sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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Welcome to International Day of Peace!
International Day of Peace—established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1981 and first observed in 1982—is "devoted to commemorating and strengthening the ideals of peace both within and among all nations and peoples." It was originally held on the third Tuesday of September, which is the opening day of the regular session of the General Assembly. In 2001, a resolution adopted by the General Assembly designated the International Day of Peace to be a "day of global ceasefire and non-violence." It also changed the date of the holiday to September 21.
The holiday has a different theme each year and is marked with education and the raising of public awareness on issues related to peace. The Secretary-General of the United Nations rings the United Nations Peace Bell, which is located in the Peace Garden at the United Nations Headquarters, and a minute of silence is observed. This moment is observed globally at 12:00 noon. The day can be celebrated individually or as part of a group and can be observed by attending various events or programs. It is often marked with intercultural and interfaith dialogues, workshops based on the UN Peace Day theme, vigils, marches, parades, and flag ceremonies.
SU News
Hugh Freeze Press Conference: Injuries, Syracuse, Rat Poison (aseaofred.com; Manson)
The Liberty Flames moved to 3-0 on Saturday with a win over Old Dominion, 45-17, on Saturday night. The Flames play Syracuse this week with kickoff from the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York scheduled for 8 p.m. on ACCN. Liberty head coach Hugh Freeze met with the media for his weekly press conference on Monday and here is everything he had to say beginning with his opening statement.
“We are excited to be 3-0, obviously,” he said. “Us defending our home games is important to us here. With an in-state school coming in, it was important for us to play well and to get that win. Loved the energy in the stadium, hopefully we can continue to build that, make it even more exciting for our home games. I thought we played really good on defense. Outside of one play, I thought we played really outstanding on defense. Offensively was solid, not our best, but solid. Special teams cost us 10 points. The game should have been more in hand at halftime had our special teams played a little better. That penalty and the fumble really hurt us. Third straight game that our offense hasn’t turned it over, which is important to us. Defense got a takeaway. Really thought the third quarter our defense was outstanding. We were able to stick in a couple to make us feel more comfortable about the game. Good night. Excited to be 3-0. Short week this week to get ready for a very, very difficult opponent in Syracuse.”
HOW IS AIDAN ALVES AFTER THE XRAY ON HIS CLAVICLE?
“I think he will play this week. He is sore, but it doesn’t appear to be anything significant so we are thankful for that.”THERE’S A LOT OF HISTORY BETWEEN THESE TWO TEAMS, HOW IMPORTANT IS A WIN FOR YOU?
“Every game to me is important. I don’t consider this a huge rivalry game right now, but I will say it is a great opportunity. I’m sure they’re not happy that we were able to beat them at their place last year. So, I’m sure we will get their best attention. They are a heck of a football team. Their roster is probably better than ours. We’re going to put a good plan together and obviously hope to play well Friday night on TV up in Syracuse. Dino is a heck of a ball coach, heck of a guy too, really like him a lot and his wife. They are just good people. His kids are playing really hard for him, are really confident right now. It will be a great challenge, but we are certainly looking forward to those opportunities that we get.”ANY UPDATE ON TE HUNTLEY?
“I think he will be fine.”HOW MUCH OF AN IMPACT HAS TOM SARGEANT HAD ON THIS PROGRAM?
“Tom is really what is really, really good about college athletics. The kid had to earn everything that came to him. Now he’s a team captain and started (50) games in a row. You wouldn’t choose him out of a lineup to be your anchor in the middle, but that’s what’s great about the human spirit, and effort, and work, and development, and commitment, and discipline. Tom is a poster board for all of that. I’m real thrilled that he has experienced some success that came with all of his sacrifice and hard work.”HOW DO YOU GET YOUR TEAM READY FOR THE ATMOSPHERE IN THE DOME?
“We don’t take anything for granted. We will prepare like we did for an away game at Troy with some crowd noise, but really that is all that should be different to us. It might be a little bit louder. We don’t expect to have people cheering for us, we get that, but that has nothing to do with our execution of our game plan or our effort. That is the only thing that I’m concerned about. We will prepare a little bit for some crowd noise, but it’s more about execution and the physical play.”WHAT TYPE OF CHALLENGES DOES RB SEAN TUCKER PROVIDE?
“He put together one of the best rookie seasons in the history of Syracuse football. He had a great year last year too. We were impressed with him then and we’re even more impressed with him now. He’s a really good running back. They have two quarterbacks that they play some, so you have to kind of prepare a little differently for each. #3, Harris, he literally is one of the best receivers I have ever seen on tape. He’s that good. An experienced offensive line, obviously they are playing with a lot of confidence right now. It is a tall task for us stopping the run and the pass. Heck you turn your attention to their defense, they are ranked 4th in the nation right now in total defense. Giving up 60 yards rushing and only about 160 in passing. DLine is a problem. They are really, really active. Playing extremely hard. It’s by far the best unit we’ve faced this year.”...
Tune in as Conor (@conormacpicks) Grant (@grantarnold39) and Ian (@Bobano) preview and predict Friday's college football game between the Liberty Flames taking on the Syracuse Orange. Liberty has been rolling so far this year and they head on the road to face Syracuse as a touchdown favorite. Which team gets it done?
