Army Gameday...

[AD31]

According to Gait's media session from earlier in the week, Stevens has an "upper body injury", and he's close to returning.

Hottle is 5-7, 150#. That's tiny.

Yeah can use him on smaller faster mids like a Balsamo on Duke but most will just push him around easy. Trujillo has that issue and he's bigger then Hottie. He can run with them but his lack of size will also be easy for guys to get clean shots off on him. He's to They have to find someone else to play with Rice. Someone has to be willing to do it just for the PT alone. Clary was perfect if he didn't get hurt so that should make others lacking PT more willing to make the move. Can teams start putting guys on the trading block? Give Hiltz a fresh start somewhere to get back on track and give us an AA Shorty. Lmao

 

[AD31]

Here's the miss by Mule. In hindsight he it looks like he could have gotten closer to the goal, but probably only a few steps and I'm not sure it would have made a ton of difference. Tough, tough break.

Man he could have taking at least 5 more steps and still had an open cage. That's heartbreaking watching that again. Everything is different today if that goes in like it should have. You have to capitalize on ur opportunities in big games especially in OT. I feel bad for the kid he must be sick today. Just had to be smarter there. His eyes lit up but good teams stay under control in all situations which is the difference between SU and Army right now. Stay in control and make the winning play. Spallina too his shot just wasn't smart. The difference between good teams and great teams is composure in close games. Just look at the SB I mean SF could have won that game but just made mistakes and Mahomes stays calm and makes game winning plays.

 

[DoctahLexus]

Gait has shown a willingness to experiment with starting lines before. We did plenty of experimentation with the righty attack spot last season. I don’t blame him for not instantly doing something different with Leo or Thomson but now it is time to go to the drawing board there. Hiltz has been against all odds a horrible disappointment. Seems slower than he was last year and lacking some kind of spark. I had all the confidence in the world that he was going to be a next level star. It is so sad. Having that guy who can be a serious threat as a dodger and feeder on the left wing would take a lot of the pressure of spallina. Leo is gunning for his spot fast. Think we need to send him a message to either kick it in high gear or get out of the attack line. Moving him to middie seems crazy to me preseason but he is just not doing all we need out of him on the left wing and there is an ideal alternate candidate in Leo. Hiltz can dodge well from up top as well. Might be time to make the change.

Thomson idk. A ridiculously talented guy who can do a ton for you but has been such a damn headache. Need to at least demote him to second line or something. The feeding ability along with pick plays are still going to get you something. Just can’t believe he is this much of a headcase with finishing. If there is one guy who looks too casual out there on O it is him. May be time to make a tough decision and say the cons out weigh the pros with him. Guys like Deere and Elijah brown are eagerly waiting on the bench.

 

[orange79]

Here's the miss by Mule. In hindsight he it looks like he could have gotten closer to the goal, but probably only a few steps and I'm not sure it would have made a ton of difference. Tough, tough break.

I feel bad for him, especially since he saw an open goal and was in the heat of the moment without slo-mo or replay to rely on. But watching that several times, he could have gotten 5-10 yards closer to take that shot.

 

[ForCuseSake]

Here's the miss by Mule. In hindsight he it looks like he could have gotten closer to the goal, but probably only a few steps and I'm not sure it would have made a ton of difference. Tough, tough break.

Would love to see a behind the goal camera angle (if it exists).

That would give me a better sense of what Mule saw as it’s difficult to get an idea of the shooting lane he had.

While he ultimately could’ve pulled it out to run a settled set, he’s an emotional player who probably got caught up in the moment.

Disappointing from an older, experienced guy. Understandable, but disappointing.

 

[DoctahLexus]

Other thoughts would be maybe a guy like Rhoa in Kellogg’s spot on man up. Last year we had Simmons there. Both a threat from semi long range and an excellent distributor. Kellogg will not come close to moving the rock like he did for us, at least this season. Rhoa is that same threat from range but with more experience under his belt and better stick skills at least right now.

