sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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Welcome to National Barcode Day!
National Barcode Day on June 26 commemorates more than 40 years of efficiency and accuracy that began on June 26, 1974, when a clerk scanned a 10-pack of Wrigley's Juicy Fruit gum at a Marsh supermarket in Troy, OH. On that day, the barcode system invented by George Lauer, an IBM engineer, began to change the world.
#NationalBarcodeDay
Since then, barcodes have been revolutionizing industries all over the world. Barcodes, also known as UPC, 1 Dimensional (1D) codes, contain data that help businesses and organizations do their jobs more easily. A more modern version of the barcode is called a QR code, or a 2 dimensional (2D) code. The QR code contains even more data than the 1D code.SU News
Hudl
Eric Thomas commits to Syracuse football (247sports.com; McAllister)
Class of 2025 Lehigh Acres (FL) East Lee County defensive lineman Eric Thomas has committed to Syracuse football, he announced on social media. Thomas, listed at 6-5, 325 pounds, chose the Orange over Georgia, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Missouri, Ole Miss, South Carolina USF and others. He took officials to Syracuse, Marshall and South Carolina before making his decision. Thomas put SU on top after his trip to Central New York and other schools were unable to surpass the Orange.
"I spoke with all of the coaches but the main one was coach Cap since he recruits my area," Thomas said after the visit. "We already knew each other so it wasn't anything new. We've been talking to each other every day for like two months. Coach E-Rob was telling me that in the scheme that they run I play every position. So that's better for me to go to the NFL and no doubts for NFL scouts. I'm playing the three tech, d-end, one, everything.
"That's good. I like that. I want to play more than just one spot. Getting around more gives you a better chance at the league."
Syracuse's 2025 class is now 25 players deep and ranked 20th in the nation with the addition of Thomas. The Orange received many of those commitments before and during spring ball, much earlier than has been the norm. The Orange has recruited nationally in the 2025 cycle, but has put a focus on the Northeast. Of Syracuse's 25 commitments, 17 are from the Northeast with eight in New York, three in Pennsylvania, three in New Jersey, two in Connecticut and one in Massachusetts. Three more are from the DMV (Washington DC, Maryland, Virginia) region, two are in Texas, one in Georgia and two in Florida.
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Syracuse football hits 25 commitments in 2025 class with addition of Florida D-lineman (PS; $; Leiker)
Syracuse football reached 25 verbal commits for its 2025 class with an addition Tuesday night.
Eric “EJ” Thomas, a defensive lineman out of Lehigh Acres, Florida, announced his commitment via his Instagram. He made an official visit to Syracuse earlier this month and chose the Orange over offers from Georgia, Mizzou, South Carolina and Marshall, the latter two which he also took visits with.
Thomas is currently unrated in the 247Sports Composite but a 3-star by the site’s individual metric. He is not rated by any of the other four major recruiting services.
Thomas (6-foot-4.5, 325 pounds) plays for East Lee County High School. He had 35 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, two sacks and a caused fumble as a junior, according to East Lee County’s MaxPreps page.
While the NCAA used to cap new player additions, high school or otherwise, at 25, it dropped that rule in October due to the rising usage of the transfer portal. Teams are still capped at 85 total rostered scholarship players each season.
The Orange’s class now includes 11 defensive players. Thomas is the fifth D-lineman in the class.
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UGASports - 2025 DL Eric Thomas commits to Syracuse (r1vals. com; Kang)
2025 Lehigh Acres (FL) East Lee defensive lineman Eric Thomas committed to Syracuse on Tuesday evening, he announced on social media.
Thomas previously visited Syracuse on an official visit, and selected the Orange from over a dozen offers, including South Carolina, Kentucky, Georgia, Marshall and Georgia Tech.
Thomas said in a previous interview with The Juice Online he enjoyed the official visit.
"It’s a great program that’s rebuilding and has a lot of potential," Thomas said.
Thomas is the 25th commitment in SU's 2025 class, which is currently ranked 16th in the country according to Rivals.
Two years of football and East River OT D’joni Scatliffe already committed to Syracuse (orlandosentinel.com; Hays)
He’s really only played one high school football season. D’joni Scatliffe, however, oozes potential. He’s a specimen of an offensive lineman so picture perfect that college recruiters are starting to knock down the doors at East River High.
