanesFootball - TWO more Florida schools never happening. Miami, Virginia, GA Tech & Duke are schools better suited for the @bigten
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Notre Dame football show: Time to panic with Fighting Irish recruiting? (youtube.com; podcast; Notre Dame Football on Blue and Gold)
Notre Dame football show: Time to panic with Fighting Irish recruiting?
Pac-12 TV Contract Update 2023-July-6th (RX; HM)
Pac-12 TV Contract Update 2023-July-6th
The situation out West continues to deteriorate.
IMO, the ACC must be ready to add some of these teams - and should be offering Washington, Stanford, Oregon, and Arizona State a package deal to switch conferences RIGHT NOW!
2023 Media Days Calendar (RX; HM)
2023 Media Days Calendar
Conference Media Days begin next week, with the Big XII on deck first (July 12-13th). The SEC will dominate most of the third week, with the ACC and Big Ten splitting the headlines in the 4th. The Pac-12 only has one day set aside for football - typical. This calendar shows the P5, plus the G5, Media Days:
We'll have more details for ACC Media Days as they get closer. It's worth noting the number of days per conference gives what appears to be a football pecking order:
4 days: SEC
3 days: ACC
2 days: Big XII, Mtn West, American, Sun Belt, Big Ten.
1 day: MAC, Pac-12, C-USA
https://athlonsports.com/college-fo...l-dark-horse-conference-title-contenders-2023 *athlonsports.com; Lassan)
Preseason rankings, predictions and projections usually nail the top contenders and favorites prior to every college football season. However, with a sport as volatile as college football and the massive amount of roster movement now in the offseason, at least one or two surprise or dark horse teams will end up with a conference championship - or perhaps in the national championship like TCU.
With the season just over 50 days from kickoff, it's time to take a look at the 10 conferences and project which teams could be the biggest dark horse title contender for every league in '23:
The Panthers lost a couple of key pieces on defense (namely All-American tackle Calijah Kancey), but it's safe to assume coach Pat Narduzzi will find the right mix on this side of the ball to keep it among the best in the ACC.
Six starters return on offense, including three up front in the trenches and receivers Konata Mumpfield and Bub Means. Running back Israel Abanikanda (1,431 yards in '22) will be missed, but Rodney Hammond Jr. (460 yards on 109 carries) is a capable replacement. After stints at Notre Dame and Boston College, Pittsburgh native Phil Jurkovec returns home as the team's No. 1 quarterback. Can he elevate a passing game that was inconsistent throughout the '22 season?
NC State
Big changes are coming for NC State's offense after it averaged only 24.3 points a game last season. Coach Dave Doeren hired veteran play-caller Robert Anae (previously at Syracuse and Virginia) and landed transfer quarterback Brennan Armstrong (Virginia) from the portal to boost the '23 offense. Anae and Armstrong assembled one of the ACC's top offenses with the Cavaliers in '21. Doeren hopes to recreate that magic this fall in Raleigh.
NC State tied for the ACC lead in fewest points allowed (19.2) a game last season. Coordinator Tony Gibson has a few holes to fill with six starters returning. However, linebacker Payton Wilson passed on the NFL for one more year in Raleigh, and cornerback Aydan White is quietly among the best in college football. The pieces are in place to once again possess one of the ACC's top defenses.
The schedule also breaks in NC State's favor. Clemson, Notre Dame, Louisville, Miami, and North Carolina visit Carter-Finley Stadium.
Louisville
The Cardinals have a favorable schedule under new coach Jeff Brohm (no Clemson or Florida State) to contend for a spot in the ACC title game. The offense returns only three starters, but Brohm added a handful of impact transfers, including quarterback Jack Plummer and receiver Jamari Thrash. Six starters return from a defense that tied for first in the ACC in fewest points allowed (19.2) last fall.
The Red Raiders closed coach Joey McGuire's first season by winning their last four games in a solid 8-5 campaign last fall. The team returns 14 starters for a good mix of talent on both sides of the ball. If he can stay healthy, quarterback Tyler Shough should rank among the best in the Big 12. And as usual, Texas Tech doesn't lack for skill talent.
