Albany Game Lookahead

[ivorytower]

This is really simple then. IF he's telling them to use two hands and they don't, they he should be benching them. There's no accountability and it sure appears that with Desko players just freelance and do whatever they want. You think Boeheim has that problem? You think Andy Shay has that problem? Carc said Yale's recent practice wasn't for the faint of heart. When you see Syracuse players making the same boneheaded mistakes over and over again it really makes me question what Desko is doing to hold kids accountable.

I totally agree with that .

Discipline is always needed . Only way to send a message to one and all.

 

[JeremyCuse]

First time I can recall Dearth coming up empty but unusual. Gate did fairly good job sealing off Kennedy who still got three including kicking one a few times to himself. Gate ss Blumenberg is good wing player , he had 66 gbs last year. ..Most wins by Gate and Phaup were clean. Really like what Jacob showed, such a big plus to have two capable fogs no matter in what peking order. I do agree with poster that sthought Coach should have rode Phaup in 2h who was getting the better. All good, I get defensive on Cuse kids

Agree on Phaup really like what I saw from him yesterday, I thought he should have played mor elast year as I liked how he looked against Duke last year despite only going 1-7. If we can get Varello back on track he and Phaup are a real nice 1-2 punch. Phaup also looked much better with the ball after a draw and didn't panic like Varello has a tendency to do. I am still very high on Dearth and Kennedy was still good in every other facet last week ( he really is a great player) just wasn't there game last Friday, give Colgate credit as you noted those guys made some plays. There is talent on this team a lot of it actually but that offense is going to be a major issue I fear.

 

[ThundrTroll]

5. Nanticoke, Patterson and Laffin look like the starters at attack but it appear Marr may go with Patterson at middie some and bring in another attackmen - two frosh are getting run McComber a Native player from six nations and a kid name Yunker from down south. Don't know much about Yunker.

6. Albany's midfield has some shooters in the Eccles and Burgmaster brothers ( how many kids did these two familys have) but they are pretty much straight up shooters and no real threat to dodge. I think the third middie is Kyle Casey but I am not 100% on that. Key is to simply stay on these guys hands as the only real dodging thread from the midfield is Casey and thats not saying a lot. Albany' an attack driven offense, slow that down and they will struggle to score.

7. SU should I repeat should have an advantage at the X and hopefully on D. I would bump down Kennedy for this game to close to go with Mellen and Cunningham as I think they match up better. Bomberry should not be marking Nanticoke.

Good write-up. UA could have a formidable all-Native attack w/ Tehoka, Patterson and Laffin, who went to Corcoran before IMG. Davis Diamond, who started in place of injured Fields at times, is another option, but could also feature as a 1st line middie.

The last Eccles (Ryan) is a senior at Corcoran and Matt redshirted last season so it will seem like an eternity until they're gone. Don't know enough about Matt's game, but Sean is definitely a shooter, left-handed sniper; if we're not shading him to go right and staying on his left, something is very wrong (even when he feigns right he's looking to create just enough space to shot left). The Burgmasters' are more athletic two-way types and can dodge.

I view Bomberry and Cunningham as crease defenders. Do not want to see Tyson guarding in space.

 

[Powellfan]

Good summary of Albany by Jeremy, that is very much appreciated. I hope we don't focus too much on the face-off game as I think sometimes it can be misleading - two years ago I think Williams won almost every face-off but SU only won 9-8 due to really good goalie play by Albany. The Danes will score goals no matter how many face-offs the Orange win.

Curious to see if Desko/Donahue make any changes to the offense, whether in terms of personal or scheme. One game is one game, but scrimmages going back to the fall have not been full of goals. Do Buttermore or Carlin see more playing time? The one bright spot of Friday night was Brendan Curry, he can get off such a hard accurate shot with almost no wind up. I thought it was a mistake to have him on the man-up but was quickly proven wrong. The man up finished 3-5 (and probably should have been 4-5), so the ball movement *can* be there in a set offense - why wasn't it? I think all the switching between midfield and attack may have actually caused more confusion for the players. Maybe the first step should be to simplify?

Trying to remain positive here - the Orange have lost some real head scratching games over the years. Even in 2013 they lost to Hobart in the Dome. Are they just getting their confounding loss out of the way early? Let's hope so. This Albany game will show us a lot about the team's character.

 

[JeremyCuse]

Research and math lol. This is really simple then. IF he's telling them to use two hands and they don't, then he should be benching them. There's no accountability and it sure appears that with Desko players just freelance and do whatever they want. You think Boeheim has that problem? You think Andy Shay has that problem? Carc said Yale's recent practice wasn't for the faint of heart. When you see Syracuse players making the same boneheaded mistakes over and over again it really makes me question what Desko is doing to hold kids accountable.

