sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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"Where's the crapper?" you've likely said or heard someone say. But did you know that you weren't just using a slang word for excrement, but were actually mentioning someone's name? Although Thomas Crapper did not invent the toilet—that is usually credited to John Harrington in 1596—he did help perfect and popularize it. We celebrate him today, on the anniversary of his death, which happened in 1910.
SU News
Syracuse offensive lineman Matthew Bergeron after an SU touchdown against N.C. State on Oct. 15. Bergeron is one of two Orange players at the top of their positions in this year's NFL Draft. Dennis Nett | dnett@syracuse.com
ESPN Mel Kiper Jr.’s latest NFL Draft positional rankings feature 2 Syracuse favorites (PS; Leiker)
NFL draft season is upon the football world, and Syracuse is shaping up to have potentially its best draft class of Dino Babers’ tenure.
ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr., one of the most respected draft analysts, released his first mock draft and Big Board since the end of the college football season on Wednesday. While no SU players featured in the first-round draft predictions, two ended up in Kiper’s Top 10 position lists.
Offensive tackle Matthew Bergeron came in at No. 6 among his peers, three of whom Kiper projects will be selected in the draft’s opening round. Bergeron had been the No. 5 OT on Kiper’s last Big Board published Dec. 9.
Bergeron will appear in the Senior Bowl on Feb. 4. He’s the only SU player to have received an invitation after he helped pave the way for back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing seasons from running back Sean Tucker and served as a team captain in 2022.
Cornerback Garrett Williams was the other Orange player to make Kiper’s Top 10 at his position. Williams had been left off the last Big Board after tearing his ACL midseason against Notre Dame right after he also missed time with a thigh bruise.
This time around, Williams is the No. 8 cornerback on Kiper’s list. He recently signed with talent agency WME Sports.
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Syracuse football: Three players listed in The Athletic Top 100 for 2023 NFL Draft (TNIAAM; De Guzman)
The Syracuse Orange should have some of their players picked fairly high compared to recent seasons in the upcoming 2023 NFL Draft. Even though we’re three months away from a player being selected, experts are updating big boards as the days go on. That includes The Athletic, who released its updated Big Board of Top 100 prospects, which lists three Orange players.
.@byAustinMeek and @Nickbaumgardner's 2023 NFL Draft Big Board 2.0 consists of:
️ 11 non-Power 5 players
... and 38 SEC players.
The full breakdown: 2023 NFL Draft Consensus Big Board 2.0: Which prospects crack the top 100?
— The Athletic CFB (@TheAthleticCFB) January 25, 2023
The Orange players are led by cornerback Garrett Williams at 55. He’s followed by offensive tackle Matthew Bergeron at 75 and Sean Tucker at 81. Bergeron is the highest at his respective position as the fourth best offensive tackle. Tucker follows him as the 14th best running back while Williams is the 15th best cornerback.
The other Orange player to declare for the draft in linebacker Mikel Jones didn’t crack The Athletic’s Top 100 board or Top 15 by position, but he’s probably not worried about that. Given former Orange linebacker Zaire Franklin, a seventh round pick, just set the single-season record for tackles by a Colts player, Jones is probably feeling good about his chances of being picked.
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Upstate NY private school placed on probation for football recruiting violation (TNS; Allen)
The Section II Athletic Council voted Wednesday to place the Christian Brothers Academy (Albany) athletic program on three years probation and take away the varsity football team’s Week 0 game for 2023 because of a violation of the recruitment and undue influence rule.
There is a recruitment and undue influence report form on the Section II website. It requires the school reporting the alleged violation, the date the alleged violation occurred and the description of the alleged violation. The superintendent, principal and athletic director of the reporting school must sign the form.
The violation in question, according to Christian Brothers Academy football coach Bobby Burns, occurred without Burns’ knowledge by a coach on the JV team.
“One of our lower-level coaches reached out to a guy on social media that he knows. I am not going to say they were friends, but they were acquaintances,” Burns said. “He asks the guy, who has an eighth-grade kid, if he would possibly be interested in sending his kid to CBA. The guy writes and says he is interested, absolutely, that it would be a dream come true for his kid. He said give me your cell phone number and we’ll have the admissions department possibly set up a visit.
“The admissions director reaches out to the guy and the first thing he says is, ‘You guys are recruiting my kid for football?’ My admissions director says, ‘No, we are not recruiting your kid for football. I was given your number by a coach that you might be interested in CBA.’ The guy then changes his tune and says his son is comfortable where he is. That’s it. That’s the gist of it.”