 

[JeremyCuse]

Other thoughts would be maybe a guy like Rhoa in Kellogg’s spot on man up. Last year we had Simmons there. Both a threat from semi long range and an excellent distributor. Kellogg will not come close to moving the rock like he did for us, at least this season. Rhoa is that same threat from range but with more experience under his belt and better stick skills at least right now.

SU's not spinning the ball fast enough on the man up which is why guys aren't getting great looks. Kellogg as a Frosh has hesitated a few times on looks he probably should have ripped. SU needs to move the ball with more purpose to get the defense moving, will create spaces and lanes. Rhoa coming on isn't' a bad idea but Kellogg has a cannon, Thomson at this point should probably be moved out and Rhoa or English inserted. Could go with Rhoa and Kellogg up top as shooters with Birtwistle in the middle and Spallina Hiltz and Leo floating around the goal and GLE.

 

[Powellfan]

Tough game to stomach. Syracuse played so well for long stretches, but once again just couldn't make the game sealing plays. Another overtime game against a top 10 opponent with multiple looks at the goal and still can't get it done. Just super, super frustrating.

I'm one of Spallina's biggest fans, and I think he's a tremendous player, but he and Hiltz played really poorly last night. I think some of this is on the coaches - they need to work to free up Spallina and get him more involved in the game plan. He doesn't need to have 10 shots in games like this, but he can't be a decoy either. Use picks, use screens, play him off ball. Gait recognized this in the post game presser which was good to see. I appreciate the strategy of using our better players to attack short sticks, but they need more diversity to the offense. Sam English was great last night, but he looked totally spent by halftime, playing wings on face-offs, defense and everything else. Plus his dodges start way away from the goal, which takes that much more energy. They can't rely on one or two players to drive the offense all game long.

Hiltz I have no idea what's going on with. Spallina at least is drawing the opposing teams top defender. This is not the case with Hiltz. I was most bothered with his body language on one of the man up plays - it looked like someone didn't see him open on the crease and he tilted his head in a sign of exasperation. He needs to get more engaged and start making things happen for himself instead of waiting for the perfect pass. His cross field pass that sailed over Spallina's head in the second half with no pressure was also especially frustrating. He should be an Alpha type attackman based on his recruiting rankings, and if he is going to draw the second best defender he needs to make teams pay.

Have to get Kellogg off the man up - the team was best when they all moved at rapid speed and the ball was in constant motion. He just stands there. I would put Stevens on the line when he comes back, he had eight man up goals a year ago. This isn't hard. He could be this years Alex Simmons on the unit.

Defense looked like a mess to me for most of the game. The heavily aggressive sliding worked for periods, but it also gave Army a bunch of golden opportunities. Its pretty apparent they are not comfortable with their short sticks out there. I think most of the things that are "plaguing" this team right now are pretty fixable (man-up, Will Mark playing better, Spallina in big games), but no answers seem to be coming for the short sticks. Bad news is Army is not a terribly deep offensive team - SU will be playing much better midfield units (in terms of depth). How is SU going to cope? At some point these SSDMs will have to stand their ground and turn offensive players away without the help of a long stick.

Long term is glass half empty or half full? I am not sure. These were two games SU really should have had. This team is definitely improved, feels like last years team would have lost this game by four or five. That said, close only counts for horseshoes and hand grenades. I'm not sure I feel much better about SU in games against the ACC big three, or Hopkins/Cornell for that matter. This team has a ton of talent, but there is such a glaring hole at SSDM right now. I'm terrified to see what Jack Boyden or Jordan Faison or Aidan Danenza will do to some of these guys. The way they are playing defense right now is not sustainable and the offense can't be perfect every time out. I am worried that we will look back on these two games as huge missed opportunities and not as growing experiences. I hope I am wrong.