All but one may be too late,
Syracuse was first to the punch and the Orange football coaching staff has the 6-foot-7, 270-pound tackle locked in, at least for now (verbal commitments are non-binding).
Scatliffe, the No. 46 player in the Sentinel’s 2025 Central Florida Super60, committed to Syracuse this past weekend while on an official visit to the upstate New York school. Scatliffe, who is from the British Virgin Islands, was impressed.
“From the time I got there it was just a great time,” he said. “I had a great experience with the coaches and everything.”
Scatliffe is new to football, but he’s used to things being new to him. He moved from the island of Tortola, with his parents Sherry and Sayied, to the U.S. in 2022. He spent a year at Colonial before transferring to East River at midseason last fall.
It was like a gift basket dropped in Falcons coach Adam Chappell’s lap.
“I heard that we had a guy coming who was 6-6, 250. Basically the message was he’s very raw and don’t expect much,” Chappell said. “But we have really poured into him. He was by far our most improved player during the spring.”
His measurables have recruiters drooling. He has an Albatross-like 7-4 wingspan. His hands spread 10 1/4 inches. And he’s run the 40-yard dash in 5.2 seconds and is getting faster. Scatliffe is a hard worker, determined to get better.
“He is the most selfless player we have on our roster,” Chappell said. “He sweeps the locker room every day after practice. He’s really starting to develop into a more vocal leader and he works.
“We’re just happy all of this is happening to D’joni; someone who is humble and wants an opportunity. He deserves all that is about to come to him.”
It’s been a crazy transition for Scatliffe. In just three short years, a new country, two new high schools, a new sport and a college destination free of charge.
“It feels great. New environments from Colonial to here to up there at Syracuse. It definitely feels good,” he said. “I still have to learn the game more, but it’s really easy to me.”
His East River teammates have helped.
“From the day I got here they were all cheering me on. They weren’t calling me D’joni. They called me 6-6,” Scatliffe said.
He’s grown an inch since then, and put on 20 more pounds.
“Eating a lot. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches,” he said.
Now the Syracuse staff will have its work cut out to keep the big man. Chappell said a number of colleges have been inquiring since Scatliffe committed. He’s not the only Central Florida commit Syracuse is trying to hold onto. Tavares linebacker Izayia Williams also has committed to the Orange 2025 recruiting class.
Scatliffe has formed a bond with Syracuse recruiting coordinator Tom Caporale.
“When I flew in from Orlando, he was actually the one who picked me up and drove me to the hotel.” he said. “From the time he picked me up we were chopping it up and having a great time and I really enjoyed talking to him. I definitely want to play there so I will probably stay [committed].”
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Syracuse football recruiting: 2024 athlete Davien Kerr commits to the Orange (TNIAAM; Wall)
The newest Syracuse Orange football players will be reporting to campus in the next few days and yesterday Syracuse added one more name to that group.
Davien Kerr from Bloomfield, CT committed to Syracuse yesterday and announced he’d be joining the 2024 class. Kerr is a 6’ 190lb wide receiver/defensive back who is unranked and had been planning to attend prep school.
Kerr told 247’s Mike McAllister that he’s going to start his Syracuse career on the defensive side of the ball.
Syracuse should have 15 new freshmen reporting to campus as we head into July. Yes we know that’s a lot more Get to Knows coming your way before the season kicks off.
Here’s a look at Kerr in action:
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Four-star quarterback down to 4 schools, including Syracuse, sets his commitment date (PS; $; Carlson)
Four-star quarterback prospect Malik Washington, one of the nation’s 25 best prospects at the position, plans to announce his college choice on Friday from a list of four schools that includes Syracuse.
Washington, who attends Archbishop Spalding High School in Severn, Maryland, is ranked the No. 23 prospect in the country at quarterback and the No. 276 prospect overall in the 247 Sports composite rankings.
Among the four main recruiting sites he is ranked as high as No. 14 at quarterback and as low as 32. He will particiapte in the Elite 11 Finals, a competition that highlights the top quarterback prospects in the country.
Washington’s list of four finalists includes Syracuse, Maryland, Virginia Tech and Central Florida. He will make his announcement on Friday at 1 p.m. on the 247 Sports You Tube channel.
