2023 Fall Ball | Page 9 | Syracusefan.com

2023 Fall Ball

Powellfan said:
Breakdown of who played against who on Saturday, based on the photos from Rich Barns.

Against Providence
Attack: Erlbeck, Thomson, Hiltz
Midfield 1: Rhoa, Stevens, Birtwistle
Midfield 2: Cordes, Borges, White
F/O: Richiusa
SSDM: Rice, Titus, LeVine
LSM: Wright, Drago
Defense: Dwan, Figueiras, Beck
Goalie: Ippoliti

Against UMass
Attack: Joey Spallina, Deere, Mule
Midfield 1: Leo, English, Thomson
Midfield 2: McCarthy, Hottle, Tenaglia
F/O: Gibbs?
SSDM: Rosa, Kempney, Jake Spallina
LSM: Olexo, Sageder, Page
Defense: Kol, Caccamo, Kuczynki
Goalie: McCool

Notes – Gibbs is a guess based on observations from other posters. I guessed on who played attack vs midfield and LSM vs close defense. It does look like Thomson played attack vs Providence and midfield against UMass, and it looks like he was the only guy to play both games (based on pictures at least). It looks like Page played some with a long stick and some with a shorty against UMass.

If I had to guess it looks like Ippoliti is either second or third string, jumping a few veteran goalies. I have to imagine more guys played than listed above, these were just the ones captured on camera – for instance I’ve seen footage of Hunter playing some offense, and obviously Kellogg assists Rhoa in one of the video clips. Looking at midfield pairings, I am wondering if those are the projected groupings, if they were to combine the first lines from each group.
Expand...
Re: Gibbs;

Perhaps it was the touted freshmen Mullens?
 
Great comments from Gait and the players. Some encouraging thoughts on coach Odierna from everyone who talks about him.

This was maybe obvious but Mule confirms that Cole Kirst was a big part of his decision to come here. Can’t think of a better experience with a one year transfer than Cole Kirst. Just perfect both on and off the field. He will be missed greatly.
 
Interesting comment about Saam moving back up to LSM. Had kind of assumed they would keep him down at close with the transfers coming in. Hopefully that is a sign they are comfortable with the guys they have at close. Not really sure how they manage the depth at LSM now.
 
JDOrange said:
Interesting comment about Saam moving back up to LSM. Had kind of assumed they would keep him down at close with the transfers coming in. Hopefully that is a sign they are comfortable with the guys they have at close. Not really sure how they manage the depth at LSM now.
Expand...
Is the depth chart something like:
1a Olexo
1b Wright
2 Schmitt

Sageder is listed at SSDM. Not sure where Clary fits. He was the backup LSM behind Brett Kennedy in 2021, I think.
 
Gait's comments about Will Mark not being injured and watching from the sidelines seemed a bit vague? Anybody have any color??
 
Cuse All-In said:
Gait's comments about Will Mark not being injured and watching from the sidelines seemed a bit vague? Anybody have any color??
Expand...

Just a guess but perhaps it’s an eligibility issue? He didn’t play last fall for the same reason I believe.
 
ohmilax34 said:
Is the depth chart something like:
1a Olexo
1b Wright
2 Schmitt

Sageder is listed at SSDM. Not sure where Clary fits. He was the backup LSM behind Brett Kennedy in 2021, I think.
Expand...

That would be my guess. I like Olexo down low but he’s really good in transition. He and Wright would have to be one of the best combos in the county if they are indeed the top two.

I haven’t heard anything about Schmitt nor have I seen him in any pictures from practice. Is he hurt? I saw pictures of Sageder with a long pole in the scrimmages. His listing on the roster may be a typo. If I am not mistaken I think Drago has been having a good fall camp. No idea where this leaves players like Clary or Caccamo who played LSM when Olexo moved down low last year.
 
Powellfan said:
That would be my guess. I like Olexo down low but he’s really good in transition. He and Wright would have to be one of the best combos in the county if they are indeed the top two.

I haven’t heard anything about Schmitt nor have I seen him in any pictures from practice. Is he hurt? I saw pictures of Sageder with a long pole in the scrimmages. His listing on the roster may be a typo. If I am not mistaken I think Drago has been having a good fall camp. No idea where this leaves players like Clary or Caccamo who played LSM when Olexo moved down low last year.
Expand...
None of the defensive players really know where they stand as far as the depth chart. Sounded like Gait knows but hasn’t revealed. Other than Saam.
 
Last edited:
Powellfan said:
That would be my guess. I like Olexo down low but he’s really good in transition. He and Wright would have to be one of the best combos in the county if they are indeed the top two.