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Other
Burnet Road in Clay, New York, where the Micron fab will be built, is still rural—but that could soon change. KATE WARREN
The $100 billion bet that a postindustrial US city can reinvent itself as a high-tech hub (technologyreview.com; Rotman)
For now, the thousand acres that may well portend a more prosperous future for Syracuse, New York, and the surrounding towns are just a nondescript expanse of scrub, overgrown grass, and trees. But on a day in late April, a small drilling rig sits at the edge of the fields, taking soil samples. It’s the first sign of construction on what could become the largest semiconductor manufacturing facility in the United States.
Spring has finally come to upstate New York after a long, gray winter. A small tent is set up. A gaggle of local politicians mill around, including the county executive and the supervisor of the town of Clay, some 15 miles north of Syracuse, where the site is located. There are a couple of local news reporters. If you look closely, the large power lines that help make this land so valuable are visible just beyond a line of trees.
Then an oversize black SUV with the suits drives up, and out steps $100 billion.
The CHIPS and Science Act, passed last year with bipartisan congressional support, was widely viewed by industry leaders and politicians as a way to secure supply chains, bolster R&D spending, and make the United States competitive again in semiconductor chip manufacturing. But it also intends, at least according to the Biden administration, to create good jobs and, ultimately, widen economic prosperity.
Now Syracuse is about to become an economic test of whether, over the next several decades, the aggressive government policies—and the massive corporate investments they spur—can both boost the country’s manufacturing prowess and revitalize regions like upstate New York. It all begins with an astonishingly expensive and complex kind of factory called a chip fab.
Micron, a maker of memory chips based in Boise, Idaho, announced last fall that it plans to build up to four of these fabs, each costing roughly $25 billion, at the Clay site over the next 20 years. And on this April day, standing under the tent, CEO Sanjay Mehrotra conjures a vision for what the $100 billion investment will mean: “Imagine this site, which has nothing on it today, will have four major buildings 20 years from now. And each of these buildings will be the size of 10 football fields, so a total of 40 football fields worth of clean-room space.” The fabs will create 50,000 jobs in the region over time, including 9,000 at Micron, he has pledged—“so this is really going to be a major transformation for the community.”
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Fried chicken, also known as Southern fried chicken, is eaten today. In order to make it, chicken is usually cut at the joints into smaller pieces, and the skin and bones are left on. It is coated in batter, which is made of ingredients such as eggs, milk, flour, and seasoning. It is then pan-fried, deep fried, or pressure fried in lard or oil. It ends up with a crisp or crunchy outside and a juicy inside.
The Scottish were the first Europeans to fry their chicken in fat, although they didn't use seasoning. Many ethnic groups in West Africa made seasoned fried chicken, that they battered and then cooked in palm oil. Today's fried chicken has its roots in the American South, where African Americans combined the frying techniques of the Scottish with the seasoning methods of West Africa.
SU News
Syracuse football: our way-too-early 2023 season projections (TNIAAM; Chiappone, Ostrowski & De Guzman)
Syracuse Orange football finished 7-6 last year, riding a hot 6-0 start and securing the team’s first bowl appearance since 2018 as well as a season-high ranking of 14th on the AP polls. SU is now looking to achieve back-to-back above-.500 seasons for the first time since 2012 and 2013.
With football’s return on the horizon, it’s time to look ahead and release our way-too-early projections for the upcoming season.
Mike, Christian and I are ranking each matchup with the following labels: Solid Win, Lean Win, Toss-up, Lean Loss and Solid Loss. Mike will soon go into greater detail and preview every opponent more in-depth. For now, here are our general game predictions for ‘Cuse:
Note: SP+ offensive and defensive rankings courtesy of ESPN. All over/under win totals courtesy of DraftKings. For context, Syracuse ranks 62nd in offensive SP and 43rd in defensive SP for the upcoming season and has an O/U of 6.5 wins. Also, keep in mind that the ACC is entering year one of the new schedule model.
Sept. 2: Home vs. Colgate (SP: N/A, O/U: N/A)
Dom (Solid Win): Compared to their basketball team in recent years, Colgate’s football team won’t come close to pulling off an unthinkable upset. No excuses for the Orange.