During an interview with 247 Sports, Washington called Syracuse a “program on the rise” and said the new coach Fran Brown has Upstate New York “buzzing” about the Orange.
If Washington picks Syracuse, he would become the highest-ranked commit for the Orange in its Class of 2025. Syracuse currently has one quarterback committed in the class, Texas product Luke Carney. Carney is ranked as the country’s No. 58 quarterback prospect.
According to MaxPreps.com, Washington threw for 2,093 yards and 21 touchdowns last year, completing 62.3. His team went 10-2, winning a state title in Maryland’s A Conference state championship.
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Re-Grading Syracuse football's 2022 class: Who's overvalued, undervalued or met expectations? (youtube; podcast; Axe)
On the latest episode of Syracuse Sports, Brent Axe and Emily Leiker re-visit the Class of 2022 for Syracuse football and assign some new grades. Who was overvalued, undervalued, met expectations or just plain fell off the map this year? Who was the top-rated prospect in this class who ended up leaving Syracuse? 2022 is also when the transfer portal really starts to kick into gear and take on greater value for SU football. Players evaluated in this class include LeQuint Allen, Dan Villari, Carlos Del-Rio Wilson and Isaiah Johnson.
Fran Brown Can Land TWO FOUR-STAR STUDS for Syracuse Football | CJ May & Malik Washington (youtube; podcast; Locked on Syracuse)
Syracuse Football made the top-four lists for two 2025 four-star recruits. The first is edge rusher CJ May from Highland Home, Alabama, who's finalists also include Auburn, Washington, and Louisville. The second is quarterback Malik Washington from Severn, Maryland, who's finalists also include Maryland, Virginia Tech, and UCF. Fran Brown also secured three commits recently: 2024 athlete Davien Kerr, 2025 three-star guard/center Kahlil Stewart, and 2025 three-star tackle Djoni Scatliffe. Jackson Holzer gives you a Cuse Football recruiting update on this edition of Locked On Syracuse.
Don't Panic if Syracuse Football Doesn't Get Four-Star QB Malik Washington (youtube; podcast; Locked on Syracuse; premieres at 10 AM EST)
Syracuse Football made the top-four lists for two 2025 four-star recruits. One of which is quarterback Malik Washington from Severn, Maryland, who's finalists also include Maryland, Virginia Tech, and UCF. Fran Brown might lose out on him, but it's not a big deal for the Cuse.Jackson Holzer tells you why it's not a big deal.
Get to Know Your Orange Man: #45, LB Kadin Bailey (TNIAAM; De Guzman)
It’s time to start preparing for the 2024 Syracuse Orange football season. We’re going through the roster to take a look at each Syracuse player as we get to know a lot of new faces to kick off the Fran Brown Era
Up next is...
Name: Kadin Bailey
Position: Linebacker
Year: Junior
Height: 6’2”
Weight: 223 lbs
Hometown: Jefferson, Ga.
High School: Jefferson
2023 stats: Played the first 11 games of the season primarily on special teams before a season-ending injury.
2024 projections: Syracuse’s switch to a 4-2-5 scheme doesn’t help Bailey’s case for more playing time. Unfortunately, the backup roles behind Marlowe Wax and Derek McDonald seem to be spoken for, so Bailey needs to really impress to break into the regular linebacker rotation.
How’d he get here?: Bailey had offers from Georgia State, Georgia Southern, Kansas State, East Carolina and Tennessee.
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Ex-Syracuse football star avoids jail in domestic violence plea deal (reports) (PS; Herbert)
Former Syracuse football star Chandler Jones will avoid jail in a domestic violence case due to a plea deal, according to multiple reports.
Jones pleaded no contest on June 17 and received a suspended 90-day jail sentence, according to Clark County (Nevada) court documents obtained by ESPN. The domestic violence charge will be dismissed and he won’t have to go jail if he stays out of trouble for the next six months and has no contact with the victim, except for Family Court orders, according to the docs.
According to TMZ, a separate misdemeanor DV charge has been dropped in exchange for the deal.
Jones, a Rochester native who played football at Union-Endicott High School and Syracuse University, was one of the top defensive ends in the NFL when his off-field issues led the Las Vegas Raiders to cut ties with him last fall. The team released him in September after he was arrested for allegedly violating a domestic violence temporary protection order issued weeks earlier. He was arrested again in October for the same offense.
