sutomcat
2024 Iggy Award (ACC Tournament Record)
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Welcome to World UFO Day!
World UFO Day is dedicated to the existence of unidentified flying objects. First celebrated in 2001, it was created by the World UFO Day Organization. The day is often celebrated on June 24 and July 2, although The World UFO Day Organization declared July 2 to be the official day. June 24 marks the anniversary of one of the first UFO sightings in the United States, when Kenneth Arnold reported seeing nine high-speed crescent-shaped objects near Mt. Rainier in Washington, in 1947. July 2 marks the anniversary of the Roswell UFO incident, which also happened in 1947.
The creators of the day claim the day exists to "raise awareness about the undoubted existence of UFO's and with that intelligent beings from outer space" and that the day exists to "encourage governments to unclassify their knowledge about sightings throughout the history"—as they believe that the US government has exclusive information about UFOs. The creators also said, "the most important thing is that people collectively open their minds to the subject for one day and send out the message mentally that UFOs are welcome on this earth." On a less serious note, the day is for talking with friends about UFOs, watching movies about UFOs, attending conferences about UFOs, having parties with UFO themes, and gazing up into the sky and looking for UFOs.
SU News
Our 2019 college football predictions for the Syracuse Orange. Can Syracuse make it two 10 win seasons in a row?
https://insidetheloudhouse.com/2019/07/01/syracuse-football-lets-talk-attendance-2019-and-beyond/ (itlh.com; Peelman)
Syracuse Football had a resurgent year in 2018-2019 after almost a decade’s worth of mediocrity or worse. Inside The Loud House will look at how on-field success last year will impact attendance going forward.
Syracuse football had a heck of a year in 2018. Anyone who pays attention to college football will know Syracuse, a team whom for the last decade who has played downright ugly (as the records will show), had a bounce-back year that finally put them back on the map.
Their ability to win games at home (6-0), and finish with a 10-3 record overall slowly but surely, prompted Syracuse football fans to come back and support their home team.
The attendance number reflected that as well. With each home game Syracuse football won in 2018, attendance grew. By seasons end, the Orange had drawn a crowd (for its final home game) of 42,797 against Louisville, according to Syracuse.com. That is the highest mark for Carrier Dome football attendance since LSU visited in 2015.
Let’s take that a step further though.
For the LSU game in 2015, there were a lot of visiting fans. However, the Louisville game this last year, that was clearly not the case at all as that mark was set by the fan base here in Syracuse, not visiting Louisville fans. That makes reaching that mark even more impressive doesn’t it?
For the 2018 season, Syracuse football had an average attendance of 37,043, the highest mark since 2014, according to Syracuse.com. Compared to 2017, which drew 33,931, that’s an increase of over 2,000 fans per game! So what should we expect for Syracuse football attendance going forward?
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https://sujuiceonline.com/2019/07/02/orange-watch-our-top-syracuse-athlete-of-2018-19-is-andre-szmyt/ (the juice; Bierman)
Item: July 1 each year has always meant (to us) the end of the previous Syracuse sports seasons covering football, basketball and lacrosse, and the beginning of the next sports year, or in this case 2019-2020, the beginning of a new decade to boot. With that is mind as we look ahead to the next academic year’s cycle that kicks-off with the appropriately-named ACC Kickoff event in Charlotte July 16-18, we present our Orange Watch Syracuse athlete of the year for 2018-19.
One year ago at this time, be honest, had you ever heard the name Andre Szmyt?
He came out of the pack in training camp to win the starting job, and it took a quick look up to see the spelling of No. 91 as the redshirt freshman trotted out on the field to attempt the first of his school single-season record 61 extra point conversions against Western Michigan nine months ago, eventually finishing without a miss on his PATs.
