sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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Welcome to International Traffic Light Day!
By 1914, there were more automobiles on the road than ever, and they were still sharing the streets with streetcars, horse carriages, merchant carts, and more. There was a need for regulations to make sure traffic moved smoothly and that accidents would decrease. At the time, traffic was controlled by the police. But traffic lights were about to come along and make road navigation easier, safer, and more efficient.
On August 5, 1914, what is considered to be the first electric traffic light was installed in Cleveland, Ohio, at the corner of East 105th Street and Euclid Avenue. It had four pairs of red and green lights, one for each side of the intersection, and a warning buzzer that indicated when the light was about to change. It had to be operated manually by someone in a nearby booth. It was based on a design by James Hoge. He had previously applied for a patent for a "Municipal Traffic Control System," and his patent—#1,251,666—was approved in 1918. The Cleveland Automobile Club thought that their new traffic light might revolutionize the handling of traffic in crowded cities.
There were other early traffic signals and traffic lights, both before and after Cleveland's and James Hoge's lights. In 1868, a gas-lit and manually-operated traffic sign was installed in London. It had two arms: one said "stop" and the other said "caution." Tragically, less than a month after its installation, it exploded and the policeman who was operating it was injured.
SU News
(youtube; podcat; Cover 3)
How Good Will Kyle McCord Be At Syracuse? | Cover 3 College Football
Syracuse football is back! 2024 training camp day 1 recap (youtube; podcast; Syracuse Orange)
On the latest episode of Syracuse Sports, Brent Axe and Emily Leiker recap day 1 of Syracuse football's 2024 training camp. Brent and Emily discuss the immediate sign that Oronde Gadsden is back to form, what the starting offensive line looks like and some other players and scenarios that stood out at Fran Brown's first training camp practice as head coach. Brent and Emily also answer questions from Syracuse Sports Insiders on the SU quarterbacks room, if and how the team looks bigger this camp, the offensive line and more. You'll also hear from Brown and SU QB Kyle McCord.
Syracuse football training camp Day 2 report: The Orange are deep at WR (youtube; podcast; Syracfuse Orange)
Brent Axe and Emily Leiker recap Day 2 of Syracuse football training camp on a live edition of Syracuse Sports. Brent focused on the wide receivers, including his first impressions of Colorado St. transfer Justus Ross-Simmons. Emily kept a close eye on the cornerbacks and defense. You'll also hear from SU fifth-year defensive leaders Marlowe Wax and Justin Barron
Fadil Diggs Leads Syracuse Football's New Look Defensive Line | Syracuse Orange Podcast (youtube; podcast; Locked on Syracuse)
Syracuse Football's defensive line will look slightly different than in years past with Defensive Coordinator Elijah Robinson installing a 4-2-5 scheme. Texas A&M four-star transfer Fadil Diggs leads the Cuse, and could be the best Orange defensive lineman since Chandler Jones from 2009-11. Fran Brown's squad also has returners Elijah Fuentes-Cundiff, Denis Jaquez Jr., Kevin Jobity Jr., and Braylen Ingraham. Plus, Syracuse brought in transfers Dion Wilson, Isaiah Hastings, and Michael Nwokocha.Jackson Holzer goes over the eight projected starters/backups on Syracuse's defensive line for the 2024 season on this edition of the Locked On Syracuse Podcast.
Syracuse Orange 2024 Team Preview | The College Football Experience (youtube; podcast; College Experience)
Syracuse Orange 2024 Team Preview | The College Football Experience
Oronde Gadsen and Marlow Wax represent SU on preseason All-ACC list (RX; HM)
A few months from now, preseason awards will mean absolutely nothing. But as the wait for college football slowly ticks on, they sure are fun to look at and overreact to in August.
Syracuse, for the most part, has gotten the expected tough love from the media. Slightly higher expectations than 2023 with a new coach in Fran Brown, but knocks because of his lack of head coaching experience. On the player side, it’s been the returning stars getting a lot of love and that trend continued with the Preseason All-ACC Football Team released earlier this week. Tight end Oronde Gadsen II and linebacker Marlowe Wax were both named to the list.