 

[Dcuse]

Tough game to stomach. Syracuse played so well for long stretches, but once again just couldn't make the game sealing plays. Another overtime game against a top 10 opponent with multiple looks at the goal and still can't get it done. Just super, super frustrating.

I'm one of Spallina's biggest fans, and I think he's a tremendous player, but he and Hiltz played really poorly last night. I think some of this is on the coaches - they need to work to free up Spallina and get him more involved in the game plan. He doesn't need to have 10 shots in games like this, but he can't be a decoy either. Use picks, use screens, play him off ball. Gait recognized this in the post game presser which was good to see. I appreciate the strategy of using our better players to attack short sticks, but they need more diversity to the offense. Sam English was great last night, but he looked totally spent by halftime, playing wings on face-offs, defense and everything else. Plus his dodges start way away from the goal, which takes that much more energy. They can't rely on one or two players to drive the offense all game long.

Hiltz I have no idea what's going on with. Spallina at least is drawing the opposing teams top defender. This is not the case with Hiltz. I was most bothered with his body language on one of the man up plays - it looked like someone didn't see him open on the crease and he tilted his head in a sign of exasperation. He needs to get more engaged and start making things happen for himself instead of waiting for the perfect pass. His cross field pass that sailed over Spallina's head in the second half with no pressure was also especially frustrating. He should be an Alpha type attackman based on his recruiting rankings, and if he is going to draw the second best defender he needs to make teams pay.

Have to get Kellogg off the man up - the team was best when they all moved at rapid speed and the ball was in constant motion. He just stands there. I would put Stevens on the line when he comes back, he had eight man up goals a year ago. This isn't hard. He could be this years Alex Simmons on the unit.

Defense looked like a mess to me for most of the game. The heavily aggressive sliding worked for periods, but it also gave Army a bunch of golden opportunities. Its pretty apparent they are not comfortable with their short sticks out there. I think most of the things that are "plaguing" this team right now are pretty fixable (man-up, Will Mark playing better, Spallina in big games), but no answers seem to be coming for the short sticks. Bad news is Army is not a terribly deep offensive team - SU will be playing much better midfield units (in terms of depth). How is SU going to cope? At some point these SSDMs will have to stand their ground and turn offensive players away without the help of a long stick.

Long term is glass half empty or half full? I am not sure. These were two games SU really should have had. This team is definitely improved, feels like last years team would have lost this game by four or five. That said, close only counts for horseshoes and hand grenades. I'm not sure I feel much better about SU in games against the ACC big three, or Hopkins/Cornell for that matter. This team has a ton of talent, but there is such a glaring hole at SSDM right now. I'm terrified to see what Jack Boyden or Jordan Faison or Aidan Danenza will do to some of these guys. The way they are playing defense right now is not sustainable and the offense can't be perfect every time out. I am worried that we will look back on these two games as huge missed opportunities and not as growing experiences. I hope I am wrong.

I disagree with the Kellog comment. He may have missed an opportunity or 2 where he could have let it fly but I thought he spun the ball quicker than anybody else on that unit. It was the other members who were a tad hesitant with their passing allowing Army to get in position to defend.

 

[JeremyCuse]

Here's the miss by Mule. In hindsight he it looks like he could have gotten closer to the goal, but probably only a few steps and I'm not sure it would have made a ton of difference. Tough, tough break.

As I noted yesterday he appears to get caught in between on the shot itself. Obviously he didn't have a lot of time but looked like he was trying to pick between shooting at the next in the air or bouncing it. In the end it was some sort of mash up between the two. I can't blame him for takin the shot because there was no fast break potential but would have preferred he just tried to reach it in the air with force.

 

[JeremyCuse]

I disagree with the Kellog comment. He may have missed an opportunity or 2 where he could have let it fly but I thought he spun the ball quicker than anybody else on that unit. It was the other members who were a tad hesitant with their passing allowing Army to get in position to defend.