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SU football wasn’t the only one to pass on Purdy. Now, he’s 1 step from Super Bowl (PS; $; Leiker)
In 2017, Dave Boller sent then-Syracuse football offensive coordinator Sean Lewis to Arizona to watch a quarterback prospect he’d had his eye on.
On the day Lewis was supposed to watch Brock Purdy throw, he had ed his hand on a cactus and couldn’t throw properly because his thumb was swollen.
Still, what Boller knew of Purdy, then a high school junior, and what Lewis had seen was enough to earn a camp invite to Syracuse that summer for a shot at a scholarship offer.
After the camp, SU decided not to offer Purdy a scholarship, said Boller, the former director of player personnel who helped run the recruiting department in Dino Babers’ program.
“I really believe if you ever talk to him: I think he was heartbroken,” Boller said. “I remember him being in my truck after the workout, and we were on campus, and he told his mom, ‘I haven’t got the offer yet.’ "
In the subjective world of recruiting, Syracuse wasn’t the only school to come to that conclusion. But Purdy’s incredible career arc makes the whiff sting more at a program that needs to capitalize on forming relationships with players others are late to notice.
Everyone knows Purdy now.
He’ll start Sunday’s NFC Championship Game for the San Francisco 49ers against the Philadelphia Eagles. He’s on the verge of the Super Bowl in a rookie season that began with the label “Mr. Irrelevant” for being the final pick in last year’s NFL draft.
Purdy is 7-0 as a starter in the NFL and a contender for Rookie of the Year. He was forced into the starting role after San Francisco’s first- and second-string quarterbacks, Jimmy Garoppolo and Trey Lance, both suffered injuries.
Purdy’s rise adds another what-if to a running list the Orange has racked up in the past several years under Babers surrounding QB recruits.
Will Levis comes to mind as the former Penn State and Kentucky quarterback projects as a top pick in April’s draft. There’s also ACC starters Devin Leary, Tyler Van Dyke and Riley Leonard.
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Syracuse Orange news: 4-star QB offered, men’s soccer celebration, more (itlh; Adler)
Syracuse Orange football coaches have offered a scholarship to a 2024 quarterback who is rated as four stars by one of the primary recruiting services.
Samaj Jones, a 6-foot, 200-pound quarterback, recently said via Twitter that he had received an offer from the ‘Cuse coaching staff.
The talented dual-threat quarterback is a junior at the St. Joseph’s Preparatory School in Philadelphia.
According to recruiting services, Jones’ offers include Boston College, Louisville, Penn State, Temple, Tennessee, West Virginia, Cincinnati and Maryland, among others.
ESPN places him as four stars in the 2024 class, as well as No. 268 nationally and No. 10 at his position.
When I penned this column, Jones checked in as three stars, No. 375 overall, No. 28 at quarterback and No. 12 in Pennsylvania, according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite.
Other Syracuse Orange news
SU men’s soccer championship celebrationWhen Syracuse Orange men’s basketball hosts nationally ranked Virginia at the JMA Wireless Dome at 7 pm on January 30, naturally, we hope that the ‘Cuse can knock off the Cavaliers.
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Fordham LS transfer Tom Callahan commits to Syracuse - The Juice Online (the juice; Sears)
Syracuse football added to its 2023 class on Thursday evening, as long snapper Tom Callahan committed to Syracuse, he announced on social media.
Callahan played defensive lineman at Fordham, and became the starting long snapper in 2021. He was named to the All-Patriot League First Team as an LS by Phil Steel following the 2022 season.
Callahan, who has one year of eligibility remaining, figures to be a favorite to replace Aaron Bolinsky, who exhausted his eligibility following the 2022 season. Ball State and Iowa State also offered Callahan.
The 6-foot-3, 235-pound long snapper started 23 games at Fordham. Callahan attended high school Seton Hall Prep (NJ) where he was named Third Team Non Public All-State.
Syracuse Lands Grad Transfer Long Snapper Tom Callahan (SI; McAllister)
Syracuse football has landed a commitment from Fordham long snapper grad transfer Tom Callahan, he announced Thursday evening. Callahan was a Phil Steele All Patriot League First Team performer in 2022. The Orange lost Aaron Bolinsky from the 2022 roster as he exhausted his eligibility.