As submitted to the ACC as the school’s nominee for top male athlete, and compiled by the Syracuse football media relation staff headed by Mike Morrison, here’s why the choice of Andre Szmyt was a no-brainer:
- Winner of the Lou Groza Award as the nation’s top placekicker
- First Syracuse kicker and third freshman to ever win the award, joining Arizona State’s Thomas Weber (2007) and Florida State’s Roberto Aguayo (2013)
- Unanimous First-Team All-American (Walter Camp, FWAA, AP, AFCA, Sporting News)
- Received All-America honors from 14 different selectors, including 12 first-team citations
- Touchdown Club of Columbus Vlade Award winner as college football’s most accurate kicker
- All-ACC First Team
- All-ECAC First Team
- Two-time ACC Specialist of the Week (vs. Florida State, at Clemson)
- All-ACC Academic Team selection
- Led the NCAA with an ACC-record 30 made field goals, one short of the all-time FBS mark of 31 held by Georgia’s Billy Bennett
- Also led the NCAA in field goals attempted (34), field goals per game (2.31) and points per game (11.6)
- Second kicker in FBS history to lead the nation in scoring average, joining Boise State’s Tyler Jones (2004)
- Ranked second nationally with 151 points scored, the third-highest total ever for an FBS kicker
- Overall, ranked 10th nationally in field goal percentage (.882), but was No. 1 in conversion rate among the eight kickers with at least 27 attempts
- Made 23-of-24 field goals from inside 40 yards
- First Syracuse kicker to hit three field goals of 50+ yards in the same season and was 3-for-3 from beyond 50 yards for the year
- Set the Syracuse single-season record for extra points, making all 61 of his tries
- His career-long, 54-yard field goal at Pitt tied for the second-longest field goal ever kicked at Heinz Field (college or pro)
- Booted multiple field goals in 11 out of 13 games
- Recorded two separate streaks of 11 straight field goals without a miss
- Recorded 10+ points 11 times and tallied 15+ points on three occasions
- Connected on a personal-best four field goals vs. Louisville and added six PATs to finish with a career-high 18 points against the Cardinals
https://insidetheloudhouse.com/2019/06/29/tale-of-the-tape-cuse-picks-up-second-safety-commit-of-2020/ (itlh.com; Carey)
Syracuse football has acquired another talented DB. Our recruiting analyst did a “Tale of the Tape” and explained why Charles Bell VI can be special in Orange.
Syracuse football rounded out their big recruiting weekend with another Safetycommitment. This time it was from Maryland prospect, Charles Bell VI.
Bell is from Gaithersburg, Maryland where he attends Quince Orchard High School. Bell already possesses very good size for his position at 6-foot and 195-pounds, but will only get stronger when he arrives in Central New York.
The 2020 prospect also boasts an impressive offer list. Boston College, in-state Maryland, Pitt, and Virginia Tech were all after Bell, but the Orange won out. Credit Reno Ferri and Nick Monroe for doing the heavy lifting in this recruitment.
According to 247sports.com, Bell is a 3-star prospect. In addition, they rank Bell the 77th best safety in his class and the 32nd best prospect from Maryland in 2020.
Bell was on the Syracuse campus along with seven other prospects last weekend. He announced his commitment via twitter:
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https://247sports.com/Article/2019-ACC-football-schedule-Finebaum-Florida-State-Clemson-133347404/ (247sports.com; Nivision)
Paul Finebaum has made it clear in no uncertain terms that he isn’t a fan of the ACC, and that continued on his radio show on Monday afternoon.
While perusing a list of ACC games to watch for the 2019 season, Finebaum was unimpressed by the conference slate this fall. A vast majority of the games on the list didn’t move the needle for Finebaum, and he had no problem using his dry wit to poke fun at a conference that hasn’t been all that entertaining outside of Clemson in the last couple of years.
“You know they have the ACC games to watch this year?” Finebaum asked. “Games to watch. Everybody ready? You sitting down, boys and girls? First game: Georgia Tech at Clemson. That kicks off the season. Does anyone want to watch that game? It’s the first game on. I’m mildly interested in Geoff Collins. Mildly. Two days later: Virginia and Pittsburgh. Raise your hand if you’re interested in that game. By the way, these are the top 10 games to watch all year. I’m skipping the games involving SEC schools. Sept. 7: Miami and North Carolina. You have Mack Brown versus his defensive coordinator at Texas, Manny Diaz. That’s interesting until the game starts.”
