sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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Today we celebrate gingerbread houses, which are fun to both build and eat. They started being built in the sixteenth century in Germany. With the publishing of Brothers Grimm's "Hansel and Gretel" in 1812, which featured an edible house in the woods made entirely of candy and gingerbread, their popularity greatly increased. German bakers began making decorated fairytale-like houses out of gingerbread, which became beloved during the Christmas season. The houses started being adorned with candy, confections, and icing—which represented snow. German immigrants to Pennsylvania brought the tradition of gingerbread houses to the new world.
A great way to celebrate this special day is to stop by the Paciorek Orthodonics website and vote for your favorite gingerbread house. The beautiful SU themed one was made by board legend CuseDoxies. See picture above. Gingerbread House Contest - Paciorek Orthodontics
SU News
Kyle McCord says he is PLAYING in the HOLIDAY BOWL GAME (youtube; video; Orange Zone)
Kyle McCord says he is PLAYING in the HOLIDAY BOWL GAME
David Hale "The 315" 12-11-24 (ESPN; radio; the 315)
ESPN’s David Hale joins Brian Higgins to discuss early movements in the transfer portal for the ACC, Bill Belichick to UNC, thoughts on the College Football Playoff seeding, Kyle McCord’s season and much more.
Keeping Up With The 315 12-11-24 (ESPN; radio; The 315)
Brian Higgins gives his takeaways from Syracuse basketball’s win over Albany, gives some college football transfer portal updates, and assesses Syracuse basketball’s individual performances so far.
Le Moyne Women's Basketball & Syracuse Football Specials (youtube; podcast; WakeUpDT)
Wake Up Call with Dan Tortora brings you an ALL-NEW "Dolphin Dive" featuring Le Moyne College Women's Basketball Head Coach Nick DiPillo inside 2024-25 season, followed by Syracuse Orange Football alumni Jason Poles (DB alum & current Director of Advancement Southwest Region for Syracuse University) & Prince-Tyson Gulley (RB alum)...
https://247sports.com/college/syrac...-no-21-syracuse-vs-washington-state-12809127/ (247sports.com; video; 247sports)
Danny Kanell and Chip Patterson join Chris Hassel to preview the No. 21 Syracuse-Washington State Holiday Bowl matchup.
Can Kyle McCord COMEBACK to Syracuse Football? What You Need to Know | Syracuse Orange Podcast (youtube; podcast; Locked on Syracuse)
Syracuse Orange Football quarterback Kyle McCord has no years of college eligibility left. However, is their a chance that Fran Brown could have his signal caller back for another season. The case could boil down to McCord's true freshman season at Ohio State where Ryan Day burned his redshirt in the second-to-last game of the regular season against Michigan State.
Jackson Holzer shares what he knows, and if the case is feasible on this mini edition of the Locked On Syracuse Podcast.
Another Possible QB Transfer Portal Target for Syracuse Football: LSU Tigers' Rickie Collins (youtube; podcast; Locked on Syracuse)
Former LSU Tigers quarterback Rickie Collins visited Syracuse Orange Football yesterday, according to 247sports' Mike McAllister. Collins is a former four-star high school recruit with three years of eligibility left, but has been the third-string quarterback for LSU the last two seasons. If Collins were to transfer to Fran Brown's squad, he would likely have to compete for the starting job with Jakhari Williams.
Jackson Holzer reacts to Rickie Collins' visit on this mini edition of the Locked On Syracuse Podcast.
Syracuse football alum Garrett Shrader signs with CFL's BC Lions (TNIAAM; Ostrowski)
Former Syracuse Orange quarterback Garrett Shrader is heading north of the border for his next opportunity. Poetically, it'll primarily be in another Dome.
Shrader inked a deal with the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League. Terms of the contract were not discosed in the team’s announcement.
The Lions play in the 54-thousand seat BC Place in Vancouver. The franchise has won Six Grey Cups but have not claimed the Westen Division since 2011. They're coming off a 9-9 campaign.
Shrader has not suited up since his final college game on November 25, 2023. After that game, he underwent a procedure on his throwing arm - the second one he had in his college career.
Garrett joined the Orange as a transfer from Mississippi State in 2021. He usurped Tommy DeVito as starting QB in Week 4 and went on to produce 2,226 all-purpose yards (781 on the ground) and 23 total TDs to just four interceptions the rest of the season.