Agree on Kellogg, he's there to be the beneficiary of the crisp ball movement leaving him open to hammer home a shot. I don't really think he's the main issue right now, lack of urgency on the man up and not spinning it around fast enough is the issue.

 

[OrangeinBoston]

Spallina with 2 assists? If that's what happens against the real meat of the ACC schedule, Syracuse is going nowhere in the post-season.

 

[Powellfan]

I disagree with the Kellog comment. He may have missed an opportunity or 2 where he could have let it fly but I thought he spun the ball quicker than anybody else on that unit. It was the other members who were a tad hesitant with their passing allowing Army to get in position to defend.

That's fair, I just meant in terms of his physical movement, not so much his passing. Other guys are moving, filling gaps, he just kind of stands there waiting for the ball. It's probably not all his fault, Gait said teams are packing it in and I think SU likes looking for those door step finishes which makes it hard. One would think having him on the outside would open things up on the interior, but he's got to start finishing his shots first.

 

[Shrmdougluvr]

So close to being the biggest hyped team in the nation. Now getting laughed at once again.

I agree with a lot of your post, but neither of these statements are true.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

Here's the miss by Mule. In hindsight he it looks like he could have gotten closer to the goal, but probably only a few steps and I'm not sure it would have made a ton of difference. Tough, tough break.

Christian Mule has to be the sickest man in America right now...

Top 50 Sound FX | #39: "Bless His Heart, He's Got to be the Sickest Man in America" | NFL

Dallas Cowboys receiver Jackie Smith drops a pass in the endzone against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XIII.Subscribe to the NFL YouTube channel to s...

www.youtube.com

 

[DoctahLexus]

I agree with a lot of your post, but neither of these statements are true.

Well that laughed at part may be just how I’m feeling right now, but if we were undefeated and had two top 5 wins in February I think that is exactly what we would be. Would it all be deserved? Probably not. Winning close ones doesn’t mean everything and the problems people are talking about would still be there. But the guys would have a metric ton more confidence.

 

[DoctahLexus]

Agree on Kellogg, he's there to be the beneficiary of the crisp ball movement leaving him open to hammer home a shot. I don't really think he's the main issue right now, lack of urgency on the man up and not spinning it around fast enough is the issue.

Basically I would just like to get as close to the formula that was working last year as possible. Last year we did not have a guy exclusively for ripping shots from long range. It seems like a different approach that might be costing us. Agree with Powellfan that it may look better with Stevens back in when he is healthy. I like Kellogg and agree that his specific actions were not the problem on man up yesterday, but the scheme feels different from last years

 

[JeremyCuse]

Basically I would just like to get as close to the formula that was working last year as possible. Last year we did not have a guy exclusively for ripping shots from long range. It seems like a different approach that might be costing us. Agree with Powellfan that it may look better with Stevens back in when he is healthy. I like Kellogg and agree that his specific actions were not the problem on man up yesterday, but the scheme feels different from last years

Last year the unit was so good but I am not sure that's re-creatable. Kirst and Simmons played a big role and Thomson was a revelation. Simmons and Kirst are gone and Thomson is the definition of a sophomore slump. Birtwistle being in the unit I think is a nice move and once Stevens is back I'd like to see him in place of Thomson. As I have noted before the ball movement this year doesn't feel nearly as Crisp or fast and teams are really packing it in. SU needs to take some outside shots to open it up.

 

[DoctahLexus]

Last year the unit was so good but I am not sure that's re-creatable. Kirst and Simmons played a big role and Thomson was a revelation. Simmons and Kirst are gone and Thomson is the definition of a sophomore slump. Birtwistle being in the unit I think is a nice move and once Stevens is back I'd like to see him in place of Thomson. As I have noted before the ball movement this year doesn't feel nearly as Crisp or fast and teams are really packing it in. SU needs to take some outside shots to open it up.