Bones’ Biggest Takeaways: Syracuse Can’t Evade Sloppy Play – Orange Fizz – Daily Syracuse Recruiting News & Team Coverage (orangefizz.net; Bonaparte)
Syracuse slapped UAlbany, 62-24 on Saturday. With a score like that one, of course, there are plenty of positives to choose from, though some negatives as well. Here are the biggest takeaways from Syracuse football’s second win of 2021:
SYRACUSE CAN’T EVADE SLOPPY PLAY
Yeah, yeah, yeah, the Orange won big. Dino Babers’ squad did what it was supposed to do against an FCS team. Though they couldn’t do it without committing 16 PENALTIES and setting a PROGRAM RECORD FOR PENALTY YARDS. 16 penalties for 164 penalty yards is a staggering number. The goal last Saturday should’ve been to win and do it by playing a clean game. It’s baffling that the Orange couldn’t get close to that against the Great Danes. Sure, they could lean on Sean Tucker and a lost UAlbany defense all game, but against a real power 5 squad or even Liberty this Friday, that performance won’t cut it. Heck, 8 penalties really hurt the Orange against Rutgers, 16 is down-right unacceptable.
SEAN TUCKER IS AN NFL TALENT
After his performance this weekend, the second-year back became the only Orange rusher to have 100+ rushing yards and 100+ receiving yards in a game. Was it against UAlbany? Yeah. Is it still incredibly impressive? Absolutely. Tucker did it on a mere 13 carries and 3 catches as well. It seemed like every time he touched the ball, it traveled 40+ yards. Not saying he deserves to don number 44 like some people out there, but he sure is doing his best Jim Brown, Ernie Davis, Floyd Little impression every weekend. It’s clear now that this team will rely heavily both on its rush game along with its stout defense. With Tucker in the backfield, that should prove a solid game plan. Don’t be surprised when he’s playing for an NFL team in a couple years.BABERS HAS YET TO PICK HIS QUARTERBACK
All the talk leading up to that game was about how Dino had said prior that week that he would pick his starting quarterback after that game. When the post-game press conference came, the HC was asked who it would be and gave the most Dino Babers answer ever: “I think we’ve got two good ones.” Classic. He added that they’d check the tape and make a decision, but it really wouldn’t be at all surprising to see them continue with both of those guys. If he is to make a QB1 selection and stick to it it seems like it would surely be DeVito, but in the land of Dino Babers, nothing is certain.Syracuse takes on Liberty this Friday, if you want to learn more about the Flames take a listen to the interview I conducted with LU play-by-play broadcaster, Alan York earlier this year:
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What we know about Syracuse's player availability to start Liberty week: TE depth a concern (247sports.com; $; Bailey)
Syracuse football is officially one-quarter of the way through its 2021 season. Compared to last year, the injury situation is excellent in terms of opportunity for team success. The Orange hasn't lost an expected contributor for the season.
Its top two quarterbacks appear close to full strength, though Tommy DeVito had a brief scare on Saturday, while the top six offensive linemen are healthy as well -- aside from redshirt junior Dakota Davis gradually getting his conditioning back after missing all of fall camp.
However, there's a growing list of key players who are working through injuries -- or in the case of senior fullback/tight end Chris Elmore, a non-health-related absence. On Friday, when Liberty comes to the Carrier Dome for an 8 p.m. kickoff, SU's depth could be tested moreso than in any of its first three contests.
"We've got some guys in the training room who are banged up and we need to get them back healthy," head coach Dino Babers said on Monday. "That's going to be really important for our success this week."
Let's go player-by-player and break down what we know:
TE Luke Benson: The team's top tight end suffered a lower-body injury in the first half of SU's 62-24 win over FCS Albany on Saturday and watched the remainder of the contest on the sideline, wearing a brace on his knee and using a crutch to move around. Babers said that Benson is still being diagnosed, which aligns with what a source told 247Sports: he underwent an MRI on the knee.
S Ja'Had Carter: One of the less-heralded standouts on SU's defense,
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First Look: External Lights on Carrier Dome (SI; McAllister)
External lights on the Carrier Dome will be used Friday night to light up the building when Syracuse football faces Liberty, according to Ricky Sayer of CitrusTV News. Sayer also obtained photos of the lit up Dome from a test run Monday night, which you can see in the tweet embedded below.
"Whoa! The Carrier Dome is shining bright," Sayer tweeted. "New lights were on for a short time tonight as a 'light show' was tested. They'll be on for games, including their official debut on Friday for the game, I'm told. (Photos 2/3/4 shared w/ me by Dome Director Pete Sala)."
The lights are one of several new features of the renovated Carrier Dome. Fans have also enjoyed wider concourses throughout the Dome, improved food selection, air conditioning and a state of the art center hung scoreboard that is among the largest in the country. More renovations are being planned in the future as well.
The roof also got a makeover, as a completely redesigned structure to replace the outdated inflatable roof. The new roof helps with maintenance and also prevents the air from pushing fans out of the doors when exiting the Dome.
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Locked On Syracuse - Daily Podcast On Syracuse Orange Football & Basketball on Apple Podcasts (apple.com; podcast; Locked on Syracuse)
Syracuse laid the hammer down on Albany over the weekend in a game that had a preseason vibe to it. Tommy DeVito did his job against the Great Danes, but did Garrett Shrader do enough to convince us that he deserves consideration for the starting spot or more playing time? Plus, Sean Tucker had another standout performance and people are clamoring for him to receive the #44. Also, penalties continued to haunt the Orange against a clearly inferior opponent. How much of the blame does Dino Babers deserve for it?
Tyler Aki and Tim Leonard discuss it all and more on the Monday edition of the Locked on Syracuse Podcast.