"Coach Lig, the special teams coordinator, made all the difference," Callahan said.
He added that he had offers from the ACC, Big-12, American and MAC but chose Syracuse.
Callahan signed with Fordham as part of the 2019 recruiting class out of Seton Hall Prep in New Jersey as a defensive lineman. He started at that position during his first two years with the Rams before transitioning to long snapper before the 2021 season.
It has been an offseason of change for Syracuse football, which has lost both of its coordinators (Robert Anae and Tony White) and multiple assistants to other programs (Nick Monroe, Mike Schmidt and Chip West). At the same time, the Orange has found replacements in Jason Beck, Rocky Long, Travis Fisher and Steve Farmer.
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Former Syracuse football offensive coordinator hired by Jets (PS; AP)
The New York Jets hired former Denver Broncos coach Nathaniel Hackett as their offensive coordinator on Thursday.
The 43-year-old Hackett replaces Mike LaFleur and fuels some speculation about whether the Jets could pursue Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers, whose playing future is uncertain.
Hackett and Rodgers have a connection: Hackett served as the Packers’ offensive coordinator from 2019-21 with Rodgers as the quarterback. Hackett also served in several coaching positions for Syracuse football, including offensive coordinator.
The hiring of Hackett ends a wide search by Robert Saleh and the Jets, who ESPN reported interviewed more than 15 candidates for the job. Saleh had said he was looking for an experienced play caller to replace LaFleur, who was a first-time offensive coordinator.
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Dan Greene "On The Block" 1-26-23 (ESPN; radio; Axe)
Dan Greene, sports law professor at SUNY Cortland, joins Brent to discuss where Syracuse stands in the NIL game and the differences between NIL and pay for play.
On The Block On Demand 1-26-23 (ESPN; radio; Axe)
Brent Axe discusses the differences between pay for play and NIL and how this issue has impacted Syracuse. Later, Josh and Jordan join him for the Mount Rushmore Draft of the best remaining players in the NFL Playoffs.
https://www.erienewsnow.com/story/48241038/jim-brown-fast-facts (erienewsnow.com; Staff)
Here's a look at the life of activist, actor and Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown. He played his entire career with the Cleveland Browns.
Personal
Birth date: February 17, 1936Birth place: St. Simons Island, Georgia
Birth name: James Nathaniel Brown
Father: Swinton Brown, a professional boxer
Mother: Theresa Brown, a housekeeper
Marriages: Monique Gunthrop (1997-present); Sue Jones (1958-1972, divorced)
Children: with Monique Gunthrop: Aris and Morgan; with Sue Jones: Kim, Kevin (twins) and James Jr.; with Kim Jones: Kimberly; with Brenda Ayres: Shellee; mother's name unavailable publicly: Karen Brown Ward
Education: Syracuse University, B.A., 1957
Other Facts
At Syracuse, Brown played football, lacrosse, basketball and ran track.
Qualified for the 1956 Olympics as a decathlete, but did not compete in order to focus on football.
Inducted into the the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, the College Football Hall of Fame in 1995 and National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 1983.
Led the NFL in rushing eight out of his nine seasons.
Played in nine straight Pro Bowls, for the 1957-1965 seasons.
NFL's MVP in 1957, 1958 and 1965.
Starred in movies such as "The Dirty Dozen," "Ice Station Zebra" and "100 Rifles."
Timeline
1957 - First round draft pick, sixth player overall, by the Cleveland Browns. Later named Rookie of the Year and also Most Valuable Player.1960s - Founds the Negro Industrial and Economic Union (later renamed the Black Economic Union) to support black entrepreneurship.
1964 - "Off My Chest," Brown's autobiography, with Myron Cope, is published.
1964 - Film debut in "Rio Conchos."
December 27, 1964 - The Cleveland Browns defeat the Baltimore Colts 27-0 in the NFL Championship Game. (The Super Bowl replaced the NFL Championship Game in 1967).
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ACC News
ACC History of Ranked Teams, 1953-2022 (RX; HM)
ACC History of Ranked Teams, 1953-2022
Why do so many non-ACC fans disrespect ACC Football so much, despite its recent success? A lot of it has to do with history - especially the 1960's, '70's and '80's. The ACC was mostly weak during those decades, though it occasionally produced a strong team in football.
