sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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Welcome to Dinosaurs Day!
Today we celebrate those large, extinct reptiles: dinosaurs. Scientists believe they first appeared about 245 million years ago, at the beginning of the Middle Triassic Epoch, and existed for about 180 million years, going extinct about 66 million years ago at the end of the Cretaceous Period. The period when they lived is called the Mesozoic Era. During this time they went through many changes, and various species of dinosaurs replaced other species. Some dinosaurs were bipedal, meaning they walked on two legs, and some were quadrupedal, meaning they walked on all fours. Some switched back and forth. Some were covered with feathers, while others had what was almost like body armor. Some ran fast, and others were slow; most were herbivores, but some were carnivores. There were at least 700 species of dinosaurs, and possibly more than 1,000.
SU News
Syracuse football will pay UConn $350,000 to play at Carrier Dome in return game of series (PS; Mink)
Syracuse University will pay Connecticut $350,000 to play a football game at the Carrier Dome this September.
The payment amount was contracted by both schools when a two-game series was agreed upon in May 2015, according to a copy of the scheduling agreement obtained via an open records request.
Connecticut was contracted to pay Syracuse the same amount following the teams' matchup in 2016 at UConn. Syracuse won the game, 31-24 behind a 407-yard passing performance by quarterback Eric Dungey and a school-record, 270-yard receiving day from Amba Etta-Tawo.
This type of financial agreement is common in college athletics to help defray travel and athletics operations costs for the visiting team.
Western Michigan will pay Syracuse $300,000 to play this season's opener at Waldo Stadium in Kalamazoo, Mich. The financial agreements for SU's other nonconference games this season against Wagner and Notre Dame aren't subject to open records requests because they are between two private institutions.
This year's Syracuse-Connecticut game is scheduled for Sept. 22. Kick time and TV info will be determined closer to the date of the game. The contest is the last in a two-game series between the two schools.
Since the previous meeting, UConn made a coaching change, firing Bob Diaco and hiring Randy Edsall, who led the Huskies from 1990-2010.
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Wake Forest Football 2018 Season Preview: Syracuse (bloggersodear.com; Foochs)
Syracuse football is in an interesting position. Head Coach Dino Babers isn’t doing terribly per se, but from what I can gather, Syracuse fans are starting to get a little bit restless Coming off a 4-8 season, the Orange notched the 62nd best offense but only the 99th best defense.
Pretty much every Syracuse game was a high scoring affair for one side, the other, or both, and a lot of that was due to Syracuse’s explosive passing attack. the 22nd best according to Football Study Hall, and even better for the Orange, their all-everything senior QB Eric Dungey is coming back. Dungey was an absolute monster, notching 2495 yards and 14 touchdowns, along with 749 rushing yards and 9 rushing touchdowns. That’s well over 3000 all purpose yards and 25 touchdowns. Holy cow.
Now, there were problems. Not only did Dungey throw 9 interceptions, he was sacked a LOT. Dungey ate 26 sacks in 9 games, and that doesn’t even factor in hits he took on scrambles.
Unfortunately for the Orange, there’s another pretty notable problem. Steve Ishmael and Ervin Philips, the two leading receivers for the Orange who accounted for over 2000 yards and 11 combined touchdowns, not to mention being targeted for over 60% of Syracuse’s passing plays, were both seniors last season. The cupboard isn’t bare or anything, but losing a dynamic duo of receivers like that is pretty massive, and even if the Orange eventually get it together, it might take a while.
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Couple of changes on the #NDSU football staff and assignments; Kody Morgan has been promoted from offensive quality control to cornerbacks coach. He replaces Bryan Shepherd, the former Bison took the defensive quality control position at Syracuse.
As football training camp begins for the Tar Heels, three things to watch closely (newsobserver.com; Alexander)
The wait is over. North Carolina’s football team is just a month away from its first game of the 2018 football season.
Preseason training camp begins this week, and UNC hopes that the lessons learned from last year can help it compete in the ACC Coastal Division this year.
UNC finished 3-9 last season, after going a combined 19-8 in the 2015 and 2016 seasons. Some of last season’s struggles can be attributed to injuries, as multiple players had their seasons cut short. And some of the struggles can be attributed to inexperience, particularly on the offensive side of the ball.
Training camp is supposed to mark a new beginning, a chance to forget what happened last year. But for UNC, the offseason also has been rocky.
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Quarterback Ryan Finley is back for NC State. Who will help him in 2018? (myrtlebeachonline.com; Giglio)
The offseason has been really good to N.C. State.