Bleav in Syracuse Episode 5: Breaking Down the Win Over Albany (SI; podcast; Bleav)
Episode five of the Bleav in Syracuse podcast is out! Co-hosts Mike McAllister and Shamarko Thomas breakdown the Orange's 62-24 win over Albany, including Sean Tucker's huge day, the offensive line's performance, who should start at quarterback moving forward, the penalty situation, what stood out about the defense vs Albany and more. Download, subscribe and listen at your favorite podcasting location below.
Apple Podcasts: LINK
Stitcher: LINK
iHeart Radio: LINK
Spotify: LINK
You can also listen to the podcasts on the Bleav website HERE.
Introducing the Bleav in Syracuse podcast! A Syracuse football podcast co-hosted by Mike McAllister of Syracuse and former Syracuse as well as NFL safety Shamarko Thomas on the Bleav Podcasting Network. The podcast is produced by Kyle Leff. Bleav is described as, “from athletes who played for the teams to passionate experts on topics you want to hear, Bleav Podcast Network is the #1 podcast network for professionals.”
The co-hosts of the Bleav in Syracuse podcast will break down Syracuse football after each game this season and preview upcoming matchups. You can access the Bleav in Syracuse podcast in all of your favorite podcasting locations. Apple podcasts, Stitcher, iHeart Radio and Spotify. The links to each are listed above.
In episode one, Mike and Shamarko broke down Syracuse's season opening win over Ohio. Episode two focused on previewing the home opener against Rutgers. Episode three broke down the loss to Rutgers. Episode four looked ahead to a matchup with FCS and in-state foe Albany.
Syracuse RB Sean Tucker’s historic week doesn’t earn him ACC weekly football award (PS; Carlson)
Syracuse running back Sean Tucker became the first player in SU history ever to pick up more than 100 yards rushing and receiving in a single game during the Orange’s 62-24 win over Albany on Saturday, a feat that hadn’t been performed by any of SU’s legendary players at the position.
It still wasn’t enough to earn him recognition in the ACC’s weekly awards, which are determined by voting by 17 media members.
The voters include a beat reporter for each of the league’s 14 teams, along with three voters who cover the league through the ACC Network or ESPN. Each school’s SID sends nominations to the league by 8 p.m. on Sunday night.
Syracuse.com’s Nate Mink votes weekly and did vote for Tucker.
Tucker was the much more productive player on Saturday, but he also put up his gaudy numbers against inferior competition.
Tucker rushed 13 times for 132 yards and four touchdowns, while also catching three passes for 121 yards and a touchdown. His 253 all-purpose yards boosted him to the top of the ACC’s current leaderboard in the category.
The voters wound up selecting North Carolina’s Ty Chandler. Chandler rushed for 198 yards and two touchdowns in UNC’s 59-39 win over Virginia. He did not have any receiving yards.
Tucker’s performance came against Albany, which plays in the FCS and has lost its first three games of the season.
Chandler’s effort came against a UVA that had been among the league’s most impressive in the early going and had won its first two games. The Tar Heels likely needed the win to remain a viable candidate to win the Coastal Division.
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Syracuse Football: Sean Tucker is running wild on the record books (itlh; Fiello)
Syracuse football running back Sean Tucker had himself some kind of performance this past Saturday afternoon on the Hill as the Orange throttled Albany, and to date in the 2021 campaign, he is having himself some kind of season.
So far in 2021, Tucker has amassed 373 yards in rushing and leads the team in that category. His 148 yards in receiving place him second on the team there (and receptions as well). He is the first player in program history to record over 100 yards rushing and 100 yards in receiving in the same game, doing that against Albany.
He was one touchdown short of tying Jim Brown’s record for most touchdowns in a single game and possibly could have broken it had he not been pulled due to the game’s score (also anyone wanting to note this was against Albany, I would like to point out Mr. Brown set his record against Colgate).
Unfortunately, Tucker was snubbed by the Atlantic Coast Conference this week as the top running back in the conference likely due to the level of opponent and the ACC awarding all the offensive player awards mostly to UNC players, but he was still WELL deserving of the honor or at least to be named co-running back of the week. PFF College tweeted out and gave Tucker the second-highest grade of all running backs in college football last week with a grade of 86.5.
Additionally, Tucker is second overall in average yards rushing per game and third overall in total yards rushing on the season in the ACC. Who is the man who would risk his neck for his brother, man? Sean Tucker! Can ya dig it?
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Syracuse Football: Week 3 review, week 4 preview and other news (itlh; Fiello)
The episode where I curse on Twitter about the Charles Dickens “It was the best of times…it was the worst of times” exemplifies the Syracuse football game we watched over the weekend.
Week 3 Review:
- If Sean Tucker has not earned the right to wear 44, nobody else will ever wear it! Listen, the offensive line and blocking overall did a fantastic job and I am so happy to see that but if you watched this game and wanted to give it a sitcom title, it would be called the Sean Tucker Show. Sean had FIVE touchdowns on Saturday afternoon (four rushing and one receiving) along with 132 yards rushing and 121 yards receiving and sure this is Albany but those stats are still impressive even if they were playing CNS. He has 235 yards rushing already in three games (and likely should be at over 300 if he was utilized more against Rutgers). There are a few players on this team that excite me but right now Sean is the one who consistently does so.
- Congratulations to Andre Szmyt on breaking the record for most field goals completed with 60. Head Coach Dino Babers was asked in his post-game press conference about Szmyt and he talked about him hitting a camera on the crossbars and realizing how good of a kicker he was because of that and Sterling Hofrichter telling him how good he was.