Neither of these decisions are surprising. Wax was chosen as one of three linebackers, along with Clemsons’s Barrett Carter and Miami’s Francisco Mauigoa. The senior has been the definition of consistency for Syracuse, having started 38-straight games for the Orange. Just six tackles away from 300 on his career, Wax is set to not only be a leader, but also a pivotal part of the Orange’s linebacker room this year.
Gadsen’s inclusion on the list shows that voters are still high on the tight end despite only appearing in two games last year due to injury. But it’s hard to forget how dominant Gadsen was his sophomore year. With 969 receiving yards he was First Team All-ACC by the end of the year. If he returns to full form, he could easily find himself back on that list at the end of the year.
But how about who’s not on the list? Certainly some big names for Syracuse didn’t quite make the cut. But they have a whole season to prove the voters wrong. Fadil Diggs is a name that could easily find himself as an All-ACC defensive lineman at the end of the year. Being new to the conference has led to a somewhat quiet profile, but he could easily burst onto the ACC play.
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TNIAAM Roundtable: predicting the Syracuse Football starting defense and specialists Staff)
As the Syracuse Orange begin camp, we continue our early thoughts about the 2024 starters. Today it’s the defense and special teams.
With the Orange moving to a 4-2-5 defense, this is who we expect to start against Ohio.
Defensive Line:
Kevin: Fadil Diggs, Dion Wilson, Isaiah Hastings and Denis Jaquez, Jr. Three transfers jump right into the starting group here with Jaquez back to build off the promise he showed last year before he was hurt.
Mike: I'll go with Diggs, Wilson, Elijah Fuentes-Cundiff, and Jaquez. Hastings is intriguing for sure but with just one game under his belt I'm taking the most experienced lineup to start - plus EFC was a 1 at one of the tackle spots in the spring.
Max: I’m rolling with Mike’s picks. Diggs should be SU’s #1 threat on the defensive line, followed by his fellow transfer in Wilson. A healthy Jaquez and experienced Fuentes-Cundiff round out the core four.
Dom: Both Diggs and Wilson feel like clear locks in the trenches. I’d probably lean Jaquez as the third starter with the obvious caveat of his health over the course of the season being somewhat of a concern. For the last spot, I’d lean Hastings initially over Fuentes-Cundiff.
Linebackers:
Kevin: Marlowe Wax and Derek McDonald will return as starters, but Anwar Sparrow and James Heard will see plenty of snaps.
Mike: Wax and McDonald with Sparrow rotating in.
Max: Wax and McDonald get the starting nod with Sparrow and Heard backing up.
Dom: Consensus wins out with Wax and McDonald clearly returning as the veteran options for the Orange.
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TNIAAM Reacts: the Syracuse Orange offensive line will be under the microscope during camp (TNIAAM; Wall)
As we enter the first weekend of the Syracuse Orange football camp, we asked you two questions about the upcoming weeks.
We wanted to know which position group battle would get your attention and more than half of you said the offensive line. When you combine the recent struggles at the position, the injury issues and the influx of new players up front, that’s no surprise.
Wide receiver and QB2 were far behind and I think we all feel much more confident in the depth of those catching passes, then those who are throwing passes.
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Dwight Freeney's full Hall of Fame speech | 2024 Pro Football Hall of Fame
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Watch: Freeney enshrined in Pro Football Hall of Fame (video of full speech) (PS; video; AP)
Dwight Freeney was playing soccer in high school when the football coach took him off the field.
It was a life-changing move.
Freeney, a three-time All-Pro defensive end with the Indianapolis Colts, was the first player enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame among seven members of the Class of 2024 on Saturday.
“My parents are both Jamaican, so soccer was in my blood,” Freeney said. “If it wasn’t for my high school coach, Jack Cochran, pulling me off that soccer field and convincing me to play this great game, I wouldn’t be on this stage today. Your invaluable lessons in work ethic have stayed with me for my entire life. You also taught me what it takes to become a champion.”
The other players to be inducted Saturday were Randy Gradishar, Devin Hester, Andre Johnson, Steve McMichael, Julius Peppers and Patrick Willis.
The ceremony was delayed nearly two hours because of heavy rain and lightning at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio. Similar weather on Thursday night forced the preseason opener between the Chicago Bears and Houston Texans to be stopped with 18 minutes remaining in the game.