Mike (Solid Win): They’re not Wagner levels of pushover, but an FCS squad coming off a 3-8 season should be a cakewalk to start the year. Don’t play down to them.
Christian (Solid Win): Dino Babers’ first game in charge of Syracuse was against Colgate in 2016. It was the reveal of the “Orange is the new fast” offense, and this should serve as a good run through for Jason Beck’s offense and a retooled Rocky Long 3-3-5 defense.
Sept. 9: Home vs. Western Michigan (SP: N/A, O/U: 3.5)
Dom (Solid Win): Similar to 2021 and 2022, expect Syracuse to jump out to a comfortable 2-0 start with back-to-back home games to begin the year. From here, however, things get interesting.
Mike (Solid Win): Another game that should be pretty much decided by halftime - with or without LeQuint Allen on the field.
Christian (Solid Win): The only hope Western Michigan had was the power of Tim Lester. Now that he’s no longer there, it’s another tune-up game.
Sept. 16: Away vs. Purdue (Off. SP: 91st, Def. SP: 98th, O/U: 5.5)
Dom (Toss-up): No, this is isn’t the same Boilermakers squad that finished 8-4 last season, played in the Big Ten title game and secured a bowl game versus LSU. In fact, Purdue’s SP numbers are down from the top 50-60 range to the bottom of the top-100. But this is a road game and I’m factoring in the miraculous finish from the 2022 matchup, expecting the job to be more difficult given that context.
Mike (Lean Win): This Purdue team has a LOT of turnover and uncertainty entering the 2023 season. A true first-year head coach getting tossed into a primetime game will either make for a memorable first statement of his tenure or reinforce a learning curve. Experience says to go with the latter.
Christian (Toss-up): This is where we start to figure out where Syracuse’s offensive line is. If Garrett Shrader has time to throw or find a run, the Orange should grab a win. However, if the offensive line continues to perform like it did at the end of last season, the Syracuse defense is going to be on the field a lot.
Sept. 23: Home vs. Army (Off. SP: 94th, Def. SP: 88th, O/U: 6)
Dom (Lean Win): All signs are pointing to Syracuse having the better roster and higher odds of winning heading into this matchup. If Army’s defense plays near its 2022 marker (43rd in defensive SP), however, this could play out like a defensive slugfest similar to last year’s home game versus Virginia.
Mike (Lean Win): I would have called this a toss-up a few weeks ago, but that was before the NCAA banned cut blocks and Army did away with its signature triple-read option.
Christian (Lean Win): With the triple option no longer in play, the 3-3-5 should have an easier time bottling up Army.
Sept. 30: Home vs. Clemson (Off. SP: 65th, Def. SP: 34th, O/U: 10)
Dom (Toss-Up): Syracuse is 2-9 all-time versus Clemson and hasn’t won since that all-time home upset in 2017. In back-to-back seasons, however, the Orange have lost both matchups versus the Tigers by a combined nine points - including a heartbreaking loss last year. If any insane upset will happen for the Orange, this is the game for it to happen.
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Syracuse's Special Teams Must Be Special (orangefizz.net; Griffin)
During Syracuse’s 1-6 meltdown at the end of last season, there were many issues to blame. A lethargic run defense. Injuries. Lack of discipline. No reliable receivers behind Oronde Gadsden. As glaring as all of those are, one key aspect of football that the Orange failed in has been swept under the rug a bit. SU’s special teams down the stretch were not good at all, and it’s an issue that must be addressed quickly if Dino Babers hopes to get to a second consecutive bowl game.
Every aspect of special teams has to succeed for the unit to be considered a good one. Two issues in particular arose near the end of last season.
KICKING
For as up-and-down as his tenure on the hill was, Andre Szmyt is a big loss. He’s a former Groza award winner who as good as singlehandedly won the Virginia game early in the season. However, in all four games in November, Szmyt missed at least one field goal. Two of those games were 10-point losses to Pitt and Wake Forest. If Szmyt had converted on his opportunities, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that those games take a different turn (not necessarily resulting in an Orange victory).As things sit right now, Brady Denaburg is the primary candidate to take over for Szmyt. The Florida native was SU’s kickoff specialist down the stretch last season and has solid placekicking experience- he was a perfect 44-for-44 on PATs and hit a 57-yard FG as a senior in high school. There’s a lot of unfair pressure on Denaburg given who he is replacing, but he has to give the position something it simply did not have with Szmyt- consistency.