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https://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/sports/college/clemson/2019/07/02/clemson-and-football-fans-can-expect-more-than-games-acc-network/1602210001/ (greenvilleonline.com; Robinson)
Clemson's season opener against Georgia Tech will be the first football game televised on the ACC Network. It is one of 40 football games the new linear channel will broadcast this season through its partnership with ESPN.
But live events are only a small portion of the ACC Network's programming plan. The Network must fill its 24-hour schedule with studio shows and storytelling features. Clemson will also contribute early to that cause.
Former Clemson lineman Eric Mac Lain was one of the first studio analysts the network hired, along with former Georgia and Miami coach Mark Richt and former Florida State quarterback E.J. Manuel.
The ACC Network will offer broadcasts of 40 football and more than 150 basketball games during its first season that launches Aug. 22. (Photo: Adam Hagy, Adam Hagy-USA TODAY Sports)
A four-part documentary series on Clemson will air on the network through the opening weekend of the season.
“You'll see a lot of storytelling," ESPN senior director of programming and acquisitions Stacie McCollum said. "You'll see a lot of access. You'll see a lot of technology. We just want to be authentic and show off the range of all of those sports. We want to go deeper.”
The network's studio shows will be produced at ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut. McCollum said many other features, including some live events, will be produced in campus facilities. She asserted that the fans will not notice any difference in production quality between ESPN and campus-produced broadcasts.
The only disruption fans may notice is unconventional scheduling. McCollum said the network seeks flexibility, like the Friday night ACC football games the league has scheduled in recent years. But McCollumn said the network will test those waters with Olympic sports before tinkering heavily with football and basketball schedules.
ACCN will televise three of the nine Friday night games the league has scheduled this season. The Network will have three games on the opening Saturday, Aug. 31. Pittsburgh will kick off against Ohio at 11 a.m. on Sept. 7 so the network can squeeze in four games that day.
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2019 ACC Football Recruiting Breakdown: North Carolina (thekeyplay,com; Jessee)
If you were to list out the "rival" schools of Virginia Tech, your list may get a bit fuzzy. You obviously have UVa and West Virginia. You can throw in Miami, and maybe even BC (the two have played a conference battle every season since 1993). You could maybe end the list there. But in terms of just disdain, and maybe even a bit of annoyance, you have to throw North Carolina into that mix. It's a regional recruiting battle that has picked up steam in the past 5-6 with Tech's strategy of focusing on North Carolina as a talent pool to compliment the 757. No, it's not a vicious on-field battle. But the tweets are pretty nasty...
2019 Class:
ACC Rank: 6
UNC is as much of a designer brand as any program in the nation, and with that comes an instant connection with recruits. It also doesn't hurt that they're located right in the middle of some of the best recruiting grounds north of Georgia. UNC has ranked in the top 6 in the ACC for the past three classes, despite only mustering up a couple wins each season. It was the number one knock on Fedora – getting talented players to play well at the college level. Mac Brown is looking to change that. Although this class is very much a mix of Fedora's recruits and Mac's recruits, it has a different vibe than anything under Fedora, even in the winning years.
Top Recruit: Sam Howell, QB, Monroe NC (0.9582)
This is exactly what Carolina needed to kick off the Mac Brown Era 2.0, a big time QB recruit. Howell is coming into fall camp right in the thick of a QB battle with incumbent starter Nathan Elliott. Mac Brown won't want to line up against South Carolina in Week 1 with a true freshman QB, no one would. But, he may not have much of a choice unless Elliott develops significantly.
As a QB, Howell fits the very modern model for a run-n-gun QB. He's only 6'. He has some mobility but is not a pure dual threat QB for the college game. Mac Brown compared him to Baker "Touchdown Maker" Mayfield in the spring, but take that with a grain of salt. I'm pretty sure any short QB with a good set of wheels is Baker Mayfield to anyone over the age of 50 at the moment.
Biggest Need: Defensive Beef
Although Carolina has managed to recruit well over the past 5-6 years, they have struggled with depth on the defensive front seven. It's shown its ugly head the last couple years. UNC was 12th in the conference in 2018 in rushing yards allowed per game, 14th in 2017.