- How about that defense? People will say “but it’s just Albany” but how many of those same people were the ones thinking Albany had a chance to win or this would be a close game? I said after that Rutgers game that I thought Syracuse had to go out today and dominate and then not play Liberty like they did Rutgers if they want to get some faith back into the fan base and they did dominate. A 62-24 win is impressive and the defense did some great work. Keep in mind that of those 24 points, 6 were a tipped interception that turned into a pick 6 unfortunately so the defense can’t be held responsible for that score. There were not many plays one might consider “memorable” but I do think overall as a unit, they were definitely impressive and contained Albany as they needed to. That said, again linebacker Mikel Jones led the team with 7 tackles and SU had NINE sacks including 3 from Cody Roscoe.
- Like many, I did not see enough out of the quarterback play today for me to say, “This guy is THE guy.” I think both guys played very well for the most part and I can honestly say I would not be mad at either one being named the starter going forward and content knowing the other is there if needed. I stated recently on social media that I think Tommy DeVito gets a lot of unnecessary flack for his play, which I have said in the past seems to be more team manager than Peyton Manning and I am okay with that because it limits turnovers. Neither Tommy nor Garrett Shrader did anything to overtly win the job but neither did anything to lose it either (that I saw anyway).
- Okay, now for the one negative from this game that caused me to drop an bomb on Twitter and appears to have frustrated everyone…penalties! I don’t get frustrated often watching Syracuse sports but the number of penalties called did cause me to snap wondering when they would stop. BTW, those stats I listed above for Sean Tucker would be even more impressive if penalties, including one of his own for a facemask call, didn’t hurt them. I know Coach Babers is equally as frustrated after seeing many of them but how can you not when the team combined to set a new Syracuse football record with 16 penalties for 163 yards. Those penalties cost Tucker at least one huge run, a receiving TD and a huge kick return. That is just unacceptable and if this were a competitive game, it could have resulted in lost points that cost them the game or at the very least given a more competitive opponent better field position or momentum. I am not a Negative Nancy and I will even say that if not for the penalties, this is a team I hoped we would see this season and could lead to at the very least a quality bowl game.
Sean Tucker, Syracuse aim to solve Liberty defense - National Football Post (nationalfootballpost.com; FLM)
Sean Tucker produced a terrific performance for Syracuse on the ground and in the passing lanes, but the second-year running back and the rest of the Orange are about to encounter a step up in the opposing defense.
The Orange lost at home last year to Liberty and hope to figure out a way to solve one of the most effective defenses in the FBS on Friday night when the teams square off in Syracuse.
Syracuse (2-1) owns wins over Ohio and FCS foe Albany sandwiched around a 17-7 loss to Rutgers. Tucker heads into Friday with 367 yards and six touchdowns on the ground to go along with seven catches and 148 yards and a TD.
Five of those TDs occurred Saturday when Syracuse cruised to a 62-24 rout of Albany. Tucker is up to 993 career rushing yards in his first 12 games and last week he totaled 253 total yards (121 receiving, 132 rushing), becoming the first player to rush for at least 100 yards and have 100 receiving yards in school history.
“It was just seeing a lot of my O-line blocking,” Tucker said. “They were blocking hard all game and giving me opportunities to get to the second level and just run by everyone.”
Tucker gained 111 yards last season when Liberty beat Syracuse 38-21, and this time he encounters a defense that is eighth nationally in yards allowed per game (234), 12th in points allowed (12.3 per game) and 10th in rushing yards per game (53.5).
Liberty (3-0) sandwiched a pair of routs around a 21-13 win at Troy and is led by Malik Willis, who threw for four touchdowns and completed 21 of 28 passes for 242 yards and rushed nine times for 77 yards in Saturday’s 45-17 win over Old Dominion.
“To this point this year, probably so (that it was his best game so far this season),” Liberty coach Hugh Freeze said. “He took two sacks that he should have thrown the ball away on. Other than that, I thought he was pretty dang good.”
So far this year, Willis has totaled 838 yards of offense (613 passing/225 rushing) and 11 TDs (seven passing/four rushing). In last year’s win over Syracuse, Willis completed 16 of 20 passes for 182 yards and also rushed 12 times for 58 yards.
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On The Block On Demand 9-20 (ESPN; radio; Axe)
Brent is back after a crazy weekend of football to recap Syracuse’s 62-24 win against Albany and address the five things he believes SU needs to do in order to finish this season in a bowl game.
https://www.espnsyracuse.com/2021/09/20/exit-31-09-20-21/(ESPN; radio; Rain & Spencer)
On today’s Exit 31 with Rain and Spencer, they talk to Stephen Bailey from Syracuse on 247 Sports, Matthew Gutierrez from The Athletic and Chris Stacy from NYY Sports Talk, plus more!
30 Minutes In Orange Nation 9-20 (ESPN; radio; Steve & Paulie)
Steve and Paulie give their initial takeaways from Syracuse’s blowout win over Albany. Then they react to Coach Babers’ thoughts from postgame and today.
Last Chance to Purchase Tickets for Faculty and Staff Appreciation Day Sept. 24 at the Stadium (syr.edu)
Announced earlier this month, faculty and staff can purchase $5 tickets to the Friday, Sept. 24, football game in appreciation of all their hard work on behalf of the University. With kickoff at 8 p.m., faculty and staff and their guests are invited to the Shaw Quad prior to the game to enjoy the Pride of the Orange Marching Band performance and food and beverage concessions.
Tickets can be purchased via a special link through midnight on Thursday, Sept. 23. The ticket price is $5 each for University faculty and staff, their children and their guests (up to a limit of 10 tickets). For game day COVID-19 protocols, including masking and vaccination/testing requirements, please review the stadium’s guidelines.