Colts owner Jim Irsay, who is recovering from a fall, introduced Freeney in a video message. Irsay then was brought on stage in a wheelchair to help unveil Freeney’s bronze bust.
“He arguably was the best Colt defensive player in our 60-plus year history,” Irsay said.
Considered too small by some analysts and a reach when the Colts selected him No. 11 overall in the 2002 draft, Freeney quickly proved doubters wrong and thrived in coach Tony Dungy’s Tampa-2 defensive scheme.
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Dwight Freeney, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2024, celebrates after receiving his gold jacket during the gold jacket dinner Aug. 2 in Canton, Ohio. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Freeney shouts out SU strength coach during Hall of Fame speech: ‘Trained me like Rocky Balboa’ (PS; $; Leiker)
Dwight Freeney had a long list of people to shout out during his Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinement speech.
On that list, which included names like Peyton Manning, Marvin Harrison, Tony Dungy and more, was Freeney’s Syracuse football strength and conditioning coach, Will Hicks.
Freeney called Hicks, who returned to the Orange’s staff last year, a staple of both his collegiate and professional career.
“You trained me like Rocky Balboa, and you pushed me to my absolute limits,” Freeney said. “My friend, you mean the world to me.”
Hicks, in attendance wearing a navy polo with a Syracuse block ‘S,’ raised his right fist in the air and shook it in response.
Freeney was officially enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday afternoon at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio.
Freeney and Hicks have been close for over 20 years since the former was entering what would be a dominant junior year at Syracuse.
“It’s an honor for me that he thanked me for being part of it,” Hicks told syracuse.com in February when it was announced Freeney would be inducted into the hall. “It’s one of the greatest honors any athlete has ever given me.”
Paul Pasqualoni, Freeney’s head coach during his Syracuse career, was also in attendance and was thanked by Freeney for toughening him and helping him become a man.
Freeney thanked his Syracuse teammates en masse, too.
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Dwight Freeney’s Hall of Fame induction serves as inspiration to Zaire Franklin, rest of the Colts (colts.com; Foster)
Before Dwight Freeney was officially inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton on Saturday, Colts head coach Shane Steichen held his own sort of ceremony at Grand Park for the former Colts defensive end by showing Freeney's highlights in the team meeting.
Steichen wanted to show his players what Freeney was all about as a player and what he meant to the franchise. Freeney, who played for the Colts from 2002-2012, helped win Super Bowl XLI, was a three-time First-Team All Pro and made seven Pro Bowls during his time with the Colts. He is also second in franchise history in sacks with 107 ½.
"Guys see that and what it takes to be elite like he was," Steichen said Sunday. "You know, you strive for greatness every day and that's what he did, so congrats to him."
The 2024 Colts are no strangers to striving for greatness; even during training camp, players like running back Jonathan Taylor and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner have made it clear they want a championship ring. They all look up to the players that paved the way for them and showed what success looks, and they want to see that confetti fall for themselves.
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Syracuse Football Loses 4
️ Recruit Demetres Samuel to Florida Gators | Syracuse Orange Podcast (youtube; podcast; Locked on Syracuse)Syracuse Football was picked to finish 12th in the Preseason ACC Media Poll. The Orange haven't finished in the upper half of the conference since 2018, but with Fran Brown and Kyle McCord that could change. 2026 four-star recruit Demetres Samuel flipped his commitment from the Cuse to Florida Gators Football. And, 2025 four-star guard Acaden Lewis is unofficially visiting SU today, and then Duke on August 5th.Jackson Holzer goes over a variety of topics on this edition of the Locked On Syracuse Podcast.
Syracuse Football on Instagram: "qb1 is all about the team ️ "
cusefootball on August 2, 2024: "qb1 is all about the team ️ ".
www.instagram.com
x.com
twitter.com
Syracuse Football on Instagram: "Forever in Canton Congrats, @dwightfreeney "
cusefootball on August 3, 2024: "Forever in Canton Congrats, @dwightfreeney ".
www.instagram.com
ACC News
Longest All-Time Win Streaks (thru 2023) (RX; HM)
Longest All-Time Win Streaks (thru 2023)
What's the most wins your favorite team has ever strung together without a loss? From CFB Tracker:
Here's just the ACC teams in focus..