The Dearth issue aside you have hit on what is probably the #2 problem in my mind after the attack unit and thats the inability to stop making the same mistakes over and over over. It was a theme last year and it has continued last year. Perfect example is in the second half after a scrum where a flag is down against Colgate Solomon starts yapping after the whistle in front of the ref while the penalty is being announced. Desko tells Donahue "Solomon has to shut his bleeping mouth" or something to that effect ( you can read his lips clear as day on tv). Donahue kind of nods his head but then neither actually yell at him or do anything about it. If this team could clean up the dump mistakes ie multiple offsides penalties, bizzarre passes, horrific turnovers it would go along way into improving their overall performances. I mean think about the Colgate game alone, take away those three bad shots by Quinn, two god awful turnovers by Cook and another at least 4-5 ridiculous passes and we probably win that game.

 

[ThundrTroll]

There's no accountability and it sure appears that with Desko players just freelance and do whatever they want. You think Boeheim has that problem? You think Andy Shay has that problem?

Don't think Boeheim is the best example. There's always one player who can't breath wrong and consistently draws the shortest leash (Carey this season) while others who make the same mistake get a reprieve.

 

[JeremyCuse]

Good write-up. UA could have a formidable all-Native attack w/ Tehoka, Patterson and Laffin, who went to Corcoran before IMG. Davis Diamond, who started in place of injured Fields at times, is another option, but could also feature as a 1st line middie.

The last Eccles (Ryan) is a senior at Corcoran and Matt redshirted last season so it will seem like an eternity until they're gone. Don't know enough about Matt's game, but Sean is definitely a shooter, left-handed sniper; if we're not shading him to go right and staying on his left, something is very wrong (even when he feigns right he's looking to create just enough space to shot left). The Burgmasters' are more athletic two-way types and can dodge.

I view Bomberry and Cunningham as crease defenders. Do not want to see Tyson guarding in space.

Ya Eccles is definitely their man shooter, as you noted you have to force him right and don't leave him. I wonder if we throw the pole on him despite him not being much if any dodging threat. From what I can gather from the pre-season the Albany attack did a lot of the damage save for Eccles when it was starter vs starter. Our SSDMs played fairly well last week so I am hoping we see another strong effort. Albany's going to score there's little doubt about that but we can't let them go on crazy runs or let them shoot uncontested from the midfield.

I think Diamond has fallen below a couple of the new guys, doesn't sound like he got a lot of run. Don't be surprised if he runs Patterson at middie to add some more punch from their as its a unit trying to replace its #1 middie from last year and isn't dodge heavy at all. I could see Bomberry on a guy like Laffin not sure he matches up with Patterson or Nanticoke all that well.

 

[DoctahLexus]

The way Melon played against the big (Canadian?) Colgate attack makes me think he should get a shot at guarding tehoka. I understand why we had him on Fields last season but this year he should be the one on him. Melon is clearly a very strong dude for his size and his low center of gravity due to his short stature may help against the physical style of Tehoka. He wasn't on Cloutier of UNC last year but one possession he got switched onto him after a pick and he held him off perfectly. Besides I feel like Bomberry could be going into the game with some severe nerves given how well Tehoka did against him last year. Cunningham should have enough speed to take care of Patterson and the strength to rough him up a bit. Bomberry is still an excellent defender and I trust him. If Patterson runs as a middie we should consider double poling the midfield.

 

[PhatOrange]

Don't think Boeheim is the best example. There's always one player who can't breath wrong and consistently draws the shortest leash (Carey this season) while others who make the same mistake get a reprieve.

he's probably not the best example but jb will rip you out of the game for not doing what he said to do. some players get longer leashes for sure, but there's generally an obvious reason why they do.

 

[DaneLaxFan]

It was a scrimmage but there are a few things you can take from the Colgate/Albany scrimamge last week.

1. Albany and Colgate tied at 14 after 3 quarters before they both went to their benches. That can be spun any number of ways but it tells me Albany still has a pretty potent offense despite massive graduation losses and getting little of the faceoff in that agme.

2. Colgate dominated big time at the X apparently and Albany's wing play was not good. Despite this it appears they were up 8-4 in the 2nd quarter before Colgate went on a run. Again take from that what you will.