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Reasons Texas Might Join the ACC Someday (RX; HM)
Reasons Texas Might Join the ACC Someday
Let's talk hypothetical ACC expansion...
IF the Big XII really does break up at the end of its Grant-of-Rights period, and IF Texas decides to jump ship, what factors might lead them to the ACC? In this article I'm going to lay out three reasons why I think the Longhorns would give the ACC a good, long look...
Longhorn Network
Let's face it, Texas ain't coming to the ACC to be just another school. If they come at all, they'll want to keep the LHN - which probably means doing a Notre Dame-like deal (5 football games at the ACC's discretion, access to minor bowls with pooled revenue, all-in for other sports, no share of T1 contract but full share of ACCN revenues). It's highly-unlikely that any other P5 conference except the Big XII itself would even consider allowing Texas to bring their own network with them - but in the ACC, it could be bundled with the ACCN and sold together from New England to Florida... to Texas.
From ESPN's point-of-view, yes they would have to pay the ACC a little more for adding those 5 games against the Longhorns, but not as much as they'd have to pay the SEC for adding 8 games! Yes, they'd have to continue the LHN - but with a guaranteed 2 or 3 ACC games every year, plus the flexibility to schedule 7 more games (possibly 6 of which would be controlled by Texas), the value of the LHN would skyrocket! Not a problem for ESPN, in my opinion...
Scheduling Games In-State.
The Longhorns have lots of fans and alumni in the state of Texas, so playing football games there is very important to them. For the 2019 season, the 'Horns are guaranteed at least 10 games in-state (7 in-conference, 3 out-of-conference). Now it's true that membership in the SEC might allow the Horns to play as many as 8 games in state (4 SEC home games + typically 3 home OOC games, maybe all 4 in some years). That's not bad! Whenever the Longhorns would visit Texas A&M, that number goes up one more.
By comparison, how would a partial football membership in the ACC look? Assuming 5 games per year like Notre Dame, they would alternate between 2 and 3 home games against the ACC. That still leaves 7 games to schedule at will. Assuming one out-of-state non-conference game per year, that leaves 6 in-state. Thus, with no other member schools in Texas, the Longhorns could still match the 8 to 9 games that the SEC could offer. Of course, if the ACC were to add any other Texas teams (say, TCU and Baylor?), that number could go even higher for the ACC option.
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https://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/highschool/84781688-132.html (orlandosentinel.com; video)
College Football Now talks about the Power 5 Conference. They discuss the ACC of Florida State, Clemson, Pittsburgh, Duke, North Carolina, and Miami.
https://accfootballrx.blogspot.com/2019/07/psa-ustvnow-for-1-through-7619.html (RX; HM)
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My family and I spent some time in Europe last year and while we were there we used USTVNow to keep up with our favorite shows - and the DVR feature is convenient for the time zone differences, too. RECOMMENDED.
https://accfootballrx.blogspot.com/2019/07/best-case-for-big-xii-disbursement.html (RX; HM)
In the event that the Big XII really does break up, what would be the best possible/plausible scenario for the ACC, ESPN, and stability of college athletics?
OU, Okie St, Kansas and Texas Tech to the SEC
By adding 4 teams, including two new states, it allows the SEC to reopen its contract with ESPN. It adds basketball power to the SEC, thus balancing out the SEC Network TV schedule. With the Big Ten now walled off at the Nebraska state line, it prevents their expansion southward and virtually guarantees that the SEC would be the #1 conference in terms of TV revenue. It also restores some rivalries for Missouri, Texas A&M and Arkansas.
Texas, TCU, Baylor and WVU to the ACC
By adding 4 teams, including two new states and a huge content-multiplier in WVU, it allows the ACC to reopen its contract with ESPN. This, in turn, could move the ACC into the same ballpark, revenue-wise, as the Big Ten and SEC. Texas gets 2 local teams to play every year, but if that's not enough, they could get a "Notre Dame" style scheduling agreement, in which case the ACC either (a) doesn't add Baylor, or (b) also adds one other team to help bridge the geographic gap (such as possibly Memphis or Houston).