RETURN DEFENSE
Make no mistake, this applies to both punts and kickoffs. Both units had severe lapses that can never ever happen at any stage of football.Starting with the punt return unit, flashback to the regular season finale in Chestnut Hill. Syracuse has lost five in a row, and is already down 3-0 after a strip sack on its first set of downs. The last thing you need is a blocked punt, and that’s exactly what happened. Boston College stormed through like it was nothing, and went up 10-0 because of it. The Orange wound up winning the game, but if something like that had happened against NC State or Purdue, a win was not in the cards.
You’d think SU would work to fix such issues come the Pinstripe Bowl, right? Well, Minnesota ran a kickoff to the Syracuse 25-yard line in the 3rd quarter and went on to score what wound up as the deciding touchdown. Head scratching, isn’t it?
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https://www.si.com/college/syracuse/recruiting/how-new-york-states-new-nil-law-impacts-syracuse (SI; McAllister)
New York State modified its NIL law and it appears to strip power from the NCAA. Here is how the modification reads:
(d) An athletic associated, conference or other group or organization with authority over intercollegiate athletics, including but not limited to the NCAA, shall not and shall not authorize its member institutions to:
(i) prevent a college from participation in intercollegiate athletics because a student-athlete in attendance has previously earned or intended to earn compensation for his or her name, image, or likeness;
(ii) entertain a complaint, open an investigation, or take any other adverse action against a college for engaging in any activity protected in this section or for involvement in a student-athlete's name, image, or likeness; or
(iii) penalize or prevent a college from participation in intercollegiate athletics because an individual or entity whose purpose includes supporting or benefitting the college or its athletic programs or student-athletes violates the collegiate athletic association's rules or regulations with regard to a student-athlete's name, image, or likeness.
All Syracuse spoke with a legal source in order to get further clarification on the impact of this modification.
"Just reading it on its face right now, it sounds like the NCAA can't do anything in New York to enforce anything having to do with NIL," the source said. "State law would trump any private regulations the NCAA has with its member schools in New York."
The source did indicate the NCAA could attempt to circumvent state law by bringing a case at the federal level in order to attempt to gain authority over punishing what it deems are violations of its rules. However, the source stated a federal NIL law would have to get passed in order to do that.
It is worth noting that the NCAA has lost every case related to student-athlete compensation, treatment and NIL that has been made its way to the Supreme Court. Could this mean the NCAA would shy away from taking cases to federal court?
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Tim Bourret "The 315" 7-5-23 (ESPN; radio; The 315)
Clemson Radio Network analyst Tim Bourret joins Brian Higgins to preview Tigers football as a part of Brian’s ongoing series going behind enemy lines to cover all of Syracuse football’s upcoming opponents.
Keeping Up With The 315 7-5-23 (ESPN; radio; The 315)
Brian Higgins begins the show with his understanding of New York’s new law which essentially renders the NCAA useless as it pertains to regulating NIL. Then, an ode to Joey Chestnut after the competitive eater won his 16th mustard belt this weekend scarfing down 62 Nathan’s hot dogs and buns on the 4th. Later, Brian’s thoughts on Yankees reliever Jimmy Cordero being suspended for the remainder of the MLB season.
30 Minutes In Orange Nation 7-5-23 (ESPN; radio; Orange Nation)
Steve and Paulie kick off the show with their thoughts on New York and other states declaring the NCAA may not penalize or investigate them for NIL-related actions and what may happen next. Later, Jordan joins the guys to discuss where Joey Chestnut’s accomplishments rank amongst those of more mainstream athletes before debating whether it would be easier to gain five yards in ten carries in an NFL game, or score 15 points in an NBA game.
After push from Syracuse, Hochul signs NIL bill that aims to weaken NCAA authority (PS; Carlson)
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a state law last week that makes it illegal for the NCAA to prohibit a New York school from facilitating name, image and likeness arrangements for its athletes and forbids the NCAA from punishing a New York school for any rule violation that involves an NIL deal.