Here is a table showing every current ACC member school that was ranked in the final AP poll, by season. It includes Maryland and South Carolina during the years that they were in the ACC. I also included Notre Dame one time (2020), as well as all current teams which were ranked but not yet members of the conference, and I distinguished one from the other by highlighting schools which were members at the time of the season in bold. There are also some comments injected here and there to explain differences between one period and the next...
History of Ranked ACC Football Teams, by season
| The ACC was formed in 1953 in order to all football teams to participate in bowl games. | |||||
| 1953 | #1 Maryland | #8 GT | #18 Duke | ||
| 1954 | #8 Maryland | #11 Miami | #14 Duke | #16 VT | |
| 1955 | #3 Maryland | #7 GT | #11 Pitt | #14 Miami | |
| 1956 | #4 GT | #6 Miami | #8 Syracuse | #13 Pitt | #19 Clemson |
| 1957 | #15 NC State | #16 Duke | |||
| 1958 | #9 Syracuse | #12 Clemson | #15 SC | ||
| 1959 | #1 Syracuse | #11 Clemson | #20 Pitt | ||
| 1960 | #10 Duke | #19 Syracuse | |||
| 1961 | #13 Ga Tech | #14 Syracuse | #20 Duke | ||
| The AP only ranked Top 10 from '62 to '67 (very few opportunities for ACC teams to be ranked) | |||||
| 1962 | none | ||||
| 1963 | #4 Pitt | ||||
| 1964 | none | ||||
| The schools in the ACC decided in 1964 that football and basketball prospects had to score at least 800 on the SAT to qualify for an athletic scholarship. That put all schools at a serious recruiting disadvantage. reference link | |||||
| 1965 | none | ||||
| 1966 | #8 GT | #9 Miami | |||
| 1967 | none | ||||
| The AP only ranked Top 20 from '68 to '88 (thus, fewer total schools were "ranked") | |||||
| 1968 | none | ||||
| 1969 | none | ||||
| 1970 | #13 GT | ||||
| South Carolina left the ACC in 1971. | |||||
| 1971 | none | ||||
| 1972 | #12 UNC | #17 NC State | #18 Louisville | #20 GT | |
| 1973 | #16 NC State | #20 Maryland | |||
| 1974 | #11 NC State | #13 Maryland | |||
| 1975 | #13 Maryland | #15 Pitt | |||
| 1976 | #1 Pitt* | #8 Maryland | |||
| 1977 | #8 Pitt | #14 FSU | #17 UNC | #19 Clemson | |
| Georgia Tech joined the ACC in 1978. | |||||
| 1978 | #6 Clemson | #18 NC State | #20 Maryland | ||
| 1979 | #6 FSU | #7 Pitt | #15 UNC | ||
| 1980 | #2 Pitt | #5 FSU | #10 UNC | #18 Miami | |
| 1981 | #1 Clemson* | #4 Pitt | #8 Miami | #9 UNC | |
| 1982 | #8 Clemson | #10 Pitt | #13 FSU | #18 UNC | #20 Maryland |
| 1983 | #1 Miami* | #11 Clemson | #18 Pitt | #19 BC | |
| 1984 | #5 BC | #12 Maryland | #17 FSU | #18 Miami | #20 UVa |
| 1985 | #9 Miami | #15 FSU | #18 Maryland | #19 GT | |
| 1986 | #2 Miami | #17 Clemson | #19 BC | #20 VT | |
| 1987 | #1 Miami* | #2 FSU | #4 Syracuse | #12 Clemson | |
| 1988 | #2 Miami | #3 FSU | #9 Clemson | #13 Syracuse | |
| In 1989, the AP expanded from Top 20 to the Top 25 we know today. | |||||
| 1989 | #1 Miami* | #3 FSU | #12 Clemson | #17 Pitt | #18 UVa |
| 1990 | #2 GT | #3 Miami | #4 FSU | #9 Clemson | #14 Louisville |
| #23 UVa | |||||
| Florida State joined the ACC in 1991 | |||||
| 1991 | #1 Miami* | #4 FSU | #11 Syracuse | #18 Clemson | #24 NC State |
| 1992 | #2 FSU | #3 Miami | #6 Syracuse | #17 NC State | #19 UNC |
| #21 BC | #25 Wake | ||||
| 1993 | #1 FSU* | #13 BC | #15 Miami | #19 UNC | #22 VT |
| #23 Clemson | #24 UL | ||||
| 1994 | #4 FSU | #6 Miami | #15 UVa | #17 NC State | #23 BC |
| 1995 | #4 FSU | #10 VT | #16 UVa | #19 Syracuse | #20 Miami |
| 1996 | #3 FSU | #10 UNC | #13 VT | #14 Miami | #21 Syracuse |
| 1997 | #3 FSU | #6 UNC | #21 Syracuse | #25 GT | |
| The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) begain in 1998. | |||||
| 1998 | #3 FSU | #9 GT | #18 UVa | #20 Miami | #23 VT |
| #25 Syracuse | |||||
| 1999 | #1 FSU* | #2 VT | #15 Miami | #20 GT | |
| 2000 | #2 Miami | #5 FSU | #6 VT | #16 Clemson | #17 GT |
| 2001 | #1 Miami* | #11 Maryland | #14 Syracuse | #15 FSU | #17 UL |
| #18 VT | #21 BC | #24 GT |
GUEST: Greatest ACC FB Teams (RX; HM)
GUEST: Greatest ACC FB Teams
GUEST ARTICLE (but not a human guest!):
The following article was generated by ChatGPT in response to the request "write a 500 word blog post about the greatest teams in ACC football history":
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Video: Can FSU take back the ACC in 2023? (RX; HM)
Video: Can FSU take back the ACC in 2023?