3. Albany's D lost a lot to graduation and is relatively young. I expect Tanner Hay the true frosh to start at close. I believe their best returning defender Dluhy has played little so far due to injury. Will be something to keep an eye on as ALbany is replacing their top two close defenders plus all 3 LSM's.

4. Mellen should be on Nanticoke from the word go. I don't care about the height difference there's no way Dekso and staff should let Bomberry anywhere near him after last year.

5. Nanticoke, Patterson and Laffin look like the starters at attack but it appear Marr may go with Patterson at middie some and bring in another attackmen - two frosh are getting run McComber a Native player from six nations and a kid name Yunker from down south. Don't know much about Yunker.

6. Albany's midfield has some shooters in the Eccles and Burgmaster brothers ( how many kids did these two familys have) but they are pretty much straight up shooters and no real threat to dodge. I think the third middie is Kyle Casey but I am not 100% on that. Key is to simply stay on these guys hands as the only real dodging threat from the midfield is Casey and thats not saying a lot. Albany's an attack driven offense, slow that down and they will struggle to score.

7. SU should I repeat should have an advantage at the X and hopefully on D. I would bump down Kennedy for this game to close to go with Mellen and Cunningham as I think they match up better. Bomberry should not be marking Nanticoke.

Good summation. I saw all of the fall games and two of our scrimmages.

By all accounts the best overall team performance was against Rutgers. The defense shut them down in teh 2nd quarter and it was about 13-5 at half.

No way Tanner Hay starts or plays close defense. I think you will see him as the 2nd or should be 3rd LSM and most likely on man down defense because he has a very good stick in the passing lanes. Starting defense will be Dhluy, Perla, and one of Kunz or Fillipowski. The starting LSM should be Gleason backed up by Barrow, but Hay did see a lot of LSM action in the scrimmages.

Starting attack will most likely be Tehoka, Patterson, and Laffin to start, but don't be surprised if you see either Tehoka, and more likely Patterson playing a lot up top. Yunker played a lot in the spring after being hurt in the fall, and McComber played very little in the spring, and Diamond definitely dropped in the depth chart.

Albany's main weakness is offensive and defensive midfield. If I am Syracuse I attack big time there. Albany has a propensity to early slide to help which can create a ton of off ball opportunities.

Other than Sean Eccles I haven't seen anyone consistently step up as outside shooters. One of the Burgmasters can contribute at times, but not on a consistent basis. Alex has a great outside shot, but I think Jack excels more as a defensive midfielder, but can definitely can it from the outside from time to time.

Sounds like Altamari is going to start at face off. He did the better of the two in terms of turning the face off into a scrum. I heard as well that Jones gave TD fits in practice, and was the #2 last year, but didn't look great in the scrimmages.

The Albany attack is still very lethal, but will not have the possession advantage for sure this year as they did the last two years.

 

[JeremyCuse]

Good summation. I saw all of the fall games and two of our scrimmages.

By all accounts the best overall team performance was against Rutgers. The defense shut them down in teh 2nd quarter and it was about 13-5 at half.

No way Tanner Hay starts or plays close defense. I think you will see him as the 2nd or should be 3rd LSM and most likely on man down defense because he has a very good stick in the passing lanes. Starting defense will be Dhluy, Perla, and one of Kunz or Fillipowski. The starting LSM should be Gleason backed up by Barrow, but Hay did see a lot of LSM action in the scrimmages.

Starting attack will most likely be Tehoka, Patterson, and Laffin to start, but don't be surprised if you see either Tehoka, and more likely Patterson playing a lot up top. Yunker played a lot in the spring after being hurt in the fall, and McComber played very little in the spring, and Diamond definitely dropped in the depth chart.

Albany's main weakness is offensive and defensive midfield. If I am Syracuse I attack big time there. Albany has a propensity to early slide to help which can create a ton of off ball opportunities.

Other than Sean Eccles I haven't seen anyone consistently step up as outside shooters. One of the Burgmasters can contribute at times, but not on a consistent basis. Alex has a great outside shot, but I think Jack excels more as a defensive midfielder, but can definitely can it from the outside from time to time.

Sounds like Altamari is going to start at face off. He did the better of the two in terms of turning the face off into a scrum. I heard as well that Jones gave TD fits in practice, and was the #2 last year, but didn't look great in the scrimmages.

The Albany attack is still very lethal, but will not have the possession advantage for sure this year as they did the last two years.