The first 350 full-time, part-time or temporary faculty and staff with a faculty or staff SU I.D. to visit the University’s pregame Faculty and Staff Appreciation tent on the Shaw Quad will receive a game day gift and a $5 concession coupon.
Campus Store Discount Available Sept. 24
To help fans gear up for the game, the Campus Store in Schine Student Center will offer a 20% discount in-store or online to faculty and staff on Sept. 24. Use the code “FORYOU21” during online checkout or show your SU I.D. at the Campus Store to receive the discount.
Parking
University parking permits will be honored for free game day parking at the Skytop parking lot. For faculty and staff who do not already have University parking permits, a single one-time-use complimentary Skytop parking pass will be available for game day. These permits will be available for pickup on Wednesday, Sept. 22, and Thursday, Sept. 23, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Office of Human Resources, Skytop Office Building, with proof of a Faculty and Staff Appreciation Day game ticket and an SU I.D.
For questions about Faculty and Staff Appreciation Day, contact the HR Service Center at 315.443.4042 or email hrservice. For questions about football tickets, call the Dome Box Office at 315.443.2121.
Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill, bottom, reacts to fumbling the ball after being hit by Seattle Seahawks defensive end Alton Robinson (98) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 19, 2021, in Seattle. The Seahawks recovered the ball. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Ex-SU star Alton Robinson’s ‘big-play-to-snaps ratio is off the charts’ (Syracuse and CNY in the NFL) (PS; Herbert)
Former Syracuse football star Alton Robinson isn’t getting a lot of playing time with the Seattle Seahawks so far this season, but makes his time on the field count.
The defensive end sacked Tennessee Titans QB Ryan Tannehill, forcing a fumble recovered by Robinson’s Seahawks teammate Kerry Hyder Jr. at the Titans’ six-yard line. Chris Carson scored a touchdown, putting Seattle up 17-6 in the first half.
The second half didn’t go as well for the Seahawks, even fumbling a punt return, as they fell to 1-1 with a 33-30 loss to the Titans.
But a big question mark remains: Why isn’t Robinson playing more? The Orange alum had two tackles on 12 snaps last week, and still saw just 18 snaps Sunday as part of the defense’s pass rush rotations.
“Been saying this so much since last year I feel I could be his agent, but what the hell else does Alton Robinson need to do to play more? Just 12 plays last week. That was one of his first ones today,” tweeted Seahawks beat writer Gregg Bell after Robinson’s strip sack. “His big-play-to-snaps ratio is off the charts.”
Fansided’s Lee Vowell agreed that Robinson “didn’t really get enough reps last year” in his rookie season, and called for the team to give him more playing time in year two. Robinson is “the future of the pass rush” for Seattle, Vowell said earlier this month.
Here’s how the rest of the former Syracuse and Central NY stars did in the NFL this week:
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September 2021 photo: Tim Green, a former Syracuse and NFL football star, is fighting ALS and communicates through a computer system that relies on his eye movement to form words. N. Scott Trimble | syracuse.comN. Scott Trimble | syracuse.com
A visit with Tim Green: Despite ALS, ‘every day is full for me’ (video) (PS; $; Mink)
The bright screen of a tablet silhouettes Tim Green’s face as he finishes up a work call here in the living room of his lakeside mansion.
It’s almost noon on a dreary Wednesday in early September, and Green is ready to move from one appointment to the next in what has been a common routine despite no longer being able to talk, walk or use most of his muscles.
An in-home aide wipes spittle from his cheek and buzzes the stubble off his chin, giving the 57-year-old father of five a boyish face beneath his grizzled hair.
“It’s good to see you,” Green says to his guests, his voice emanating from a tablet computer.
Green uses his gaze on the tablet to write his books, send work emails and communicate with family using eye-tracking technology. It has been this way since a case of pneumonia required a life-saving tracheotomy.
That was months after his jersey was retired at halftime of a Syracuse University football game two years ago.
The image of Green standing at midfield, surrounded by family and his staunchest supporters, provided for many the most recent visual of the local icon since he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in 2016.
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Week 3 ACC Football Roundup (streakingthelawn.com; Campbell)
All the semi-good vibes the ACC had after Week 2 went directly down the toilet with a lackluster Week 3 thanks to more subpar outings in the out of conference arena.
Louisville Cardinals 42 - UCF 35
The lone bright spot on the weekend came from Louisville. The Cardinals literally stole the game from UCF thanks to a 66 yard pick six with 13 seconds left. Just being in the game was a sign of life for the Cardinals who lost a lot of confidence after Week 1’s loss to Ole Miss.
Michigan State Spartans 38 - Miami Hurricanes 17
Things are decidedly not going well for Manny Diaz and the Canes. A blowout loss to Bama, a 2 point home escape over Appalachian State, and now a blowout loss to Sparty. To make matters worse D’Eriq King left Saturday’s game and is having his shoulder evaluated this week.
Western Michigan Broncos 44 - Pittsburgh Panthers 41
Western Michigan had lost by 34 just two weeks ago to Michigan. No, Pitt is not on the same team as Michigan, but they are talented enough to handle Western Michigan after looking so good last week against Tennessee. Chalk that up as Exhibit A to the “let down” spot.
Syracuse Orange 62 - Albany 24
Dino Babers and Co. get some credit for bouncing back after a rough loss to Rutgers last week, but Albany is still an FCS squad. The Orange host Liberty this upcoming week and is likely a must win if the Orange have bowl aspirations this season.