From Always College Football...
Can Florida State overtake Clemson?
Will Notre Dame take the next step?
Can Florida State overtake Clemson? Will Notre Dame take the next step? | Always College Football
Is Florida State the favorite in the ACC heading into 2023 or can Clemson maintain their dominance in the conference? There were several quarterbacks that transferred out of the ACC, while some stayed in the conference. Also, can Notre Dame take the next step with their best quarterback since Brady Quinn?
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ACC recruiting: 14 thoughts on 14 teams as signing day approaches (athathletic.com; $; Raynor)
The second national signing day is approaching. And even though most schools wrapped up the majority of their classes in December, the February signing day allows programs to tie up loose ends and put a bow on the 2023 cycle.
Here is one thought for every ACC program:
• Boston College might not be the favorite to land four-star cornerback Rodrick Pleasant on Feb. 1, when the nation’s No. 85 prospect in the 247Sports Composite announces his commitment. But kudos to Jeff Hafley and his staff for even being in the conversation. Pleasant, a California native, has a top five that includes USC, UCLA, Oregon, Cal and Boston College. That he used one of his five official visits to take a trip to Boston College over the summer is proof that while the Eagles may not be recruiting at the highest level, Hafley, a former defensive backs coach, still has the chops to compete for top players in the secondary.
• Don’t expect to hear much out of Clemson next week. The Tigers are essentially full, having signed 28 players in December in addition to returning several key players in defensive end Xavier Thomas and defensive tackles Tyler Davis and Ruke Orhorhoro. Instead, it’s time to look ahead to how new offensive coordinator Garrett Riley will fare on the recruiting trail. Riley coached outside receivers at ECU in 2015 and running backs at Appalachian State in 2019 but otherwise has no ties to the Southeast. To his credit, his offense speaks for itself, and he is already busy on the road.
• Duke signed 26 players in December, with “all 26 of them committed, prior to me ever coaching a football game as a head coach,” Mike Elko said. It’s not a flashy class — Duke ranks No. 52 nationally and none of the signees are ranked in the top 750 nationally — but things are trending up in the 2024 cycle after the Blue Devils went 9-4 in Elko’s first season. On Tuesday, Duke landed quarterback Hauss Hejny out of Texas, the fourth commitment in a ’24 class that includes three players ranked in the top 700.
• Linebacker Dylan Brown-Turner has been committed to North Texas since March but will take an official visit to Florida State this week, he confirmed on Tuesday. The Seminoles offered the Dallas native on Christmas Eve, just four days after the new staff at North Texas re-offered him. Brown is ranked No. 1,485 nationally but also has offers from Power 5 programs such as Kansas, Kansas State, Georgia Tech, Louisville and Boston College. Florida State’s class currently ranks No. 20 nationally and includes eight blue-chip prospects.
• Georgia Tech currently has zero blue-chip recruits in its 2023 Class, a puzzling development considering the amount of talent in the Yellow Jackets backyard. The only other ACC teams without a blue-chip recruit are Duke, Boston College, Virginia and Syracuse, none of which have the benefit of such a fertile recruiting territory. First-year coach Brent Key, a Georgia Tech alum, clearly understands the importance of keeping at least some of the top prospects in the Atlanta area home.