Syracuse University pushed heavily for the law to be approved over the past two months, and the state joined Arkansas, Texas and Oklahoma in passing similar bills that create questions about how the NCAA will be able to enforce its own rules.
The NCAA has said that the flurry of state laws won’t stop it from enforcing its rules. It distributed a memo last week saying schools are expected to continue to follow them, even if state laws provide additional freedoms.
The memo said schools are members of the NCAA voluntarily and that if they don’t like the rules, they should seek to change them through the organization’s procedures.
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https://n./news/acc-spotlight-winners-and-losers-of-june-recruiting (r1vals.com; Gorney)
(The classification of Syracuse is non-sensical. Have to at least mention they added a 4 star QB. Need to change the 1 to an i to get the link work)
June is now the busiest month of the recruiting calendar and rivals the weeks leading up to signing day in December. There were 105 commitments for the 2024 class in the ACC alone last month and as part of a weeklong series looking at the winners and losers in each Power Five conference, we next move to the ACC.
Winners: North Carolina, Clemson, Duke, Georgia Tech, Boston College
North Carolina had a solid eight commitments in June, none bigger than flipping four-star defensive back Zion Ferguson from LSU and then adding four-star linebacker Ashton Woods out of Georgia as well. A few other high three-star defensive players jumped on board as well since scoring points hasn’t been an issue in Chapel Hill but stopping teams has been.Clemson only had five pledges but they’re all elite players. The Tigers beat Georgia and many others for high four-star linebacker Sammy Brown and went into Texas for elite four-star receiver Bryant Wesco. They also added WR Terrance Moore, DE Darien Mayo and DB Ricardo Jones in June.
No teams were busier in the ACC than Duke and Georgia Tech, which added 14 commitments each throughout the month. Four-star WR Koby Young from New Orleans (La.) Holy Cross and four-star DE Christopher Jackson out of Tucker, Ga., were the big victories for the Yellow Jackets. At Duke, four-star ATH Chase Tyler
was the biggest get of the month.
Boston College also deserves some praise for its June run. The Eagles added 12 of their 13 commitments last month and while they didn’t add any four-stars there were a bunch of high threes including TE Benjamin Blackburn, WR Josiah Martin
and ATH Desman Stephens.
*****
Losers: Florida State, Wake Forest, Louisville
Florida State had big-time visitors throughout the month. Lots of top prospects were in Tallahassee and it’s very likely many of them will join this recruiting class. But in the rarest of situations, the Seminoles were the only team in the ACC with zero commitments during June. Big names should be coming but when it came only to last month, zilch.
Wake Forest was not much busier when it came to pledges. The Demon Deacons already have 18 total pledges so that’s not bad but only two came in June – three-star offensive linemen Clinton Richard and Jack Hines.
Louisville didn’t make a ton of noise either with just four pledges although high three-star RB Duke Watson was a big addition.
*****
Holding steady: Pittsburgh, Miami, Virginia Tech, Syracuse, NC State, Virginia
An argument could be made for Miami, Pitt and Virginia Tech to be on the winners list since the Hurricanes added four-star commitments from RBKevin Riley and TE Elija Lofton among their five pledges. The Hokies landed four-star Gabriel Williams and a host of high three-stars and the Panthers loaded up with nine pledges including four-star LB Cameron Lindsey from nearby Aliquippa, Pa.
Syracuse had a very busy month with 13 of its 16 commitments coming in June with TE Jamie Tremble and OL Willie Goodacre leading the way; Four-star all-purpose back Ronnie Royal leads five commitments for NC State; and Virginia had eight pledges but DE Chase Morrison is the lone high three-star.
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Cover 3 Summer School: Syracuse's season will be defined by a three-game stretch |College Football (youtube; podcast; Cover 3)
Cover 3 Summer School: Syracuse's season will be defined by a three-game stretch
Syracuse University Football Facility 1 - Virginia Mist | The Natural Slate & Quartzite Co., LLC (natslateandquartzite.com; photogallery)
Snyder’s Football Camp Helps ‘Give Back’ To Region Where He Grew Up, Thrived (P-J; Opinion)
Cole Snyder had a high school career full of highlights on Charles A. Lawson Field.