Longest win streaks for ACC football teams:
| Team | # | graph |
| Miami (FL) | 34 | wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww |
| Pittsburgh | 32 | wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww |
| Clemson | 29 | wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww |
| Florida St | 29 | wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww |
| Notre Dame | 23 | wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww |
| California | 18 | wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww |
| Georgia Tech | 18 | wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww |
| Stanford | 17 | wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww |
| Syracuse | 16 | wwwwwwwwwwwwwwww |
| N. Carolina | 14 | wwwwwwwwwwwwww |
| SMU | 14 | wwwwwwwwwwwwww |
| Boston College | 13 | wwwwwwwwwwwww |
| Virginia Tech | 13 | wwwwwwwwwwwww |
| Duke | 11 | wwwwwwwwwww |
| Louisville | 10 | wwwwwwwwww |
| Virginia | 10 | wwwwwwwwww |
| NC State | 9 | wwwwwwwww |
| Wake Forest | 8 | wwwwwwww |
Any surprises? I was a little surprised that Notre Dame is just 5th on this list, and that Cal is tied with GT for 6th, just ahead of Stanford in 8th place. I'm also surprised that NC State has never won more than 9 games in a row, which is one less than Louisville and UVA and just one better than Wake Forest.
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2024 Lou Groza Watch List (RX; HM)
2024 Lou Groza Watch List
From the official ACC release of Friday, August 2, 2024...
Seven ACC Kickers Named to Lou Groza 2024 Preseason Watch List
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) – On Friday, August 2, the Palm Beach County Sports Commission announced the 2024 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award Preseason Watch List, including seven Atlantic Coast Conference kickers.
The Lou Groza Award is presented annually to the top college football placekicker in the United States by the Palm Beach County Sports Commission. The award is named after former Ohio State Buckeyes and Cleveland Browns player Lou Groza.
Of the 30 best-returning kickers in the country on the preseason watch list, seven are from the ACC, headlined by two-time semifinalist Andres Borregales of Miami. Other kickers from the ACC on the watch list include Will Bettridge of Virginia, Aidan Birr of Georgia Tech, Noah Burnette of North Carolina, Ryan Fitzgerald of Florida State, John Love of Virginia Tech and Todd Pelino of Duke.
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2024 Ray Guy Watch List (RX; HM)
Where the hell is Jack Stonehouse?
ACC Punting Statistics 2023
| Rank | Player Name | Games | Punts | Yards | TB | FC | Blk | i20 | 50+ | Long | Avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wilson,Porter (Duke) | 8 | 40 | 1882 | 4 | 16 | 0 | 14 | 15 | 70 | 47.1 |
| 2 | Stonehouse,Jack (Syracuse) | 8 | 41 | 1931 | 5 | 14 | 0 | 11 | 15 | 64 | 47.1 |
| 3 | Mastromanno,Alex (Florida State) | 8 | 37 | 1740 | 2 | 20 | 0 | 18 | 15 | 59 | 47.0 |
| 4 | Hodges,Brady (Louisville) | 8 | 15 | 664 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 51 | 44.3 |
| 5 | Swanson,Aidan (Clemson) | 8 | 39 | 1708 | 4 | 17 | 0 | 14 | 11 | 62 | 43.8 |
| 6 | Sparks,Daniel (Virginia) | 8 | 43 | 1884 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 70 | 43.8 |
| 7 | Joyce,Dylan (Miami) | 8 | 33 | 1442 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 11 | 5 | 60 | 43.7 |
| 8 | Noonkester,Caden (NC State) | 8 | 49 | 2127 | 3 | 22 | 0 | 17 | 10 | 67 | 43.4 |
| 9 | Mora,Ivan (Wake Forest) | 8 | 41 | 1772 | 2 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 8 | 64 | 43.2 |
| 10 | Shanahan,David (Georgia Tech) | 8 | 36 | 1539 | 4 | 16 | 0 | 11 | 8 | 61 | 42.8 |
| 11 | Moore,Peter (Virginia Tech) | 8 | 36 | 1534 | 1 | 16 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 58 | 42.6 |
| 12 | Junko,Caleb (Pitt) | 8 | 44 | 1801 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 61 | 40.9 |
| 13 | Maginness,Tom (North Carolina) | 6 | 26 | 1021 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 57 | 39.3 |
| 14 | Travelstead,Brock (Louisville) | 8 | 17 | 658 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 52 | 38.7 |
| 15 | Candotti,Sam (Boston College) | 8 | 22 | 840 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 47 | 38.2 |
| 16 | Diloreto,Loren (Boston College) | 6 | 14 | 515 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 51 | 36.8 |
2024 Ray Guy Watch List
From the official ACC release of Friday, August 2, 2024...