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Gamechangers: Esports Degree Program Enjoys Successful Launch (Podcast) (syr.edu; Boccacino)
Beginning in the fall, Syracuse University’s electronic sports, or esports, academic degree program will welcome admitted students to campus for classes.
This past academic year served as “Year Zero” for the esports degree program, which employs a holistic, experiential learning-based approach that will prepare students for career success in various industries, leveraging the largest collection of faculty and staff members of any esports program on a college campus.
It’s an all-encompassing venture, including both the academic degree program and the competitive teams that vie for national championships in their respective games.
Academically, students who embark on this first-of-its-kind esports communications and management program, offered jointly by the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and the David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics, will pursue one of three tracks:
- esports business and management, covering such topics as sport promotion, sport venue management and finance for emerging enterprises;
- esports communications, including coursework in virtual reality storytelling, esports and advertising, public relations principles and sports in the metaverse; or
- esports media and design, focused on 3D animation, game experience design and virtual production.
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Practicing with Syracuse football team (youtube; video; Dashaun Morris II(
If cousin Fran still da head coach of Syracuse by time I commit then Cuse def where I will be going class of 2030
ACC News
ACC SHOW EPISODE 107 | BEGINNIG ACC RECORD PREDICTIONS (youtube; podcast; Pigskin Peete)
ACC SHOW EPISODE 107 | BEGINNING ACC RECORD PREDICTIONS
ACC Football 2024 Team-By-Team Miles Traveled: Cal, Clemson Bookend List (bookies.com; Speros)
The new Atlantic Coast Conference debuts on August 24 in Ireland, when Georgia Tech faces Florida State in Dublin, Ireland.
But that 8,174-mile round trip doesn’t mean that either team will be among the most-traveled schools in the 17-team football conference this season.
That title goes to the University of California – Berkley. The Cal Bears join Stanford and SMU as newcomers to the no-longer-geographically accurate ACC in 2024.
That gives the ACC teams in three different time zones.
The Cal Bears drew the short - or long–end of the travel itinerary this season. Cal makes five road trips this season, including 4 against ACC teams.
Cal will travel 20,660.7 miles according to bookies.com data compiled by using Google Earth to measure the miles from each team’s home stadium to its respective game site. The Bears will cross 26 time zones.
Cal’s longest round trip will come when it visits Wake Forest. That round trip covers 4612.18 miles and six time zones. In all, the Bears will leave the Pacific Time Zone for each road game. Those games include a stop at SEC-member Auburn on Sept. 7. Given the scheduled make-up, the Bears won’t be able to stack any of their eastbound trips.
ACC Travel Team-By-Team Miles Traveled In 2024
Here is the team-by-team miles-traveled breakdown of all 17 ACC teams. Teams are listed by most-to-least miles traveled, along with the number of time zones crossed, the average mileage of each road trip, and their odds to win the ACC at BetMGM.| Team | Miles | Trip Avg. | Time Zones | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cal | 20660.7 | 4132.14 | 26 | +5000 |
| Stanford | 14017.59 | 2336.265 | 16 | +50000 |
| Florida State | 13028.14 | 2605.628 | 14 | +275 |
| Georgia Tech | 12962.14 | 2160.35 | 10 | +10000 |
| Miami | 11516.52 | 1919.42 | 6 | +450 |
| SMU | 11303.66 | 2260.732 | 12 | +1600 |
| Syracuse | 11155.86 | 2231.172 | 12 | +4000 |
| Boston College | 9713.63 | 1942.76 | 2 | +12500 |
| Virginia Tech | 8442.52 | 1407.086 | 6 | +1400 |
| Louisville | 7585.88 | 1264.31 | 8 | +600 |
| Wake Forest | 7454.6 | 1409.92 | 6 | +25000 |
| NC State | 6284.06 | 1256.81 | 6 | +700 |
| North Carolina | 5423.1 | 1084.62 | 2 | +1600 |
| Pittsburgh | 4920.62 | 984.124 | 2 | +10000 |
| Duke | 4358.32 | 726.38 | 4 | +10000 |
| Virginia | 3151.4 | 525.233 | 0 | +12500 |
| Clemson | 2471.78 | 494.356 | 0 | +275 |
Clemson, FSU Co-Favorites To Win 17-Team ACC
Stanford has six road games this season. But it will be able to combine a Sept. 20 game at Syracuse and a September 28 game at Clemson. That two-stop trip covers 5296.49 miles. In all, the Cardinal football team travels 14017.59 miles this season.