The Southwestern Central School alumni and current University at Buffalo starting quarterback will have one more on Saturday with the 2023 Cole Snyder 2023 Cecret Sauce Football Camp on his old high school field. Camp is for area youth between eighth and 12th grades.
In addition to Snyder, seven of his UB teammates will be at Southwestern on Saturday as well as John Kinder, a former Syracuse University quarterback who played under former NFL head coach Doug Marrone and current NFL offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett; current Southwestern coach Jake Burkholder, Alfred University linebackers coach Casey Williams and Southwestern track and field coach Lauren Swan.
“I really just wanted to give back to the community that raised me,” Snyder told The Post-Journal’s Matt Spielman last week. “I look back at my time going through high school and where I’m at now, and recognize all the people that helped me get to where I’m at … just helping me become a man. I’ve learned so much.”
Kudos to Snyder and his teammates for taking the time to spend the day working with the next generation of football players. It promises to be a day some of the area’s high school football players aren’t likely to forget — and hopefully one Snyder won’t forget anytime soon either.
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ACC News
1990 Article about Realignment (RX; HM)
1990 Article about Realignment
Here's a tweet I found interesting. It was posted in response to the question of "what triggered modern realignment"? Some point to the ACC inviting Miami and Virginia Tech, but that was a reactionto the moves which happened before, as mentioned in this long tweet (you'll need to be logged into twitter):
If you want to see the source article from the LA Times archive, here you go:
Conference Realignment Could Reshape College Athletics by Mark Maske, July 8, 1990
Here a couple of interesting tidbits [I've added bold to highlight key points]:
The OP was off on some of the timing, but he wasn't wrong about the end game.
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FSU football: Where do FSU running backs rank in the ACC? (chopchat.com; Hunt)
We’ve discussed the FSU football secondary and offensive line with ESPN’s David Hale over the past few weeks.
He has both groups in the top tier of the ACC, but where does he rank FSU running backs?
I’m glad you asked.
FSU has had one of the best rushing attacks in the ACC during the Mike Norvell era, no matter the talent level at the position.
Hale went into detail on the position group on Twitter and provided the following nuggets and insight:
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https://www.si.com/college/pittsburgh/football/pitt-panthers-espn-ranks-dbs-third-acc (SI; Thompson)
The Pitt Panthers will have one of the best defensive back units in the ACC next season if one ESPN analyst is right.
David Hale has helped lead coverage of ACC football for the better part of the last decade and he sees Pitt as a team with a top-tier unit of defensive backs. He ranked them third in the league, trailing only Florida State and NC State.
"Pitt led ACC in contested catch [percentage] and adjQBR and was second in adjusted completion percentage. [It returns] two really good veteran corners. The biggest question is whether they get the same production up front (second in pressured dropbacks)," Hale wrote on Twitter. "Still... Pitt had best QBR in the ACC by a wide margin when NOT getting pressure last year."
Each of the Panthers' three top cornerbacks - Marquis Williams, M.J. Devonshire and A.J. Woods - but does face some turnover at safety, where they will tap Donovan McMillon, P.J. O'Brien and Javon McIntyre to replace two multi-year starters in Erick Hallett and Brandon Hill.
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Clemson Football: 3 reasons the Tigers will make the playoff in 2023 (saturdayblitz.com; Newbold)
Clemson football finished 2022 with an 11-3 record and as ACC champions once again as they ran the table in conference play, but it was no doubt a disappointing season for Tiger fans as they have grown used to championship contention over the past few seasons.
Tiger Nation has been a bit spoiled the past few years with Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence under center leading to two national titles in a short span.
The transition from Lawrence to DJ Uiagalelei was a bumpy road for the Tigers. Thankfully, Cade Klubnik got the opportunity to show what he can do later in the season. Klubnik put together a couple of very impressive performances, and while his experience is little, the Tigers take some momentum and optimism about the potential of the offense into the 2023 season.