No Kirst actually. Was Thomson Simmons Hiltz Spallina Leo Birtwistle. It is really only one guy different this year. Since it is only one guy I just dont think we need to reinvent the wheel. Agree that Thomson starts to be a liability with how this season is going for him though. Really is a shame things are not panning out with him like we thought. He may need to be moved out just because the shooting has been so terrible.

 

[tbonezone]

FWIW i only saw the clips this am. Army looked to be stinging the corners hard from out top. syracuse being nifty cute around the cage. who is our most accurate/reliable outside cannon ?

 

[orangecuse]

I feel bad for him, especially since he saw an open goal and was in the heat of the moment without slo-mo or replay to rely on. But watching that several times, he could have gotten 5-10 yards closer to take that shot.

Ugh! Slowing it down makes it even more brutal. You're 100! correct on the 5-10 yards closer sentiment, not sure how anyone can argue it looking at the footage. Stop the footage at the 4 second mark when Mule is just about to shoot, good lord. If he keeps running, that Army defender (5 plus yards away running backwards) either keeps running backwards as he was, or decides to stop the ball. If the Army defender commits to stop the ball, then Mule simply dumps the pass to our guy (at about the 10 o'clock position, near the M or A of JMA Dome) and he practically has a clear path all the way to the door step. Doubtful the Army goalie in the middle can get there, but even if he did, that goalie isn't making some incredulous save after sprinting back the way he had to.

This was an epic disaster of a missed opportunity for SU that I can't recall being so sinful in years.

As Jeremy has alluded (very diplomatically) if you are going to take that shot there, you 100% better be certain that you bury it.

Just sickening all around, no, if's ands or buts about it, IMO.

 

[ForCuseSake]

If they're going to put an outside shot "specialist" like Kellogg on man up then he should be told to pull the trigger early in the game even if there's a defender partially in his lane.

If the defender eats it, or hears it whistle by him, he'll likely hesitate the next time Kellogg gets the ball and winds up. That alone can give enough of an opening to get a man down unit spinning for a better shot opportunity.

I haven't watched enough this year to know the driver of disfunction on man up, just my general thoughts on inserting a shooting specialist vs a regular offensive contributor.

 

[nyclax]

i dont think the emo is a huge problem...it was bound to regress from last year. during the game i noted that the ball was dying in spallina's stick. he was looking for the perfect play instead of making the simple one. it's good that he always has his eyes up seeking out skip lanes but last night it came at the expense of good team ball movement. and the pointless behind the back adjacent passes have to stop...teams are keyed in on them now and they dont take anyone by surprise

that might be a place to get deere involved...

 

[DMVCuseLax]

Simple solution on offense is putting Rhoa on the first line. Best dodger this team has and possibly the best shooter. He shouldn’t be sitting on the bench as long as he did in the 2nd half. Easily scores 2 more if given the opportunity.

I’d make the tough decision to sit Mark. Won’t happen but McCool should get an opportunity. He stops some of those 15 yard shots. Mark is guessing at times.

The guys covering Joey have been able to stay with their match up with him because we aren’t making his guy slide off of him like teams are doing to us. Need to let Joey play some crease so his guy needs to be the 1 slide which would create more opportunities for him. Not even sure what to think of Hiltz. Looks like he could careless about being on the field.

Saw Dwan get benched for some time. Not sure what he did wrong. Need to get home and watch.

Looked like they have Figueiras directing the D at this point. Tough job.

 

[FRANKIEFAN]

I feel bad for him, especially since he saw an open goal and was in the heat of the moment without slo-mo or replay to rely on. But watching that several times, he could have gotten 5-10 yards closer to take that shot.

Then he might hit the goalie? Unlike hitting a moving teammates stick from 40 yards empty nets split second isn't something any player is conditioned to do or has done a million times.

Spallina getting roasted everywhere on social.

I was super pumped to go to BU-Navy Saturday while watching the game but now I don't want to bc I am so sick to my stomach from another ridiculous choke job in the Dome.