I haven’t heard anything about Schmitt nor have I seen him in any pictures from practice. Is he hurt? I saw pictures of Sageder with a long pole in the scrimmages. His listing on the roster may be a typo. If I am not mistaken I think Drago has been having a good fall camp. No idea where this leaves players like Clary or Caccamo who played LSM when Olexo moved down low last year.
Expand...

Very interesting that Saam is playing LSM, thought for sure he would stay at close. Not sure I'm totally buying it especially with Wright and Schmitt in the fold. Seems highly unlikely all 3 will play at LSM this year. We know Dwan and Riley are starters for sure at close, 3rd spot seems like a toss up between Caccamo, the D3 pole, Clary and Kol. Maybe I'm missing something but I'm hard-pressed to see all three of those elite LSMs staying strictly at lsm. Someone seems destined to move down.

Drago having a good fall would be nice, hes had some injury troubles here and struggled to stay healthy and productive. Would be good to see him battle for PT and be able to secure a high end spot once Saam, Schmitt and Wright all graduate after this season.
 
JeremyCuse said:
Very interesting that Saam is playing LSM, thought for sure he would stay at close. Not sure I'm totally buying it especially with Wright and Schmitt in the fold. Seems highly unlikely all 3 will play at LSM this year. We know Dwan and Riley are starters for sure at close, 3rd spot seems like a toss up between Caccamo, the D3 pole, Clary and Kol. Maybe I'm missing something but I'm hard-pressed to see all three of those elite LSMs staying strictly at lsm. Someone seems destined to move down.

Drago having a good fall would be nice, hes had some injury troubles here and struggled to stay healthy and productive. Would be good to see him battle for PT and be able to secure a high end spot once Saam, Schmitt and Wright all graduate after this season.
Expand...
Could get some of those guys in on a Mandown unit that doesn’t necessarily include starters.
 
DMVCuseLax said:
None of the defensive players really know where they stand as far as the depth chart. Sounded like Gait knows but hasn’t revealed. Other than Saam.
Expand...

It sounds like Figueiras is in a good spot. Gait said it was Riley who allowed them to move Olexo back to LSM. I assume that means he'll be the alpha defender guarding the other teams best player. After that I am guessing it's a toss up.

I think a majority of the guys on the team are primarily known as off-ball defenders. Dwan is a really good communicator and can slide very well, I think IL named him the best off-ball player in his class when he came out of Loyola. Caccamo made a living two years ago picking off passes, about two per game. He was bumped last year when Clary was hurt and looked out of sorts at LSM. Kol was the teams third defender last year, though I thought he struggled down the stretch last year. He is a captain though.

Beck, Witherspoon, Fraterrigo and Puckhabor are all massive, 6'4 and over 220. Frat saw some starting minutes two years ago but struggled in a game against UVA and never really saw the field again. I believe he was injured last year. Beck served as a man-down specialist last year. I imagine if they do employ a man-down only player, it will be one of the big guys. Clary of course was the #1 defender to start last year, but lost his spot in the last game of the season when he struggled mightily against Brennan O'Neil.

If I had to guess I think it will be Figueiras, Dwan and Kol. Thought it was interesting that Mark said a lot of the younger players looked rejuvenated under Oderina, and looked a lot better this fall as opposed to last year. Wouldn't surprise me with a new coach, someone we haven't thought a lot about makes a breakthrough.
 
Powellfan said:
It sounds like Figueiras is in a good spot. Gait said it was Riley who allowed them to move Olexo back to LSM. I assume that means he'll be the alpha defender guarding the other teams best player. After that I am guessing it's a toss up.

I think a majority of the guys on the team are primarily known as off-ball defenders. Dwan is a really good communicator and can slide very well, I think IL named him the best off-ball player in his class when he came out of Loyola. Caccamo made a living two years ago picking off passes, about two per game. He was bumped last year when Clary was hurt and looked out of sorts at LSM. Kol was the teams third defender last year, though I thought he struggled down the stretch last year. He is a captain though.

Beck, Witherspoon, Fraterrigo and Puckhabor are all massive, 6'4 and over 220. Frat saw some starting minutes two years ago but struggled in a game against UVA and never really saw the field again. I believe he was injured last year. Beck served as a man-down specialist last year. I imagine if they do employ a man-down only player, it will be one of the big guys. Clary of course was the #1 defender to start last year, but lost his spot in the last game of the season when he struggled mightily against Brennan O'Neil.