ACC Lands Five Punters on 2024 Ray Guy Award Preseason Watch List
The Augusta Sports Council announced the preseason watch list for the 2024 Ray Guy Award, which honors the nation’s top collegiate punter in the FBS, on Friday, August 2. Five of the 34 candidates on the list hail from the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The five punters on the list from the ACC include redshirt senior Lachlan Wilson of Cal, redshirt senior Alex Mastromanno of Florida State, fifth-year senior Daniel Sparks of Virginia, redshirt senior Peter Moore of Virginia Tech and redshirt senior Ivan Mora of Wake Forest.
The 2024 watch list was compiled based on the 2023 Ray Guy Award Semifinalist List, the top 10 NCAA Punters from 2023, 2023 all-conference teams, 2023 All-American teams, the 2024 preseason all-conference teams, and eligible punters that were on the 2023 watch list.
The number of eligible candidates for this season will grow when the award committee opens nominations on August 3. The complete list of candidates will be released on November 6. In mid-November, the Ray Guy Award committee will meet to select the 10 semifinalists, who will be announced on November 15.
A national body of Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) sports information directors, media representatives, and previous Ray Guy Award winners will then vote for the top three finalists to be announced on November 26. After the finalists are named, the voting body will cast ballots again to select the nation’s top punter. The winner will be announced live during The Home Depot College Football Awards airing on ESPN in December 2024.
ACC Representatives on the Ray Guy Award Preseason Watch List:
Name, School, Class, PositionLachlan Wilson, Cal, Redshirt Senior, P
Alex Mastromanno, Florida State, Redshirt Senior, P
Daniel Sparks, Virginia, Fifth Year, P
Peter Moore, Virginia Tech, Redshirt Senior, P
Ivan Mora, Wake Forest, Redshirt Senior, P
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ESPN hires "The Dazzler" (RX; HM)
ESPN hires "The Dazzler"
From the ESPN Press Release of August 2, 2024...
ESPN Welcomes Veteran Head Coach Steve Addazio as College Football Analyst
ESPN has hired Steve Addazio as a college football analyst who will call games across ESPN platforms. With an accomplished resume and more than three decades of coaching experience at nationally recognized programs, Addazio brings a wealth of knowledge and impactful insight to ESPN's coverage.
"We are excited to welcome Steve Addazio to our talented roster of analysts," said Amanda Gifford, ESPN vice president of production. "Steve's vast experience and enthusiasm for college football make him a perfect fit for our coverage and we look forward to having him join us in the booth this fall."
Addazio's extensive career includes head coaching tenures at Boston College, Temple and Colorado State, as well as assistant and associate head coaching stints at Syracuse, Indiana, Notre Dame, Florida – where he was a two-time BCS National Champion – and most recently, Texas A&M.
Addazio shared: "I'm honored to join ESPN and share my love for college football with viewers across the country. I'm eager to utilize my coaching experience in a new way and bring my perspective and passion to the commentary booth."
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Florida State, ACC fight: ESPN have option to end deal in 2027, document shows (SI; Parks)
ESPN appears to have an option to end the ACC’s media rights deal in 2027, according to a document released by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody.
Although the document is heavily redacted to protect trade secrets, Section 14.1 appears to relate to an extension option, with the year 2027 being mentioned.
That remains a central date in Florida State’s ongoing challenge of the ACC’s grant of rights agreement, the deal that gives leagues the right to broadcast member schools’ football games for the duration of the media rights deal.