Welcome, glad to have you post here and get a first hand take from the horses mouth so to speak. I tend to think that this Albany team will look a lot different at the the end of the year assuming no major injuries, once your team has had a chance to jell but they clearly can still win this Sat without a doubt. Clearly Ierlan leaving is a huge loss when you look at what Marr scheduled as an OOC, that is a heck of a gauntlet and like us I tend to think he over scheduled bit but with your conference I get it.

Surprised Hay isn't in consideration for a spot to start, thought he had a chance with all the losses to graduation, hes a good player.

Agree with you about Albany's midfield, that to me is one area Marr has really failed to address. Nothing against some of the guys you had there in the past as there have been some good ones but doesn't seem Albany has ever had that great dodging middie to go with what is usually a very good to elite attack. Agree about the Eccles brothers, can't leave them open but if you make them dodge there not the same players. The Burgmasters seem like perfect two way middies for the system Marr runs, will be interested to see how he uses them this year.

Nanticoke up top is interesting, he can certainly draw a lot of attention which should free up those mids and guys like Patterson and Laffin off ball. Nanticoke is a special talent but in a few game si watched last year when Albany struggled he seemed to get flustered and didn't look to be in the best shape in the second half of a couple of games I saw. That said If Marr can keep him engaged and in school another year or two that attack unit could blossom into something really dangerous

As for the game I don't know what to expect. That performance vs Rutty is eye opening as their offense is pretty good. I like to think SU should have at least a slight advantage at the X but our attack unit leaves a lot to be desired. If we had Dordevic I would like us to win this game but without him and our issues at attack I am not nearly as confident. IF SU can come out and get an early lead I think Albany might press a bit and we can force a few turnovers and try and break the game open a bit. I could see the same happening on your end as well though. Like you noted I think the key is the midfield on Offense for SU, if this offense can score I think our D can do enough to slow you guys down in the first true game without Reh Fields Mcclancy etc.

 

[Powellfan]

Wasn't sure where to post this, but according to Chris over at College Crosse, sounds like DiPeitro is red-shirting?

• "Another player I didn’t see on the field was defenseman Nick DiPietro. Matter of fact, he was all the way on the end of the bench next to backup goalie Luke Strang. From what I’ve heard, DiPietro is redshirting this season."

Syracuse men’s lacrosse: Orange upset by Colgate, 12-9

 

[OrangeXtreme]

Wasn't sure where to post this, but according to Chris over at College Crosse, sounds like DiPeitro is red-shirting?

• "Another player I didn’t see on the field was defenseman Nick DiPietro. Matter of fact, he was all the way on the end of the bench next to backup goalie Luke Strang. From what I’ve heard, DiPietro is redshirting this season."

Syracuse men’s lacrosse: Orange upset by Colgate, 12-9

Another mystery injury?

 

[DaneLaxFan]

Hay, at least for now, is a finesse player, which isn't a bad thing, but he's not ready to play close defense. He is definitely very skilled in transition and can make a dramatic stick sort of play or ground ball in space, but at least on the wings on face offs hasn't been a factor at all on the tough 50/50 ground balls. I think he could be a real asset on man down because he is a very smart player and always seems to have his stick in the passing lane.

Whoever Albany puts up top as the 4th attackmen out of the box needs to be someone who is a threat from 10-12 yards. That really is the achilles heal with the Albany offense right now. I would expect if the offense bogs down on Saturday to see Marr experiment a lot between Tehoka and Patterson up top. I thought McComber was going to be the impact freshmen for Albany on offense, but was really quite during the pre season, and Yunker definitely hopped in front of him.

 

[sholokov2]

The way Melon played against the big (Canadian?) Colgate attack makes me think he should get a shot at guarding tehoka. I understand why we had him on Fields last season but this year he should be the one on him. Melon is clearly a very strong dude for his size and his low center of gravity due to his short stature may help against the physical style of Tehoka. He wasn't on Cloutier of UNC last year but one possession he got switched onto him after a pick and he held him off perfectly. Besides I feel like Bomberry could be going into the game with some severe nerves given how well Tehoka did against him last year. Cunningham should have enough speed to take care of Patterson and the strength to rough him up a bit. Bomberry is still an excellent defender and I trust him. If Patterson runs as a middie we should consider double poling the midfield.

I think you overestimate Bomberry. I thought he lost Cleveland several times and was overpowered on others during the first half. His stick no longer carves up his opponents. SU might have yanked him in the first half had they had an alternative. Kennedy seems too valuable as LSM. So who? The problem is the other longs have to protect him. Colgate found his mistakes very often. Something's changed since his first year. Seems slow and ponderous. He seems to struggle. He has time to get his mojo. Hope he does.