Because this would involve 8 of the 10 members of the Big XII, if it happened all at once they could vote to dissolve the GoR (or, more likely, they simply wait until it's about to expire before announcing their moves). Legally they might still be obligated to pay exit fees to Kansas State and Iowa State, but these schools might even view that as making the best of a bad situation.
The only likely realignment after that point would be: (1) Notre Dame could join the ACC for football (perhaps with Texas if both are partial members at that time); (2) the Big Ten could try to poach Colorado from the Pac-12. Of course, the Big Ten could always try to go after another ACC, but with this conference composition I just don't see it happening:
* assuming full-time football member
https://rubbingtherock.com/2019/07/01/clemson-football-expect-safeties-summer-2019/ (rubbingtherock.com; Spencer)
for gbo...
Clemson football’s safety group has plenty of experience and talent. Can the position grow and develop from an inconsistent performance last year?
One of the most experienced groups on the Clemson football team in 2019 is the safeties.
The Tigers return both starters in Tanner Muse and K’Von Wallace, as well as key reserves like Nolan Turner and Denzel Johnson. When you add in a plethora of talented freshmen, led by 4-star Joseph Charleston, you can see why there’s reason to be excited about the backend of that Clemson football defense.
Though the position is experienced, it was certainly one of the most questioned positions of 2018.
During the regular season of 2018, there were plenty of spots where the safeties were out of position and gave up some huge plays. One of the games where this was most prevalent was in the South Carolina game, where the Gamecocks had wide open wide-outs and put up 35 points on the Tigers.
In the ACC Championship game and the CFB Playoff, the safeties played like a different unit. They still gave up a few plays, but we saw better coverage and more discipline from the group as a whole. Wallace is a projected All-ACC player, and Muse could be on the verge of that honor, as well.
As we head into the thick of summer, here’s what Clemson football fans can expect from the safeties.
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The ACC's Most Feared Return Men Since 1990
No play can be bigger for a special teams unit than a scintillating return touchdown via kickoff or punt. The ACC's has housed some of college football's mos...
youtu.be
The ACC's Most Feared Return Men Since 1990
Other
NY considers new options to stop Onondaga Lake Parkway bridge crashes (PS; Weiner)
New York state may order changes to traffic patterns and upgrade warning technology on Onondaga Lake Parkway in a renewed effort to cut down on crashes into the CSX railroad bridge.
The potential changes include intersection improvements to prevent trucks from entering the parkway, lane reductions in targeted areas and lower speed limits to calm traffic and give truck drivers (who are banned from the road) time to stop and turn around before hitting the low bridge.
State engineers also will consider making technology upgrades to an early-warning system installed in 2011, a state Department of Transportation spokesman said Monday.
The state’s goal is to come up with a proposal that will be shared with the public by the end of the year, said Joe Morrissey, a DOT spokesman in Albany.
“Right now, we’re evaluating the system that’s currently in place and comparing it with technology that may not have been available when the system was originally installed in 2011,” Morrissey told syracuse.com | The Post-Standard.
The DOT decided to take a new look at ways to prevent crashes into the bridge after Gov. Andrew Cuomo included $25 million in this year’s state budget for new technologies that alert drivers and law enforcement when over-height vehicles approach low bridges.
Morrissey said the state’s new effort was not prompted by any recent crashes on Onondaga Lake Parkway in Liverpool.
The average height of a semi-truck trailer is 13 feet 6 inches to 14 feet. The clearance under the bridge is marked as 10 feet 9 inches.
The latest crash occurred Wednesday night when an empty tractor-trailer driven by Tyrone Gibbs, 38, of Syracuse, hit the low bridge, forcing law enforcement to shut down the parkway for four hours in both directions.
The warning system installed in 2011 detects tractor-trailers and other large trucks. When activated, the system’s warning signs flash the words, “Overheight vehicle detected” and “Stop Now.”
Sensors also trigger an alarm at a state Department of Transportation command center that operates 24 hours a day. Cameras on the parkway allow DOT workers to see if a driver needs help.
The warning system was activated 431 times in its first two years of operation, and more than 600 times in both 2014 and 2015, according to traffic records. Despite the warning system, an average of one to two trucks per year still crash into the steel railroad bridge.
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