The ACC grant of rights agreement is said to expire in 2036, but Florida State has argued in court that the contracts do not end that year, but actually in 2027 when ESPN has an option to extend the deal.
Page 164 of the document cites the need for a written notice to the ACC “no later than two (2) years after the launch date of the ACC-ESPN network,” concerning ESPN’s plans to pick up the option.
ESPN has the “exclusive, revocable option,” the document states, “but not the obligation, to extend this Agreement until [redacted] subject to the remainder of this paragraph (such extended term of July 1, 2027 to the ‘Extension Term’) by providing written notice to the Conference no later than two (2) years after the launch date of the ACC-ESPN Network.”
The contract remains at the center of the legal battle Florida State brought against the ACC in an effort to challenge the conference’s early exit fees.
It was released to the public after a protective order said the ACC had seven days to turn over the ESPN contracts and other related documents to Florida State.
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2024 ACC Preseason FB Poll + more (RX; HM)
2024 ACC Preseason FB Poll + more
From the official ACC release of Wednesday, July 31, 2024...
Florida State Favored to Repeat in 2024 ACC Football Preseason Poll
Florida State, the 2023 defending ACC Champions, has been picked to win the 2024 Atlantic Coast Conference football title, according to a preseason poll of 170 media voters.
The Seminoles went 13-1 overall last season, including a perfect 8-0 record in conference play, on their way to winning the 2023 ACC title and the program’s first ACC Championship since 2014. Florida State was predicted as the 2024 ACC champion on 81 ballots.
The 2024 ACC Preseason Poll was conducted via a vote of a media panel, including those who were credentialed for last week’s ACC Football Kickoff in Charlotte, North Carolina.
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ACC on the VERGE of MASSIVE Great News? | Conference Realignment | SEC | BIG10 | BIG12 (RX; HM)
Clear your mind. Visualize the ACC. A proud, historic conference. Now, imagine something even better. A future filled with excitement and opportunity. Big news is coming. Get ready.
REALIGNMENT TRUTH: FSU & Clemson are NOT the BAD GUYS | ACC | SEC | B1G | BIG 12 (youtube; podcast; Double Fries)
John Kurtz (@JohnKurtzShow) joins me today to talk about FSU, Clemson, and Conference Realignment!
Other
Student from the Syracuse School District start the work of becoming a high school marching marching representing the city. Students from high schools and middle school are preparing for the New York State Field Band Conference at the JMA Wireless Dome in November. Dennis Nett | dnett@syracuse.com
Pride grows as Syracuse’s fledgling marching band tunes up for competition: ‘We’re building the plane as it goes’ (PS; $; Kramer)
Holly McCoy walked into a Henninger High School auditorium at precisely 12:15 p.m. Tuesday and announced her presence to her prospective Syracuse City School District marching band with the words “Band ten hut.”
Only a handful of students knew to respond with the one acceptable response: “Pride.”
That word is both the nickname of the marching band and the most important characteristic that McCoy, the band’s director, wants to instill in her pupils.
“They have to have pride in what they’re doing. So it kind of accentuates that,” she said.
McCoy doesn’t know how to park her pep in neutral, so the lukewarm callback response left her unflustered. That’s OK, she told her recruits. Some of you don’t know what to say. You will soon.
Oh, indeed they will. That, and so many other things.
The warmup notes are over. The Pride is growing and getting ready to make some serious noise.
This week marked the start of the band’s first true preseason camp. Last year’s group was something of a pilot program, a way to test out enthusiasm for the implementation of a full program. They performed in exhibition mode, installing and refining the most basic elements of the sport.
The pool of city school students wanting more of a challenge was clearly deeper than even McCoy could have hoped. Her preseason roster tops 90 band members, almost triple the number who capped last year with a performance at the state marching band championships in the JMA Wireless Dome.
Much like last fall, the Pride will wrap up its 2024 season at the dome for the state showcase. But this time, there is no mulligan. The performers will be judged and scored competitively against other schools in the Large School III division.
“We’re building the plane as it goes,” McCoy said during a brief break mapping out her preseason strategy. “We’re ready to go. This is our first time showing the communities around us who we are and that we’re building a program. I think no matter where we come from and where we land as far as scores, it’s not the scores that are important. It’s the experience that we’re going to push the most. Each week should be a growth. There will be a growth.”