 

[ivorytower]

Tend to agree. Tehoka is chiseled 246 ads, , Mellen or Kennedy be giving up 50 pds or more . Know Bomberry got torched last year but thought he bodied ok. Cleveland (9 goals last year ) going by him easily was more bothersome but still give him first crack. He can always be pulled if abused . DiPietro is healthy and 235. Not the same stick or experience but more mobile and likely stronger than TB , shelve the red shirt plans if needed. Tehoka gonna get his, just as important to not let Patterson and others go off.

 

[CuseAlum87]

Tend to agree. Tehoka is chiseled 246 ads, , Mellen or Kennedy be giving up 50 pds or more . Know Bomberry got torched last year but thought he bodied ok. Cleveland (9 goals last year ) going by him easily was more bothersome but still give him first crack. He can always be pulled if abused . DiPietro is healthy and 235. Not the same stick or experience but more mobile and likely stronger than TB , shelve the red shirt plans if needed. Tehoka gonna get his, just as important to not let Patterson and others go off.

What about locking off Tehoka and make him work really hard to get the ball?

 

[CuseAlum87]

If Patterson is on attack have Mellen cover him and if he plays Midfield then Kennedy has him.

 

[Laxwizard22]

Think a big key could be goaltending. Both defenses are going to give up more than enough open shots, but which first yr starting keeper is going to bail out his defense more often?

 

[ivorytower]

Think a big key could be goaltending. Both defenses are going to give up more than enough open shots, but which first yr starting keeper is going to bail out his defense more often?

Porter

 

[ivorytower]

Albany has firepower .Nanicoke 50, Patterson 42, Eccles 33 plus others , our offense must respond this weekend, 9 goals won't cut it.

Hoping Refhuss, Voight, Trimboli , Quinn, Cook show their true colors. Let's get this dome !!!

 

[MD Cuse Fan]

I think you overestimate Bomberry. I thought he lost Cleveland several times and was overpowered on others during the first half. His stick no longer carves up his opponents. SU might have yanked him in the first half had they had an alternative. Kennedy seems too valuable as LSM. So who? The problem is the other longs have to protect him. Colgate found his mistakes very often. Something's changed since his first year. Seems slow and ponderous. He seems to struggle. He has time to get his mojo. Hope he does.

If I recall correctly he had a serious knee injury? He's a solid kid perhaps he hasn't been the same player since?

 

[ForCuseSake]

The Dearth issue aside you have hit on what is probably the #2 problem in my mind after the attack unit and thats the inability to stop making the same mistakes over and over over. It was a theme last year and it has continued last year. Perfect example is in the second half after a scrum where a flag is down against Colgate Solomon starts yapping after the whistle in front of the ref while the penalty is being announced. Desko tells Donahue "Solomon has to shut his bleeping mouth" or something to that effect ( you can read his lips clear as day on tv). Donahue kind of nods his head but then neither actually yell at him or do anything about it. If this team could clean up the dump mistakes ie multiple offsides penalties, bizzarre passes, horrific turnovers it would go along way into improving their overall performances. I mean think about the Colgate game alone, take away those three bad shots by Quinn, two god awful turnovers by Cook and another at least 4-5 ridiculous passes and we probably win that game.

The lack of control of the Orange substitution box is unforgivable to me.

How does a DI team have repeated offsides or too many men on the field penalties!??

Colgate had at least one fast break opportunity (or secondary break) because SU middies subbed off instead of sprinting to the hole.

I asked in the game thread who was running lines for SU because they don’t seem to be paying attention or players don’t respect them to follow instruction.

 

[ivorytower]

If I recall correctly he had a serious knee injury? He's a solid kid perhaps he hasn't been the same player since?

No, TB was back after two games , several others have had serious knee injuries that required surgery. Recall he purposely came in bulkier last year and that may have slowed, appears he has lost some weight and thought he moved ok in world games after losing some weight. Gotta play with body not stick against bigs. Good kid

 

[ivorytower]

The lack of control of the Orange substitution box is unforgivable to me.

How does a DI team have repeated offsides or too many men on the field penalties!??

Colgate had at least one fast break opportunity (or secondary break) because SU middies subbed off instead of sprinting to the hole.

I asked in the game thread who was running lines for SU because they don’t seem to be paying attention or players don’t respect them to follow instruction.

The Gate transition goal by trailer off flub was one of the back breakers. Sequence was unfolding in front of backline and could have been defended. As mediocre as our 1h play was, Cuse still had a few chances to tie and steal this game but self inflicted errors derailed our building momentum several times. Need to be smarter.