Boston College Eagles 28 - Temple Owls 3
BC keeps winning the games on their schedule, which is about all you can take away from their three games against Colgate, UMass, and Temple who are a combined 0-9 on the season. We might learn something this week about BC as they play host to Mizzou before opening ACC play next week at Clemson.
West Virginia Mountaineers 27 - Virginia Tech Hokies 21
The Hokies were likely considerably overrated than what their No. 15 ranking reflected, but they had a chance to win this game late with 1st and Goal from the 3 yard line. Two stuffed runs and two incompletions later and the Hokies came out on the wrong side. They’ll play Richmond next week, so 3-1 for their first 4 games was likely more than acceptable.
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Pitting since 2013 (RX; HM)
Pitting since 2013
Pitting, verb - to inexplicably lose a non-conference game you ought to have won in the same season that you win a big time non-conference game.Want examples? Here are the Panthers non-conference games since joining the ACC, broken out into wins and losses...
| Year | OOC Wins | OOC Losses |
| 2013 | New Mexico, Old Dominion, Notre Dame | Navy |
| 2014 | Delaware, FIU | Iowa, Akron |
| 2015 | Youngstown St, Akron | Iowa, Notre Dame |
| 2016 | Villanova, Penn State, Marshall | Oklahoma St |
| 2017 | Youngstown St, Rice | Penn State, Oklahoma St |
| 2018 | Alabany | Penn State, UCF, Notre Dame |
| 2019 | Ohio, UCF, Delware | Penn State |
| 2020 | Austin Peay | (pandemic) |
| 2021 | U Mass, Tennessee | W.Michigan |
Lots of teams have the strange losses, but Pitt seems to find a way to undermine their own best efforts. Take down Notre Dame in 2013 - after they'd already lost to Navy. Beat Penn State in 2016 - only to lose to Oklahoma State (the following week if I'm not mistaken). This year, the Panthers get a huge road win at Tennessee, and follow it up with a home loss to Western Michigan of the MAC...
...and it's not like this is just a Narduzzi problem. The Notre Dame/Navy thing in 2013 was on Paul Chryst's watch. Back in 2008, the Panthers beat Iowa, Navy, and Notre Dame - but lost to Bowling Green State in the home opener (Dave Wannstedt was the head coach back then).
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Miami Hurricanes likely starting Tyler Van Dyke if D’Eriq King out (caneswarning.com; Rubenstein)
The Miami Hurricanes will likely start second-year quarterback Tyler Van Dyke over true freshman Jake Garcia if starter D’Eriq King is out this weekend against Central Connecticut State. King suffered an injury to his right shoulder in the loss to Michigan State on Saturday. Van Dyke has been the primary backup this season.
King has taken all but four of the Miami Hurricanes snaps at QB this season. Van Dyke took those four. It appears through the first three games of the 2021 season, that Van Dyke is the clear second-team QB. Garcia and Van Dyke were listed as the co-second team QBs behind King on the Miami depth chart for Michigan State.
Van Dyke signed with Miami in 2020. As a true freshman, Van Dyke was the third-team Miami QB behind King and N’Kosi Perry who is now starting for FAU. Van Dyke has yet to complete a pass in three attempts in college while running four times for 10 yards. Garcia is likely to receive his first collegiate snaps on Saturday.
Appearing on the Joe Rose Show on WQAM on Monday morning, Miami head coach Manny Diaz said of King“He’s roughed up pretty good.” Diaz also mentioned that King has an appointment with the doctor tomorrow. Diaz felt that too many players were watching King and the QB position needs to get better going forward.
If King is going to be out for a significant amount of time, expect Van Dyke to get the first opportunity to become the starting quarterback. Van Dyke has gotten the snaps in games this season behind King and is more experienced than Garcia. How Garcia and Van Dyke will play on Saturday is critical.
Diaz told Rose that Garcia and Van Dyke are both prepared every week as if they are both the backup. The competition will continue this week according to Diaz as if both QBs are 1A and 1B behind King. Rose asked Diaz who is the backup QB behind King. Based on Diaz’s comments we will know more about King on Tuesday.
Central Connecticut State on Saturday will provide Garcia and Van Dyke the first significant playing time of their collegiate careers. It will also give them a chance to ease into playing QB in college against an FCS school and ease into the position. Central Connecticut State could be auditions for Garcia and Van Dyke.
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Miami football falls to lower third of week 3 ACC power rankings (caneswarning.com; Rubenstein)
The Miami football team that began the season ranked in the top 15 nationally has fallen to the bottom third of the ACC Power Rankings. A 38-17 loss at home to Michigan State put Miami at ninth or 10th in the consensus ACC Power Rankings. The Hurricanes host Central Connecticut State on Saturday.
The ESPN Football Power Index ranks the Miami football team highest in the ACC at seventh. Miami had the biggest fall in the FPI among ACC teams from 20th to 35. Several national sites publish ACC power rankings. After ESPN, 247 Sports ranks Miami ninth in the ACC in their week three power rankings.
Miami had the third-most votes to win the ACC during the preseason. Clemson was the prohibitive favorite behind Clemson and North Carolina. The Hurricanes were picked second in the ACC Coastal behind the Tar Heels. Miami is now fifth in the ACC FPI rankings in week three. North Carolina is currently second behind Clemson.
Virginia Tech is fourth, Pittsburgh fifth and Virginia sixth in the ACC FPI. The Miami football team plays all of the ACC teams ahead of them in the FPI except Clemson. The Hurricanes open ACC play at Hard Rock Stadium on September 30 against Virginia. Miami has a bye following their game against the Cavaliers.