If I had to guess I think it will be Figueiras, Dwan and Kol. Thought it was interesting that Mark said a lot of the younger players looked rejuvenated under Oderina, and looked a lot better this fall as opposed to last year. Wouldn't surprise me with a new coach, someone we haven't thought a lot about makes a breakthrough.
Expand...
I agree that Figgy, Dwan and Kol are the front runners. I'm a big Dwan fan. I loved watching him play offball last spring. I think he's so smart and he takes care of the ball on clears. I'm not sleeping on Kuczynski or Caccamo. ACC teams have two good attack dodgers these days. If Figgy is guarding McAdorey or Shellenberger, who's guarding O'Neill or UVA's 2nd dodger. UNC has Duffy, McGovern and Tillman. Can Kol cover well enough? Clary can cover, but he looked lost in the team D at times last season. Can Odierna unlock him.

I remember the Syracuse defenses in the recent past had a great cover guy like Mellen or Firman, an off-ball defender like Bomberry or Sean Young and a 3rd guy who kinda came out of nowhere to start, like Jay McDermott and Marcus Cunningham. It seems for that middle guy being able to be part of the slide package but also cover well were important. Being able to cover well after being part of the slide package is tricky and maybe those guys thrived in that role. When is Donny Scott supposed to be available. I wouldn't be surprised if he thrived in this role.

If more defenders are playing well now under Odierna than they were under Petro, I think that tells us A LOT. I know the guys liked Petro, but if Odierna can unlock more players, the team will be a lot better. If the team has more players who can fill roles, they can put the best players on the field and not just the ones who can execute Petro's defense.

I also like the numbers at SSDM. It's important to have depth there and to keep guys fresh. It looks like Blake Borges is playing SSDM based on the Rich Barnes photos.
 
ohmilax34 said:
I agree that Figgy, Dwan and Kol are the front runners. I'm a big Dwan fan. I loved watching him play offball last spring. I think he's so smart and he takes care of the ball on clears. I'm not sleeping on Kuczynski or Caccamo. ACC teams have two good attack dodgers these days. If Figgy is guarding McAdorey or Shellenberger, who's guarding O'Neill or UVA's 2nd dodger. UNC has Duffy, McGovern and Tillman. Can Kol cover well enough? Clary can cover, but he looked lost in the team D at times last season. Can Odierna unlock him.

I remember the Syracuse defenses in the recent past had a great cover guy like Mellen or Firman, an off-ball defender like Bomberry or Sean Young and a 3rd guy who kinda came out of nowhere to start, like Jay McDermott and Marcus Cunningham. It seems for that middle guy being able to be part of the slide package but also cover well were important. Being able to cover well after being part of the slide package is tricky and maybe those guys thrived in that role. When is Donny Scott supposed to be available. I wouldn't be surprised if he thrived in this role.

If more defenders are playing well now under Odierna than they were under Petro, I think that tells us A LOT. I know the guys liked Petro, but if Odierna can unlock more players, the team will be a lot better. If the team has more players who can fill roles, they can put the best players on the field and not just the ones who can execute Petro's defense.

I also like the numbers at SSDM. It's important to have depth there and to keep guys fresh. It looks like Blake Borges is playing SSDM based on the Rich Barnes photos.
Expand...
Agree on Clary looking lost at times on slides and what have you last season. Could say the same about Caccamo. If we were strictly going by ability to cover a guy 1v1 (and the Olexo move to LSM is for sure happening which I kind of doubt) then I would probably go with Clary as the third guy along with Figgy and Dwan. Just depends on how much of those errors were their own poor judgement vs them getting confused with Petros system on D. IMO Kol struggled with both covering guys and being in the right place and would probably prefer one of our other options, unless he really shows he stands out as a good decision maker on team D with the new coaches more open system in place, which is possible.

In the interview Will Mark strait up says that in the old D every movement was heavily planned out, "if this happens then this happens" and says that often lead to confusion and miscommunication. He sounds impressed with the changes. "It is a much more effective way of playing defense, and you can see it in our play throughout fall ball."
 
Powellfan said:
It sounds like Figueiras is in a good spot. Gait said it was Riley who allowed them to move Olexo back to LSM. I assume that means he'll be the alpha defender guarding the other teams best player. After that I am guessing it's a toss up.

I think a majority of the guys on the team are primarily known as off-ball defenders. Dwan is a really good communicator and can slide very well, I think IL named him the best off-ball player in his class when he came out of Loyola. Caccamo made a living two years ago picking off passes, about two per game. He was bumped last year when Clary was hurt and looked out of sorts at LSM. Kol was the teams third defender last year, though I thought he struggled down the stretch last year. He is a captain though.