Conversely, Clemson enjoys the easiest ACC schedule when it comes to travel this season. The Tigers are co-favorites to win the conference with Florida State. Those teams range from +250 to +350 depending on the book. As always, shop around for the best price.
Clemson won’t leave the Eastern Time Zone. Its travels cover just 2471.78 miles. The Tigers’ schedule includes the Aflac Kickoff Game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Clemson is a 13.5-point underdog at DraftKings. The five Clemson road trips average just 494.356 miles.
The shortest road trip in the ACC remains the same – the 17.04-mile back-and-forth journey between the football stadiums between Duke and North Carolina. This year, Duke plays host in the intrastate rivalry. Duke visits NC State this season, making the 36.62-mile round trip. And the road team in the North Carolina – NC State game makes a 40.04-mile journey back-and-forth. This year, the game will be at North Carolina on Nov. 30.
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Top 10 ACC non-conference games for 2024 college football season in expanded 17-team league (247sports.com; Hughes)
ACC expansion is here, and as we poured through all 17 league schedules, 10 non-conference clashes stood out as can't-miss, must-watch action for the 2024 college football season. These games carry weight for a variety of reasons. Some are rivalry matchups. Others pin top-10 programs in hostile environments. All have a chance to factor into the CFP race.
The ACC boasted a winning record against all of its non-conference foes last season but posted mixed results against other Power Five conferences, going 12-14 overall. The ACC had its most success against the vaunted SEC with a 7-5 record. The league went 4-4 against the Big Ten, 1-4 against the Big 12 and 0-1 against the Pac-12.
We've already taken a look at the toughest non-conference games for every ACC team this season. Several of those matchups also found their way onto this list. Five of the ten matchups on this list are against teams ranked in the top 15 of our post-spring top 25 poll.
Here are the top 10 non-conference thrillers in the ACC next season:
10. GEORGIA TECH AT GEORGIA
This is one of the best Georgia Tech teams in years, but it faces an uphill battle for bowl eligibility against an absolute gauntlet in 2024. The Yellow Jackets have a brutal non-conference slate that features clashes against college football elites, Notre Dame and Georgia. The Fighting Irish will present the Yellow Jackets with a ton of problems in Atlanta on Oct. 19, but Brent Key and Co. won't be a bigger underdog in any game than at rival Georgia in the regular-season finale. Georgia hasn't lost at home since 2021 and hasn't fallen to its in-state foe since Barack Obama was in office.Georgia Tech is the only ACC team in our toughest overall schedule ranking, and it ranks No. 6 overall.
9. LOUISVILLE AT NOTRE DAME
Louisville has the tough trip to Lexington against rival Kentucky in the regular-season finale, but the Fighting Irish will be a tougher out for the Cardinals this fall. Louisville took last season's matchup at home but lost several key contributors from that game, including quarterback Jack Plummer and running back Jawhar Jordan.Notre Dame figures to be much better on offense in 2024 after hiring Mike Denbrock from LSU and adding quarterback Riley Leonard from Duke.