Brad Crawford of 247 hits on most of the problems ailing Miami this season. The Hurricanes are also last in FBS in tackling according to Pro Football Focus via Inside the U. Diaz assumed control of the Miami defense for the 2021 season after Miami collapsed against North Carolina last year. Little has gone right for Miami.
In the CBS Sports rankings, Miami fell 25 spots to 55th overall. CBS ranks all of the FBS teams from 1-130. Miami is seventh in the ACC Power Rankings according to CBS. Clemson tops the ACC at 11th via CBS and North Carolina is first in the Coastal at 21st. Miami had the fourth biggest fall of the week.
The Hurricanes are not going to move up much this week. Hosting FCS Central Connecticut State, Miami has to come out and play like a different team against the Blue Devils on Saturday. A loss would be disastrous. Miami has a chance to reassert themselves with a victory over Virginia in the ACC opener on September 30.
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College Football Hot Seat Watch: Intrigue Surrounds Several ACC Coaches (athlonsports.com; Godfrey)
A few years back on my old show, “Podcast Ain’t Played Nobody,” I floated the term “Anxiety Bowl,” which is any game in which both coaching staffs are more or less in a must-win situation to save their jobs. Scan the next month’s worth of ACC games, and there’s an alarming amount of matchups that fit this descriptor.
This weekend’s Louisville vs. Florida State game is a great example, even with the insane amount of money it would require to fire Mike Norvell.
We’ve already mentioned the growing impasse between the Cardinals and third-year head Scott Satterfield. Both parties gained a reprieve from the situation on Friday night when UCF’s Dillon Gabriel threw a game-losing pick-six to hand U of L a huge non-conference win.
For as lackluster as Satterfield’s time with the Cardinals has been, it’s better than their opponent this week: The Seminoles are an absolute mess at 0-3. Last week, we examined the impossible financial picture facing FSU if it were to fire Norvell in his second year, yet there’s a real possibility that this program will start the 2021 season 0-4. Whereas the Cardinals and Satterfield could potentially annul their marriage, something catastrophic (basically “off-field”) would have to happen in Tallahassee for Norvell to get the boot.
Life in the ACC is a mess: You’re either national power Clemson or a quiet, ignored success story like Dave Clawson’s Wake Forest. Boston College has been a surprise under second-year head coach Jeff Hafley, but pretty much everyone else has some level of fireable angst with their staff entering league play (David Cutcliffe is likely immune to a firing, but Duke might also be 3-1 after this weekend’s game vs. Kansas).
Here’s a look around the mess:
Miami: Manny Diaz has, amazingly, jumped both Mike Norvell (too big a buyout) and Justin Fuente (who has a win over a ranked conference opponent) to earn the hottest seat in this league through three games. The Canes are 1-2 (and almost winless if not for a close win vs. an Appalachian State team that had its chances) and look generally disorganized. Michigan State beat the Canes 38-17 Saturday in a game in which the Miami offense was plagued with turnovers and Diaz’s defense gave up chunk plays.
Diaz signed a five-year deal that started at $3.1 million annually, a lower number than most deals at similar programs in part because Miami had to pay a $4 million buyout to Temple, where Diaz was the head coach for less than a month after leaving Mark Richt’s staff in Coral Gables. Thus far, the Diaz era (14-12 overall) has been yet another failure to recapture the national relevance of the Miami program, with a heavy emphasis on the transfer portal instead of recruiting and developing superstar Floridian talent. This might be the next ACC opening.
Virginia Tech: Fuente’s win over North Carolina cooled what was the league’s hottest seat entering 2021, but Saturday’s offensive malaise vs. West Virginia (the Hokies failed to turn an interception into a touchdown with goal-to-go in the fourth quarter) reminded Virginia Tech fans about the lingering problems with their program.
The Hokies have a gimme game vs. FCS Richmond, a bye, and then Notre Dame — nothing in that stretch would create a referendum on Fuente (save for loss to Richmond), but Pitt will be a huge swing game for both programs. The Hokies are far from their 1990s and ’00s mystique, and with Fuente’s botched attempt to flee to Baylor, this marriage has grown very strained.
Much like Louisville, Tech is a job with many interested parties waiting in the wings. The value above replacement between Fuente and potentially available candidates seems to favor Tech if it makes a change.
Pitt: Just a week after a road win at Tennessee, Pat Narduzzi took an ugly home loss to Western Michigan on Saturday. Compounding the loss was WMU head coach Tim Lester, who told the media afterward that he was able to predict most of what Pitt would do based on his time as an assistant at Syracuse scheming against Narduzzi. For his part, Narduzzi complained about MAC refs. It wasn’t a good look.
The Panthers are 2-1, and Narduzzi is an acceptable 44-35, but Pitt has never won more than eight games in a season since his arrival, and the Panthers’ sole division title came in a wonky 7-7 season in 2018. Things aren’t bad at Pitt, but they’re wholly unremarkable. Inside the industry, speculation reigns that Pitt is settling: They’re a beat-on program that lost promising coaches quickly (Todd Graham and Paul Chryst) and suffered an embarrassing scandal (Mike Haywood) before Narduzzi brought consistency.
It’s entirely possible Pitt can manage another 7-8 win season, but at $4 million a year through ‘24, Narduzzi seems overpriced for the results he’s delivering.