The ACC schedule has posed one or two challenges per year for Clemson over the past several seasons, and 2023 should be no different. Things seem to be lining up for Florida State to be a solid contender for an ACC title, and North Carolina brings a high-powered offense led by quarterback Drake Maye. South Carolina beat Clemson in a heartbreaker last season, and that will be the final game of the regular season. The Gamecocks will be tough again, and this game could be an important one for the Tigers to get.
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Is the Big Ten targeting ACC teams North Carolina and Miami? The latest reported CFB expansion news amid the arms race with SEC (sportskeeda.com; Pensabene)
The Big Ten has been one of the biggest college football conferences and is rumored to be linked with a few programs. The teams potentially trying to jump to a Power Five conference would be the Miami Hurricanes and the North Carolina Tar Heels.
What are the chances that one or even both programs will be joining the Big Ten as the conference tries to get to even footing with the Southeastern Conference? Let's dive into both teams and discuss the likelihood of the programs joining the conference soon.
The Big Ten will end up adding one team
With the ideology of trying to be on equal footing with the SEC, the Big Ten is going to look to add some programs in order to improve their standings in the eyes of college football. With the Miami Hurricanes and the North Carolina Tar Heels potentially on the verge of changing from the ACC to a Power Five conference, the need to land at least one program is there.Jim Williams @JWMediaDC
According to my contacts in the @SEC they would consider @FSU @ClemsonUniv & perhaps @UNC - but not @CanesFootball - TWO more Florida schools never happening. Miami, Virginia, GA Tech & Duke are schools better suited for the @bigten
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Notre Dame football show: Time to panic with Fighting Irish recruiting? (youtube.com; podcast; Notre Dame Football on Blue and Gold)
Notre Dame football show: Time to panic with Fighting Irish recruiting?
Pac-12 TV Contract Update 2023-July-6th (RX; HM)
Pac-12 TV Contract Update 2023-July-6th
The situation out West continues to deteriorate.
IMO, the ACC must be ready to add some of these teams - and should be offering Washington, Stanford, Oregon, and Arizona State a package deal to switch conferences RIGHT NOW!
2023 Media Days Calendar (RX; HM)
2023 Media Days Calendar
Conference Media Days begin next week, with the Big XII on deck first (July 12-13th). The SEC will dominate most of the third week, with the ACC and Big Ten splitting the headlines in the 4th. The Pac-12 only has one day set aside for football - typical. This calendar shows the P5, plus the G5, Media Days:
| JULY 2023 | ||||||
| MON | TUE | WED | THU | FRI | SAT | SUN |
| 1 | 2 | |||||
| Realignment Day | ||||||
| 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| Independence Day | ||||||
| 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| Big XII | Big XII | |||||
| 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
| SEC | SEC | SEC MWC | SEC MWC MAC | Pac-12 | ||
| 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
American | ACC American C-USA SBC | ACC B1G SBC | ACC B1G | |||
| 31 | ||||||
| . |
We'll have more details for ACC Media Days as they get closer. It's worth noting the number of days per conference gives what appears to be a football pecking order:
4 days: SEC
3 days: ACC
2 days: Big XII, Mtn West, American, Sun Belt, Big Ten.
1 day: MAC, Pac-12, C-USA
https://athlonsports.com/college-fo...l-dark-horse-conference-title-contenders-2023 *athlonsports.com; Lassan)
Preseason rankings, predictions and projections usually nail the top contenders and favorites prior to every college football season. However, with a sport as volatile as college football and the massive amount of roster movement now in the offseason, at least one or two surprise or dark horse teams will end up with a conference championship - or perhaps in the national championship like TCU.
With the season just over 50 days from kickoff, it's time to take a look at the 10 conferences and project which teams could be the biggest dark horse title contender for every league in '23:
College Football's Dark Horse Conference Title Contenders for 2023
ACC
PittThe Panthers lost a couple of key pieces on defense (namely All-American tackle Calijah Kancey), but it's safe to assume coach Pat Narduzzi will find the right mix on this side of the ball to keep it among the best in the ACC.