The Wolfpack had a school-record seven players taken in the NFL draft in April and has crushed it on the recruiting trail, especially in the state.
Now comes the hard part: getting back on the field. N.C. State opens practice on Friday. There will be many familiar names, and stars, missing from the top-25 team that went 9-4 last year when camp opens. However, the cupboard — as coach Dave Doeren once notably opined — is not completely bare.
Here’s a look at who N.C. State has coming back for the 2018 season (with a look at who’s gone on Thursday):
Offense
Ryan Finley is not quite “Vince Carter” old. There’s no one on the roster who was born after Finley’s college career started, it just feels that way for the 23-year-old graduate student.
In Year 3 as the Wolfpack starter (and Year 6 in college), much is expected of Finley, who began his career at Boise State in 2013. He threw for 3,518 yards last season with 17 touchdowns and six interceptions.
As you might expect from a sixth-year player, Finley is smart. Decision-making and accuracy (65.8 percent) are his strengths.
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Projecting college football season with watchlists – The North State Journal (nsjonline.com; Krest)
The college football award watchlist season ended last week with the release of the preseason list for the Walter Camp Award. Over a two-week span, watchlists for 16 different awards were unveiled, honoring everything from best punter and best interior lineman to best player and most versatile.
Sixteen committees of experts have culled down the top players at each position to come up with a short list, which should give us a good idea of what to expect this season. After all, the more watchlist players a team has, the better it should be, right?
We tested that theory last year by using the preseason lists to predict each local team’s win-loss record. Overall, that method was more accurate than we had any right to expect it to be:
Team: Predicted record; Actual record
NC State: 7-4 (1 toss-up); 8-4
App State: 10-1 (1 toss-up); 8-4
UNC: 2-8 (2 toss-ups); 3-9
ECU: 1-9 (2 toss-ups); 3-9
Charlotte: 0-9 (2 toss-ups); 1-11
Duke: 9-3; 6-6
Wake Forest: 4-8; 8-5
Other than Duke and Wake, who underperformed and outperformed the model’s expectations, respectively, we were within a game or two of each team’s actual record, just by comparing the team’s watchlisted players to those of the opponents.
Assuming the lists are as predictive this year, Duke should brace itself for a big season.
The Blue Devils had players on 13 of the 16 lists. No other local team had as many, and Duke’s 15 players led the in-state teams.
Duke: 15
NC State: 8
Wake Forest: 6
App State: 5
UNC: 3
ECU: 1
Charlotte: 0
ACC Football Rx: Best/Worst Realignment Changes
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5 Worst Conference Changes5. South Carolina (ACC to the Independents in 1970)
4. West Virginia (Big East to Big 12 in 2012)
3. Maryland (ACC to the Big Ten in 2014)
2. Colorado (Big 12 to the Pac-12 in 2011)
1. Tulane (SEC to the Independents in 1966)
5 Best Conference Changes5. Louisville (Big East/AAC to the ACC in 2014)
4. TCU (Mountain West to the Big East (kinda) to the Big 12 in 2012)
3. Rutgers (Big East/AAC to the Big Ten in 2014)
2. Texas A&M (Big 12 to the SEC in 2012)
1. Florida State (Independents to the ACC in 1992)
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Other
Forbes travel writer raves at Syracuse's 'renaissance' (PS; Moriarty)
A travel writer for Forbes magazine says Syracuse is one of the most underrated cities in the country, describing it as "brimming with excitement and charm."
"Perhaps known mostly for college basketball and snowy winters, Syracuse has been undergoing a modern-day renaissance in recent years and has more to offer locals and visitors than ever before," Roger Sands writes in a piece on Forbes.com.
"Throughout Greater Syracuse there are art galleries and museums, historical societies and theaters for those looking to enjoy a bit of history and culture during their trip," he says. "A visit to this friendly city will fill your days with an array of activities, fine dining and historic tours."
Sands lists as "must see" attractions the Erie Canal Museum, the St. Joseph's Health Amphitheater at Lakeview ("one of the region's best seasonal open-air concert venues"), the SUArt Galleries ("proudly displays works by some of the world's most notable artists") and the Landmark Theatre ("features major Broadway shows which can be enjoyed without having to make the trip to New York City").
In addition to Syracuse University "Orange" basketball, sports lovers will find "high action" options that include the Syracuse Chiefs Triple-A baseball team and the Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League, Sands says.
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