8. CALIFORNIA VS. AUBURN
Auburn made the trip out west last season and eeked out a 14-10 win at Cal. The Golden Bears get their shot at revenge at Jordan-Hare Stadium this fall. The Tigers have 16 returning starters from last season and made major upgrades at several key positions via high school recruiting and the transfer portal. Five-star receiver Cam Coleman has earned rave reviews from camp and should be a tough matchup for a Cal secondary that ranked second-to-last in the Pac-12 in passing yards allowed last season (298.0). The distance and cultural differences between these schools make this series so interesting as non-conference foes.7. LOUISVILLE AT KENTUCKY
Kentucky has long been a thorn in Louisville's side. The Wildcats smashed their in-state rival four straight times during a low period for the Cardinals program from 2018-22 and clipped their wings during a breakout season under Jeff Brohm in 2023. Both squads lost key playmakers to the NFL this offseason and had to replace quarterbacks through the transfer portal. However, both squads are bowl-caliber, and fans can expect tensions to run high in the 2024 regular-season finale.6. CLEMSON VS. SOUTH CAROLINA
Clemson dominated this rivalry for years, winning seven straight from 2014-21. South Carolina punched back in 2022 with a thrilling 31-30 win in Death Valley and smelled blood in the water last fall. The Tigers ultimately pulled out a gritty 16-7 win on the Gamecocks home turf, putting pressure on Shane Beamer and Co. in 2024. Confidence in Beamer and Dabo Swinney has started to wane, making next year's matchup a must-win for the two head coaches.5. FLORIDA STATE VS. FLORIDA
Florida leads the all-time series 37-28-2, but has dropped two straight to Florida State. The Gators travel to Tallahassee for the regular-season finale in 2024, capping off a ridiculous five-game stretch featuring trips to Georgia and Texas and home games against LSU and Ole Miss. Will Billy Napier and Co. rise to the occasion or crumble once again? The two Sunshine State programs have trended in opposite directions in recent years, but the games have remained exciting. The last three games have been decided by an average of 7.3 points....
Will These ACC Football Recruiting Trends Hold Up? | FSU Shocks UGA For This WR | Miami's Class (youtube; podcast; Locked on ACC)
There are surprising recruiting trends in ACC football, as we’re just over five months away from National Signing Day for the Class of 2025. Can Georgia Tech and Duke stay in the top 20? Will Clemson finish with the best class in the ACC or will Miami get that for the third straight year? Will Florida State continue their momentum after beating Georgia for four star WR CJ Wiley? Can SMU surge up the board if they have a good first season in a power conference?Hosts Alex Donno and Kenton Gibbs are joined by Locked On Network recruiting expert Brian Smith. Brian discusses which ACC teams have the most recruiting momentum after a busy month of June official visits. Brian also weighs in on the current lawsuits between the ACC and Florida State University. How close are the Noles to breaking the Grant of Rights?
Longest Away Trips 2024 (RX; HM)
Longest Away Trips 2024
Longest Trips
With this year's western expansion, some ACC road trips got a lot longer. Here's a table showing the two longest ACC road trips for each ACC school:
ACC Team | Furthest Away Trip | 2nd Furthest Away Trip | ||
| Home Team | air miles | Home Team | air miles | |
| Boston College | SMU | 1559 | FSU | 963 |
| Cal | Pitt | 2256 | FSU | 2220 |
| Clemson | Pitt | 427 | FSU | 307 |
| Duke | Miami | 709 | GT | 347 |
| Florida State | Ireland | 4004 | SMU | 755 |
| Georgia Tech | Ireland | 3846 | Syracuse | 798 |
| Louisville | Stanford | 1978 | Clemson | 295 |
| Miami | Cal | 2588 | Syracuse | 1213 |
| N. Carolina | BC | 618 | FSU | 484 |
| NC State | Cal | 2401 | GT | 356 |
| Notre Dame | GT | 584 | no 2nd ACC road game | |
| Pitt | SMU | 1067 | UNC | 316 |
| SMU | Stanford | 1467 | Louisville | 724 |
| Stanford | Syracuse | 2433 | NC State | 2400 |
| Syracuse | Cal | 2426 | NC State | 519 |
| Virginia | Notre Dame | 502 | Pitt | 185 |
| Virginia Tech | Stanford | 2266 | Miami | 790 |
| Wake Forest | Stanford | 2307 | Miami | 712 |
COMMENTS
It makes sense that the schools at the edges of the ACC footprint - Cal, Stanford, Miami, Syracuse and BC - would have the longest trips in any given year. In this regard, BC got a favorable travel schedule for 2024 with nothing further than Dallas and Northern Florida....
ACC Commissioner Maintains Desire To Preserve Union Despite FSU, Clemson Lawsuits (SI; Bakich)
Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner Jim Phillips has a Herculean task in front of him: He must keep the union together. While the stakes were much higher for President Lincoln during the Civil War or George Washington during the infancy of the United States, Phillips might need to study our Founding Fathers and how they navigated the internal pressures that almost led to the dissolution of their respective organizations. With Florida State and Clemson suing the ACC, the conference is on the ropes, awaiting the final bell, in hopes of a favorable decision from the judge(s).