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Macedonian Festival 2024
The three-day food and dancing festival is a dessert-lover's paradise. (Charlie Miller video)
youtu.be
Three-day Macedonian festival is a dessert-lover’s dream (photos, video) (PS; Miller)
The three-day Macedonian Ethnic Festival on Onondaga Hill got off to a soggy start on Friday, but that just meant the hundreds of people attending could spend more time inside with the desserts.
The 22nd annual festival at St. George Macedonian Orthodox Church began Friday afternoon, just as the downpours began.
“It wasn’t just a sprinkle; it was heavy,” said Emilija Postolovska, one of the festival organizers. “But we still had a good crowd, and as you can see, they came back today.”
Yes, they did. Hundreds of Central New Yorkers packed the church at 5083 Onondaga Road and enjoyed traditional Macedonian dishes, imported beers, plenty of dancing and walls and walls of dessert.
“They love our food,” Postolovska said. “It’ll get really busy at dinnertime and go late into the night.”
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This long-vacant building at the corner of South Salina and East Kennedy streets will be the new home of Onajava Coffee and Soul Cafe.Tim Knauss
New performing arts café is part of Home HeadQuarters’ effort to revitalize South Side (PS; $; Knauss)
The plywood is about to come off a long-vacant historic building on the South Side, a part of Syracuse where nonprofit housing group Home HeadQuarters has slowly but steadily rebuilt pockets of the neighborhood with new and rehabbed housing.
The building at 1555 S. Salina St. will add something extra beyond housing. The ground floor of the three-story structure will feature a coffee house that aims to be a home for performing arts.
Onajava Coffee and Soul Café will open later this month. In addition to coffee, breakfast and lunch, owner Reggie Pickard said he plans to fill the space with art and bring in performers for music and poetry.
The folks at Home HeadQuarters say Pickard’s business will add a splash of commercial vitality to a still-listless Salina Street business district that forms the spine of the South Side.
“You can’t just revitalize neighborhoods on the back of housing. You need those strong commercial corridors,’’ said Kerry Quaglia, CEO.
It’s a strategy they have used before.
On the Near West Side, where Home HeadQuarters has built dozens of homes, the group bought the former Lasher Hardware building at West Fayette and South Geddes streets and rented out the ground floor to Ponchito’s Taqueria, a Latin American restaurant.
After building homes in the Tipperary Hill neighborhood, Home HeadQuarters bought a vacant two-story house at the corner of Ulster Street and Milton Avenue, where Recess Coffee opened on the ground floor.
Onajava will occupy the ground floor of 1555 S. Salina St., which is at the corner of East Kennedy Street. The upper floors will include two market-rate, three-bedroom apartments.
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City councilors support saving Syracuse University-owned mansion, scold school's tactic (PS; $; Boyer)
At least two-thirds of the Common Council believe in protecting a vacant mansion that Syracuse University wants to demolish, and they’re not happy with SU’s related decision to fire architectural firms with volunteers on the city’s historic preservation board.
The Common Council will begin discussions Wednesday on the question of whether the university-owned property at 727 Comstock Ave. should be designated a locally historic site. A vote will likely take place Aug. 12. The Syracuse Landmark Preservation Board and the City Planning Commission have both recommended that designation against the university’s wishes. Common councilors get the final say.
As of Friday afternoon, six of the nine councilors said they plan to vote in support of the designation, which would force the university to go through a considerably more rigorous review process to secure a demolition permit. Two other councilors said they haven’t yet decided and the ninth could be not be reached for comment.
SU wants to build a massive 703-bed dormitory partly on the Comstock parcel, which has a vacant 14-bedroom, six-bathroom mansion. The home was built for prominent attorney Charles Estabrook’s young family in 1905. They sold it to an SU fraternity 18 years later, and the property remained a fraternity house for much of the next century.
In addition to planning to vote against a fast demolition, most city lawmakers said they’re troubled by the university’s move to end business relationships with two architecture firms whose employees sit on the city’s Landmark Preservation Board. The university canceled contracts with the firms three days after that board voted to protect mansion and asked them not bid on any of its projects for 10 years.
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