• Louisville still has ground to make up if it’s going to consistently compete with Clemson, Miami and Florida State on the recruiting trail, but 2023 introduced a fascinating tactic for the Cardinals: moving into California — one of the most talent-rich states in the country. Four of Louisville’s 13 commits are from the Golden State and three of those four hail from powerhouse St. John Bosco in Bellflower. It will be interesting to see if new coach Jeff Brohm and his staff spend much time in California during the 2024 cycle or if they make more of an effort to recruit in Louisville’s geographic footprint.
• It seems like every year we wonder if “The U” is back only for Miami to fall short of expectations. The Hurricanes went 5-7 in Mario Cristobal’s debut season that included a shocking loss to Middle Tennessee at home. But if we subscribe to the theory that the teams with the best players win the most games, then the 2023 Miami class should finally be the one to shake up the ACC and bring the Hurricanes back to national prominence. Even without five-star cornerback Cormani McClain, the Hurricanes’ average player rating of 91.92 is their highest of the 247Sports era, dating back to 2010. That’s more than a full point ahead of Clemson, which has an average player rating of 90.85. No other team in the league cracked 90.
• North Carolina is at quite the crossroads. The Tar Heels return one of the best quarterbacks in the country in Drake Maye, and coach Mack Brown just hired Jason Jones from Indiana to coach cornerbacks and help get the secondary back on track. But UNC’s recruiting has regressed. The Tar Heels’ average player rating of 88.10 is the program’s lowest since 2019 and down significantly from 2022 (91.76) and 2021 (91.04.). Here’s a troubling stat: For the first time since the 2016 cycle, the Tar Heels failed to sign any of the top five players in North Carolina.
• NC State continues to struggle on the recruiting trail, but that’s not necessarily new. The Wolfpack have not signed a top five class in the ACC dating back to at least 2010. Their average class rank in the league over the last 10 years is 7.4. To coach Dave Doeren’s credit, though, this hasn’t prevented his team from winning. Over the last six years, NC State is fourth in the ACC in wins in league play with 29, behind only Clemson (45), Pitt (30) and Miami (30). The obvious question for Wolfpack fans: What could your team do with an uptick in recruiting?
• Pittsburgh’s class currently ranks an underwhelming 48th nationally, but it looks like the Panthers might have found a few more diamonds in the rough along the defensive line. Isaiah Neal, a three-star prospect who ranks No. 599 overall, had 29 tackles for loss as a senior at Saint Frances Academy in Baltimore. Maverick Gracio, a three-star edge from Cardinal Newman in West Palm Beach, Fla., is ranked outside of the top 1,500 but had 22 sacks as a senior. Could one of these two become the next Calijah Kancey, a former three-star recruit who was named the 2022 ACC Defensive Player of the Year.
• Syracuse was left without a quarterback in its 2023 class after LaNorris Sellers, who had been committed to the Orange since March, flipped to the home-state South Carolina Gamecocks on the final day of the early signing period. Sellers, who first committed to Virginia in July 2021, was a three-star prospect throughout most of the cycle but ended up ranked No. 320 in the 247Sports Composite. Garrett Shrader will be back as the starter in 2023, and the Orange added Florida transfer Carlos Del Rio-Wilson, a former top-150 prospect, last spring, but Dino Babers and staff will no doubt look to sign a QB in the Class of 2024.
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ESPN analyst offers thoughts on potential ACC programs leaving for Big Ten, SEC (on3.com; Schultz)
All has been quiet on the conference realignment front since USC and UCLA announced their plans to leave the Pac-12 for the Big Ten in June. But that hasn’t stopped questions about the future of the ACC amid its struggles this past football season — even despite a grant of rights that makes it tough for teams to leave.
Former Alabama quarterback and current ESPN analyst Greg McElroy addressed where the ACC fits into the realignment equation, and his answer was simple. He doesn’t expect any teams to leave the league anytime soon, even as the Big Ten and SEC prepare to expand to 16 teams by 2024.
However, that doesn’t mean it’s out of the question in the long run.
“Let’s start with where they’re at right now,” McElroy said. “Their grant of rights currently runs through 2036. You read some of the numbers about Oklahoma and Texas and USC and UCLA leaving early and what they have to pay if they were to leave early. It’s some astronomical figure. That’s for one year early. I can’t imagine what it’d be like for 10. So I do not at this point envision anyone in the ACC leaving for greener pastures.