Likening Florida State and Clemson to the Confederacy might be harsh, but you cannot deny the rebellious streak that has come over them in the last six months. Not only have these public institutions challenged the ACC for their own gain, but they’ve also threatened the enforceability of the league's media rights deal, possibly affecting all 18 members of the conference.
"The lawsuits are damaging to the league," Phillips said at the Associated Press Sports Editors Summer Conference recently. "It's harmful to the league. This is a beautiful league that's been around for a long time. It's meant a lot to this part of the country and college sports. We're going to fight. I'm going to fight, and the courts will ultimately decide. We believe that everybody knows what was in that contract back then, and it was celebrated."
Furthermore, Commissioner Phillips has stated that FSU and Clemson will not be treated any differently despite the public, nasty divorce proceedings.
"We're going to fight it with every effort that we can," Phillips said. "The Grant of Rights has been agreed upon twice and deserves to be executed. We have taken that position. That being said, the treatment of the conference office with those two schools hasn't changed at all."
However, despite Phillips’ attempt to extend some southern (but still rather awkward) hospitality, part of his statement to the Associated Press conference has been rebutted by Florida State as he defended the ACC’s decision to bring in schools that do not necessarily provide a substantial amount of revenue.
“We feel good," Phillips said. 'We're at 18. The Big Ten is at 18. The SEC and Big 12 are at 16. Mass matters; it just does in today's world. It may not have mattered 25 years ago, but quantity and quality matter. That's what we feel like we've done. We are very happy with our current schools and feel like we've strengthened the ACC. We went from a regional-based conference affiliation to a more nationally-based one. Cal, Stanford and SMU fit the ACC incredibly well."
In May, Florida State directly countered the notion that the Cal, Stanford, and SMU expansion was good for the league.
“Over the past decade, the missions of the FSU Board and the ACC have diverged … While the FSU board was achieving its missions, the ACC was abandoning its. Today’s ACC votes for (a) a revenue-sharing arrangements at the College Football Playoff (‘CFP’) Committee that subordinate its members and render the ACC second class, and (b) an ill-advised and ill-timed expansion that hopelessly dilutes the ACC’s football media value. This leaves FSU Board a stark choice: either abandon its hard-won achievements or withdraw; in reality, no choice at all.”
https://mikefarrellsports.com/college/how-college-football-realignment-should-have-looked (mikefarrellsports.com; Daniels)
College Football has been going through conference realignment since the sport's inception in the late 19th century. The SEC has added and subtracted teams since 1940 (want to win a bar bet? Name the 3 teams that have left the SEC. Georgia Tech, Tulane and Sewanee). The Big 8 and Southwest conferences merged to become the Big 12. The Pac 12 (RIP) started life as the Pac 8.
The biggest wave of realignment occurred between 2010-2014 with the SEC expanding to 14 schools (added Missouri and Texas A&M), the Big 10 expanding to 14 schools (adding Nebraska, Maryland, and Rutgers), the ACC growing to 15 schools (losing Maryland and adding Syracuse, Boston College, Pittsburgh, Louisville, and Miami), the Big 12 contracted to 10 teams (losing Colorado to the Pac-12 and Nebraska to the Big 10), and the Pac-10 moving to 12 teams (added Colorado and Utah). All was quiet for a few years and then the bombshells of 2021 went off with Texas and Oklahoma announcing a move to the SEC and the Big 10 countering with the additions of USC, UCLA, Oregon, and Washington. The Big 12, to remain a viable conference, added Houston, BYU, Utah, and Central Florida. Not to be outdone, the ACC added SMU, Cal and Stanford to expand to 18 teams. It didn’t have to be this complicated. Below are how the conferences should have looked after realignment
ACC
Current Teams: Boston College, Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Miami, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Virginia Tech, Virginia, Wake Forest, SMU, California, StanfordWho Should Be In: Boston College, Pittsburgh, West Virginia, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Maryland, Rutgers, Miami, UCF, USF, Syracuse, UConn, Temple, Duke, Wake Forest, James Madison
You could rename this conference the Big East and no one would argue. All these teams are on or near the Atlantic Coast and in the same time zone. UCF, USF, and Miami give the conference a Florida presence. The Backyard Brawl between Pitt and WVU would be a conference game. This conference would also excel in men’s basketball.
