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Syracuse Presents 2021 Team Awards - Syracuse University Athletics
Members of the 2021 Orange football team came together one final time this season on Sunday night at Drumlins Country Club for the Syracuse Football Banquet.
Members of the 2021 Orange football team came together one final time this season on Sunday night at Drumlins Country Club for the Syracuse Football Banquet.
The evening included a recognition of seniors who exhausted their eligibility or have decided to conclude their collegiate career after obtaining their degrees. That group included a number of fan favorites, as those honored were: Airon Servais, Josh Black, McKinley Williams, Kingsley Jonathan, Cody Roscoe, Andre Szmyt, Abdul Adams and Erik Slater.
'Cuse also presented its annual team awards. Star running back Sean Tucker came away with the most prestigious honor of the night, as he was named the Bill Horr Most Valuable Player Award. His breakout campaign saw him break a 42-year rushing record that was previously held by the great Joe Morris. Tucker was also honored earlier in the evening with the Mark Hoffman Award, presented to the team's most outstanding back.
The 2020 recipient of the team's MVP award was a fellow First Team All-ACC selection this year – linebacker Mikel Jones – meaning each of the last two MVPs can return for 2021, continuing the nucleus of talent the Orange can build around. Jones was honored on Sunday with the Thomas S. Pirro Award for character and coachability.
Kingsley Jonathan, who has been a CoSIDA Academic All-American and was the 2020 recipient of the ACC's Jim Tatum Award among many other honors in his time at Syracuse, added to his impressive trophy case on Sunday with the Joseph Alexander Award for excellence in football, scholarship and citizenship.
He was the first of four offensive linemen honored in the evening. Cody Roscoe earned the Tim Green Award, which goes to the program's most outstanding defensive lineman. Roscoe was a First Team All-ACC selection last week.
Josh Black won the Coach Mac Award, which goes to the individual who represents the football program and University with class, professionalism, passion, and intensity, and whose effort on the field have been an inspiration to those around him.
McKinley Williams was given the Duffy Daugherty Award for the "Player's Player and the Coach's Coach."
The running back room was the other big winner on the night. In addition to Tucker's two awards, Cooper Lutz and Adams both took home some hardware. Lutz, the Orange's special teams captain and leading special teams tackler was presented with the Joe Szombathy Special Teams Award for the team's most outstanding special teams performer.
Adams was presented with the Jim Darin Award for a player who shows extraordinary courage in overcoming significant obstacles, injury, illness or personal tragedy. Adams lost a close family member who played a major role in raising him last year. He needed to spend some time away from the program to handle funeral arrangements and personal matters before returning for fall camp. With a limited role out of the backfield after Tucker's emergence, he spent the year as a key contributor on special teams and was a great teammate.
Airon Servais was presented with the Ray Martino Award for loyalty, perseverance and enthusiasm. Servais concluded his career with 60-straight starts on the offensive line. A true team player, he switched positions three separate times in his career, most recently moving back to center. He also battled through injury to be one-of-two linemen to start every game this season, where they paved the way for the Orange's prolific rushing attack.
Matthew Bergeron was named the Bill Maxwell Award winner as the most improved offensive player. Bergeron started all-12 games at left tackle and graded out as the team's best offensive lineman this season. The Orange averaged over four yards per carry in rushes off his side of the line, which led the ACC for any left tackle according to ESPN's advanced stats.
The defense's most improved player was a wide receiver a little more than a year ago. Justin Barron switched to defensive back and eventually took over the starting job at rover this season. For that, he was awarded the Ted Dailey Award.
Fellow safety Eric Coley was named the Pat Miller Award recipient. That award is presented to a player who is an outstanding athlete, student and citizen. This award is given to the 'total package' student-athlete - a loyal and dedicated teammate who excels in the classroom and is a selfless contributor in his community.
Garrett Williams wrapped up the run of defensive backs to win awards when he earned the Ben Schwartzwalder Award, presented to an exemplary football player whose leadership skills and on-field production embody the hard-nosed approach of the program. Williams battled injuries at different times this year, sidelining him for a pair of games, but he still managed to lead the ACC with 10 pass breakups and was the team's leading tackler out of the secondary with 52 tackles and 5.0 tackles for loss.
The evening concluded with a final thank you to the 'super seniors' from head coach Dino Babers. Coach Babers has consistently referred to that group's decision to return as providing 'the bridge' needed for the program's young talent to mature.