Beck, Witherspoon, Fraterrigo and Puckhabor are all massive, 6'4 and over 220. Frat saw some starting minutes two years ago but struggled in a game against UVA and never really saw the field again. I believe he was injured last year. Beck served as a man-down specialist last year. I imagine if they do employ a man-down only player, it will be one of the big guys. Clary of course was the #1 defender to start last year, but lost his spot in the last game of the season when he struggled mightily against Brennan O'Neil.

If I had to guess I think it will be Figueiras, Dwan and Kol. Thought it was interesting that Mark said a lot of the younger players looked rejuvenated under Oderina, and looked a lot better this fall as opposed to last year. Wouldn't surprise me with a new coach, someone we haven't thought a lot about makes a breakthrough.
Expand...
Frat tore his ACL playing in Lake Placid last year. I believe he was cleared to play prior to Figueiras.
 
DoctahLexus said:
In the interview Will Mark strait up says that in the old D every movement was heavily planned out, "if this happens then this happens" and says that often lead to confusion and miscommunication. He sounds impressed with the changes. "It is a much more effective way of playing defense, and you can see it in our play throughout fall ball."
Expand...
This quote is just wild to me, in a good way. When was the last time Petro was in charge of a team with a good defense?
 
ohmilax34 said:
This quote is just wild to me, in a good way. When was the last time Petro was in charge of a team with a good defense?
Expand...
But he is a hell of a recruiter LOL I’m not even touching this but it is comical to hear the players and Gait say the same things I was criticized for saying for the last 2 years. We shall see the real test will be this spring
 
SULAXAHOLIC said:
But he is a hell of a recruiter LOL I’m not even touching this but it is comical to hear the players and Gait say the same things I was criticized for saying for the last 2 years. We shall see the real test will be this spring
Expand...
You're right. The proof will be in the results. It'd be great to hang 20 on UNC, but we will see. I bet March is dying to score a ton of goals on the UNC defense.
 
Powellfan said:
It sounds like Figueiras is in a good spot. Gait said it was Riley who allowed them to move Olexo back to LSM. I assume that means he'll be the alpha defender guarding the other teams best player. After that I am guessing it's a toss up.

I think a majority of the guys on the team are primarily known as off-ball defenders. Dwan is a really good communicator and can slide very well, I think IL named him the best off-ball player in his class when he came out of Loyola. Caccamo made a living two years ago picking off passes, about two per game. He was bumped last year when Clary was hurt and looked out of sorts at LSM. Kol was the teams third defender last year, though I thought he struggled down the stretch last year. He is a captain though.

Beck, Witherspoon, Fraterrigo and Puckhabor are all massive, 6'4 and over 220. Frat saw some starting minutes two years ago but struggled in a game against UVA and never really saw the field again. I believe he was injured last year. Beck served as a man-down specialist last year. I imagine if they do employ a man-down only player, it will be one of the big guys. Clary of course was the #1 defender to start last year, but lost his spot in the last game of the season when he struggled mightily against Brennan O'Neil.

If I had to guess I think it will be Figueiras, Dwan and Kol. Thought it was interesting that Mark said a lot of the younger players looked rejuvenated under Oderina, and looked a lot better this fall as opposed to last year. Wouldn't surprise me with a new coach, someone we haven't thought a lot about makes a breakthrough.
Expand...
The question is: what was Kol doing on O'Neill. I believe Petro's defense often ended up winging it, because slide patterns never reached the point where all 6 knew what to do in most of the situations they faced. Watched Hopkins go through the same fire drill procedures for years. Too complicated or miscommunicated, I do not know. We saw too many examples of d players sliding alone when it was not called for and vice versa last year. I am sure that the best teams do not include a weak defender, that is someone who struggles athletically against even mediocre offensive players. Depth means that tired defenders are replaced by above average ds who do not lose their men at the first sign of adversity.

I am not going to name anyone from the current group as deficient until I see them play in the new system. Right now, I cannot name six defenders, ssdm, LSM, or long ds who are above average.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

OrangeXtreme
    • Like
    • Love
2023-24 All-ACC Academic Team
Replies
6
Views
807
Cuse99&01
C

Forum statistics

Threads
167,716
Messages
4,722,573
Members
5,917
Latest member
FbBarbie

Share this page

Online statistics

Members online
232
Guests online
2,028
Total visitors
2,260
Totals may include hidden visitors.


Top Bottom