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Other
Michael Dupras | mdupras@syracuse.com
An I-81 Micron exit: NY proposes $68 million highway interchange near Clay complex (PS; $; Coin)
New York state is planning to build a new interchange on Interstate 81 in Cicero to handle Micron Technology-related growth in Syracuse’s northern suburbs.
The Pardee Road interchange would lie about 2 miles north of the Route 31 interchange. It would include on and off ramps in both directions, two roundabouts and a bridge over I-81 that would connect to Route 11.
The $68 million interchange would be built directly east of the Micron Technology campus, which extends from Caughdenoy Road in Clay to Route 11 in Cicero.
The new interchange would make it easier to get to Micron and would relieve pressure at the clogged Route 31 interchange, said James D’Agostino, executive director of the Syracuse Metropolitan Transportation Council.
“There’s a need for additional interstate access in that part of town,” D’Agostino said. “Independent of Micron it’s justifiable, but with Micron it’s justifiable with an exclamation point.”
Micron plans to build a massive computer chip factory at White Pine Commerce Park, at the northeast corner of Route 31 and Caughdenoy Road. The Micron plant could ultimately include four fabrication plants, or fabs, and employ 9,000 people by 2041. The project could create 40,000 additional jobs in the region and increase the county’s population by more than 100,000 people, officials estimate.
It’s not just Micron. To the west, on the several-mile stretch of Route 31 that runs from the intersection of I-481 to Micron, lies a sprawling, billion-dollar project that’s been proposed. The redevelopment of the old Great Northern Mall aims to include seven hotels, nearly 1,700 apartments and condos, and more than one million square feet of retail, office and entertainment space.
The transportation council’s policy committee voted unanimously to approve the project earlier this month. That’s an early but necessary step to spend federal highway money in the region. About 90% of the cost of the new interchange would come from the federal government, D’Agostino said.
The interchange is, so far, just a concept. There are no maps or drawings; just a couple of short paragraphs in a public notice issued by the local transportation council. A state Department of Transportation spokesman said by email the interchange was in “the preliminary stages of planning” and offered no further details.
The next step, D’Agostino said, is for the state to launch an engineering design study to determine exactly where the interchange should go and what it should look like. Construction is expected to start in 2026 and be completed in 2027, a schedule D’Agostino called “optimistic.”
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Jason and Elaine Nash present our deluxe pizza. They own Antonio's Italian Kitchen, our 25th stop on the CNY Pizza Tour. (Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com)(Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com)
CNY Pizza Tour, stop #25: Don’t overlook this lesser-known treasure flanked by two heavyweights (PS; $; Miller)
Within a 1-mile stretch of Route 57 in Liverpool sit two pizzerias: Avicolli’s and Twin Trees. These warhorses have been considered among the most popular pizza shops in the Syracuse area for decades.
Often overlooked, though, is Antonio’s Italian Kitchen. The 1,200-square-foot restaurant in Bayberry Plaza is just 164 feet away from Twin Trees 57.
“We get snubbed a lot,” said owner Jason Nash. “I get it. Those places have been around a long time, but we are different.”
Jason and his wife Elaine bought the restaurant from Salvadore and Caterina Santaguida Failla in 2009. It was called Nino’s at the time, named after their son. The Nashes owned two Subway sandwich shops in North Syracuse then, and they’d stop into Nino’s occasionally for pizza slices. The Faillas mentioned one day they were looking to retire, so the Nashes bought it.
“Not only did they sell it to us, they stayed on for a year to teach us the ‘Italian Way,’” Jason said. “I’m as Irish as they come, so I needed help with their recipes. They taught us how to make the dough, the pizza sauce, the marinara, everything. They were so sweet.”
They’re still making the traditional pasta dishes, but they’ve added gourmet macaroni and cheeses, Philly cheesesteaks and quesadillas. They also just put a food truck on the road.
But we’re here to talk pizza. Let’s strap on the feedbag ...
Address: Bayberry Plaza, 7608 Oswego Road, Liverpool. (315) 622-0045
Do they deliver: Yes, and you can order online. The restaurant has a few tables inside and outside.
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