North Carolina: To be perfectly, totally clear: Mack Brown is NOT getting fired anytime soon. The Tar Heels took an ugly opening week loss at Virginia Tech, losing control of their destiny in the Coastal Division immediately on the heels of soaring preseason expectations. Brown is 70 years old, and there’s plenty of talk across the industry about when he’ll step aside and hand over a rebuilt, top-20 UNC program with talent to a successor. And who will that successor be? Is that person in the program currently, or will he be an external hire with Mack’s input and/or blessing? In the short term, the Heels need to win out to maintain a shot at Clemson in the league championship, but bigger questions are being asked.
Georgia Tech: Georgia Tech is 7-18 under Geoff Collins in Year Three of a post-triple option rebuild. A 22-21 loss to Northern Illinois to open this season has added stress to the patience necessary for an overhaul of this magnitude, and Tech has to show at least some flashes of competency now. Frankly put, this IS a program in need of a moral victory, and cutting its loss to Clemson from 70-7 in 2020 to 14-8 last week is helpful.
Collins is signed through 2025 and owed 100 percent of his contract if he’s fired in the first four years, putting his buyout at around $13 million this year. It’s highly unlikely Tech would fire Collins this season, but patience among modern fans is shorter than three-plus seasons. He has the support of athletic director Todd Stansbury, who hired him, but even if everything breaks right, a bowl bid this season looks impossible after the NIU game.
NC State: This is maybe the hardest coach/school relationship to measure. NC State is 2-1 with a respectable road loss at Mississippi State, but Dave Doeren is a forgettable 57-47 overall at a program that believes it can be a high-end football power in the league. After some interest from other schools (including interviews at multiple SEC openings), Doeren first signed an extension in 2019 that carries him through ‘23, then another two-year extension last year despite not advancing the Wolfpack in any noticeable way from a national (or even ACC) viewpoint.
NC State could just as easily tear through its remaining (non-Clemson) schedule and beat North Carolina at the end of the year as the Wolfpack could limp along yet again. Doeren’s seat isn’t hot by any reasonable measure (his extension was signed months ago), but he hasn’t changed any of the perceptions of NC State as a perennial underachiever relative to talent and resources.
Syracuse: Dino Babers is 26-37 with the Orange, and save for a breakout 10-3 run in 2018, he hasn’t built a winner. But one hot run is often all a coach needs to gain that second contract, and Babers hit at just the right time. Syracuse is a private school, so the particulars of the contract extension he received in ‘18 most likely run through 2024, per multiple reports.
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Future TV Schedule, Week of 10-02-2021 (RX; HM)
Future TV Schedule, Week of 10-02-2021
From the official ACC release of Sept. 20, 2021...ACC Announces Football Game Times & Networks for Oct. 2
GREENSBORO, N.C. (theACC.com) – The Atlantic Coast Conference announced the following football game times and networks for the week of October 2nd, 2021.
Thursday, Sept. 30
Virginia at Miami, 7:30 p.m., ESPN(previously announced)
Saturday, Oct. 2
Duke at North Carolina, Noon, ESPN2Pitt at Georgia Tech, Noon, ACC Network
Louisville at Wake Forest, 12:30 p.m., RSN
Syracuse at Florida State, 3:30 p.m., ACC Network
Louisiana Tech at NC State, 6 p.m., ACC Network Extra & ESPN+
Boston College at Clemson, 7:30 p.m., ACC Network
All times are Eastern.
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Mangia Bene Italian Restaurant & Market on State Fair Boulevard. Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com
First Look: Let this new Italian market in Lakeland do the cooking and become the hero of Sunday dinner (PS; $; Miller)
This is how you can be a hero in your home when you run out to pick up groceries for dinner: Go to Mangia Bene Italian Kitchen & Market and let them do all the work for you.
This new store/meat market/restaurant/caterer in Lakeland is 1½ miles west of Gate 1 of the New York State Fair. The building was home to Ernie’s Lakeland Cafe for 17 years until the roof collapsed in 2017. The owner, Ernie Tuff, decided not to reopen and sold the building. Chris Maroney bought Ernies, rebuilt it and put it on the market. A few weeks later, the Covid-19 pandemic hit and any interest in this building disappeared.
All the while, Chris’ longtime friend, Roy Sardo, was looking to open his own restaurant. He had been a part-owner of Attilio’s on James Street, but he wanted to be out on his own. Roy and Chris came up with a concept of a specialty meat market that would prepare high-end takeout meals. At the same time, the building’s dining room could be used as an in-house catering event center.
“I know people questioned me when I decided to open a restaurant during the pandemic,” Roy said while preparing one of his specialty pizzas on Thursday afternoon. “They thought I was nuts, but this is my passion.”
That was the birth of Mangia Bene, which means “Eat Well” in Italian.
Not only does he make all the food here, he makes most of the ingredients. Roy learned how to make sausage years ago while working for Nojaim Brothers Super Market. He spent eight hours a day in a cooler mixing and grinding meat. He has since developed his own mix that he sells behind the counter here. He bought a Biro meat grinder that can mix and push out 240 pounds of sausage at a time.
At this year’s State Fair, Mangia Bene served this sausage with peppers and onions as what was deemed the largest sausage sandwich at the fair. His sausage is a mild mixture of pork, salt, ground pepper, cracked fennel seed and a touch of paprika.
At Mangia Bene, Roy sells his sausage links for $4.99 per pound. His meatball mix is $6.99.
“He just loves to cook,” said his father, Joe. “When he was young, the other kids would be out playing, and he’d be inside cooking with his mother. He would sit on the counter and mix whatever was in her mixing bowl and watch her create.”
You must try ...
Chicken riggies ($13): Central New York is blessed with so many places that serve this Utica delicacy. Mangia Bene just joined the ranks of must-visit spots for riggies.
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