Six starters return on offense, including three up front in the trenches and receivers Konata Mumpfield and Bub Means. Running back Israel Abanikanda (1,431 yards in '22) will be missed, but Rodney Hammond Jr. (460 yards on 109 carries) is a capable replacement. After stints at Notre Dame and Boston College, Pittsburgh native Phil Jurkovec returns home as the team's No. 1 quarterback. Can he elevate a passing game that was inconsistent throughout the '22 season?
NC State
Big changes are coming for NC State's offense after it averaged only 24.3 points a game last season. Coach Dave Doeren hired veteran play-caller Robert Anae (previously at Syracuse and Virginia) and landed transfer quarterback Brennan Armstrong (Virginia) from the portal to boost the '23 offense. Anae and Armstrong assembled one of the ACC's top offenses with the Cavaliers in '21. Doeren hopes to recreate that magic this fall in Raleigh.
NC State tied for the ACC lead in fewest points allowed (19.2) a game last season. Coordinator Tony Gibson has a few holes to fill with six starters returning. However, linebacker Payton Wilson passed on the NFL for one more year in Raleigh, and cornerback Aydan White is quietly among the best in college football. The pieces are in place to once again possess one of the ACC's top defenses.
The schedule also breaks in NC State's favor. Clemson, Notre Dame, Louisville, Miami, and North Carolina visit Carter-Finley Stadium.
Louisville
The Cardinals have a favorable schedule under new coach Jeff Brohm (no Clemson or Florida State) to contend for a spot in the ACC title game. The offense returns only three starters, but Brohm added a handful of impact transfers, including quarterback Jack Plummer and receiver Jamari Thrash. Six starters return from a defense that tied for first in the ACC in fewest points allowed (19.2) last fall.
Big 12
Texas TechThe Red Raiders closed coach Joey McGuire's first season by winning their last four games in a solid 8-5 campaign last fall. The team returns 14 starters for a good mix of talent on both sides of the ball. If he can stay healthy, quarterback Tyler Shough should rank among the best in the Big 12. And as usual, Texas Tech doesn't lack for skill talent.
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Other
Burnet Road in Clay, New York, where the Micron fab will be built, is still rural—but that could soon change. KATE WARREN
The $100 billion bet that a postindustrial US city can reinvent itself as a high-tech hub (technologyreview.com; Rotman)
For now, the thousand acres that may well portend a more prosperous future for Syracuse, New York, and the surrounding towns are just a nondescript expanse of scrub, overgrown grass, and trees. But on a day in late April, a small drilling rig sits at the edge of the fields, taking soil samples. It’s the first sign of construction on what could become the largest semiconductor manufacturing facility in the United States.
Spring has finally come to upstate New York after a long, gray winter. A small tent is set up. A gaggle of local politicians mill around, including the county executive and the supervisor of the town of Clay, some 15 miles north of Syracuse, where the site is located. There are a couple of local news reporters. If you look closely, the large power lines that help make this land so valuable are visible just beyond a line of trees.
Then an oversize black SUV with the suits drives up, and out steps $100 billion.
The CHIPS and Science Act, passed last year with bipartisan congressional support, was widely viewed by industry leaders and politicians as a way to secure supply chains, bolster R&D spending, and make the United States competitive again in semiconductor chip manufacturing. But it also intends, at least according to the Biden administration, to create good jobs and, ultimately, widen economic prosperity.
Now Syracuse is about to become an economic test of whether, over the next several decades, the aggressive government policies—and the massive corporate investments they spur—can both boost the country’s manufacturing prowess and revitalize regions like upstate New York. It all begins with an astonishingly expensive and complex kind of factory called a chip fab.
Micron, a maker of memory chips based in Boise, Idaho, announced last fall that it plans to build up to four of these fabs, each costing roughly $25 billion, at the Clay site over the next 20 years. And on this April day, standing under the tent, CEO Sanjay Mehrotra conjures a vision for what the $100 billion investment will mean: “Imagine this site, which has nothing on it today, will have four major buildings 20 years from now. And each of these buildings will be the size of 10 football fields, so a total of 40 football fields worth of clean-room space.” The fabs will create 50,000 jobs in the region over time, including 9,000 at Micron, he has pledged—“so this is really going to be a major transformation for the community.”
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