“I do think it’s, at some point, possible down the road that could become a real possibility. But still, man, at this point, it’s difficult for me to project that being a move that is going to be highly prioritized for a lot of these teams.”
Greg McElroy: The ACC could still find a way to keep up thanks to CFP expansion
The ACC, currently at 14 teams, didn’t see any of its teams make the CFP this year while the Big Ten had two and the SEC had one. However, the CFP is preparing to expand to 12 teams after next season, and that could bode well for the ACC’s future. Under the new model, all Power 5 conference champions will make the field.That’s why McElroy said it’s not a sure thing the ACC will fall behind the rest of the pack.
“As far as keeping up is concerned, I happen to think, personally, while it might be difficult as far as the finances are concerned, you don’t have to have the deepest pockets to put forth a competitive product,” McElroy said. “If you’re competing right now against teams that maybe, top to bottom, let’s say 1-14 in the ACC, how is it in strength and relative to 1-14 in the other leagues, maybe it wouldn’t be quite as competitive at the bottom as it is at other places. But either way, we’ve seen several times where the ACC has been really bad top to bottom, Clemson runs through it 12-0, wins the ACC Championship in convincing fashion, has two weeks, three weeks to get right and improve for what should be a strengthened competition there in the College Football Playoff and they play their best football in the final two weeks.
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Miami football OL Javion Cohen named top 10 ACC 2023 impact transfer (caneswarning.com; Rubenstein)
Russ Wood the Transfer Portal National Analyst named Miami offensive lineman Javon Cohen from Alabama one of the “ACC: Ten transfers who will make biggest impact in 2023.” Rivals ranks Cohen as the 28th transfer overall and third OL in the 2022 cycle. Cohen is a key addition to the Miami football roster.
Miami upgrades its depth and experience while improving production on the 2023 OL. The Hurricanes also added former Central Florida center Matthew Lee to the 2023 roster. Cohen was the 333rd-ranked player nationally, 25th offensive tackle and 16th in Alabama in the Class of 2020 in the 247 Sports composite rankings.
Cohen is the third highest-rated transfer to an ACC school behind North Carolina State quarterback Brennan Armstrong from Virginia and tight end Kyle Morlock from Division II Shorter University to Florida State. The Miami football team plays both North Carolina State and Florida State in 2023.
Cohen was primarily a left guard at Alabama. Jalen Rivers who missed most of the second half of the 2022 season began last year as the starting LG for Miami. Cohen and Rivers are projected to team with Lee to give Miami a very good interior of the OL. The depth, experience and talent on the Miami OL will all be improved in 2023.
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Other
The “Republican Elm,” circa 1938. Legend says three men made plans for a new party, the Republican Party, under this tree in 1854. The majestic elm fell victim to Dutch elm disease some years ago. Provided by Onondaga Historical AssociationCourtesy of the Onondaga Historical Association
Were the ‘roots’ of the Republican Party started under a Syracuse elm tree? (PS; Searing)
Anyone with even a passing familiarity with the current state of American politics is aware that one of the country’s two major political parties seems to be in the middle of period of transformation.
For students of history and politics, this is certainly nothing new.
Parties evolve. They change. They collapse. They are reconstituted.
It just so happens that the Republican Party has its origins in some very local soil, at least according to a few longstanding local legends. Today, there is stone marker sitting amongst a group of trees on a small triangular island of grass, amidst a sea of asphalt at the intersection of West Onondaga Street and South Avenue.
A curious oddity, it most likely goes unnoticed by the vast majority of pedestrians and passersby. - The Young Republican League placed a marker under an elm tree in Vivus W. Smith's garden on West Onondaga Street in 1936 in Syracuse. The marker went missing sometime in 2007.
The elm fell victim to Dutch elm disease some years ago. Onondaga Historical Association Courtesy of the Onondaga Historical Association At one time, this seemingly out-of-place hunk of limestone contained a plaque with a fantastical historic assertion, born of local legend. The inscription read, “With true American ideals as their first thought, Horace Greeley, Vivus W. Smith and Thurlow Weed made the plans for the Republican Party under this Elm. June 17, 1854.”
The marker was placed under an enormous elm tree by the Young Republican League in 1936, in what, at one time, was the garden of Vivus W. Smith, who owned an impressive homestead on West Onondaga Street.
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