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Syracuse football: more Orange players enter the transfer portal (TNIAAM; Wall)
As the Syracuse Orange prepare for the DIRECTV Holiday Bowl, we’re going to continue getting comings and goings in the transfer portal.
Some new additions to the transfer portal from our last update are kicker Brady Denaburg, quarterbacks Carlos Del Rio-Wilson and Braeden Davis and offensive lineman Noah Rosahac. Denaburg is the only one who saw significant time in 2024, but both CDRW and Davis had made starts for the Orange in 2023.
Denaburg was the Orange starter to begin the season but after going 3-6 on field goals, he lost those responsibilities. He did handle kickoffs the entire season and was one of the team captains. Right now we would expect that Jackson Kennedy and Jadyn Oh would once again compete for the place-kicking and kickoff jobs in 2025. Kennedy assumed the role over the final weeks and went 7-9 on field goals and 20-21 on extra points. Oh was 11-11 on extra point attempts, but only 2-5 on field goals.
If Kyle McCord opts out of the bowl game, then Michael Johnson, Jr. and Jakhari Williams would be the top options under center. We’ll have more details on the quarterback room coming up later in the week.
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Syracuse quarterback becomes 7th player from Orange to enter name in transfer portal (PS; $; Carlson)
Syracuse backup quarterback Carlos Del-Rio Wilson has entered his name into the NCAA’s transfer portal, according to a source who has access to the portal.
Del-Rio Wilson began last season third on SU’s depth chart, losing a battle with Michael Johnson Jr. to be the team’s primary backup behind Kyle McCord.
He did not dress for the Orange near the end of the season. Fran Brown said he had suffered an injury but did not provide specifics. At the time of the injury, Brown said he expected it would be season-ending.
Del Rio-Wilson did not throw a pass for the Orange this season and did not appear in a game. He is expected to have one year of college eligibility remaining.
During the previous two seasons, he completed 47.1 percent of his passes for 624 yards with four touchdowns and eight interceptions.
Del Rio-Wilson started his career as a four-star recruit at Florida in 2021. He transferred to Syracuse the following season.
He is the seventh Syracuse player who has entered their name into the NCAA transfer portal or declared their intention to. The only starter among the group was cornerback Marcellus Barnes. Linebacker Anwar Sparrow and placekicker Brady Denaburg made contributions in games during SU’s 9-3 season.
The others players pursuing a new school are young offensive linemen Joshua Miller and Noah Rosahac and wide receiver Braden Davis.
Syracuse had 28 players leave via the transfer portal during the first offseason under head coach Fran Brown but the Orange used that space to bring in 18 new transfers, upgrading the talent in the program substantially in a single offseason.
Syracuse Football: What Transfer Portal quarterback makes the most sense? (itlh; Nederveld)
The most important position for Syracuse football in the transfer portal is by far quarterback. Kyle McCord, barring an unlikely waiver, is out of eligibility and there isn't much experience behind him. That's compounded by Carlos Del-Rio Wilson and quarterback-turned-receiver Braden Davis entering the portal, too.
As of right now, Syracuse has only four scholarship quarterbacks for 2025: veteran Michael Johnson Jr. (who's played a mix of quarterback and wide receiver), redshirt freshman Jakhari Williams, and true freshmen Luke Carney and Rich Belin.
With that, who should Syracuse target? A couple of names have already been discussed, whether scheduled visits or reports of interest, and I'll give my thoughts on each of them.
Looking at some transfer-portal quarterbacks linked to Syracuse football.
Conner Weigman
The former Texas A&M Aggie was reported as a team to watch by On3's Pete Nakos. Weigman's story personally reminds me a bit of Kyle McCord. The two passers have similar builds, both are 6'3" while Weigman is 215 pounds compared to McCord's 220 pounds. Additionally, both were five stars out of high school and spent three years at a prestigious program. I'd also classify both as pocket passers, although Weigman does provide more of a running threat.
There are a couple of differences between the two quarterbacks, one being Weigman's health. He's missed time due to injury in all three of his seasons, including a season-ending foot injury after week four. Additionally, he hasn't always been the most effective quarterback.
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Syracuse football quarterback Kyle McCord on Holiday Bowl: ‘I’m playing’ (PS; $; Carlson)
Syracuse quarterback Kyle McCord removed any sliver of doubt about whether he would play in the Holiday Bowl on Wednesday night during an interview with CBS5′s Meghan Coleman on the television channel’s Salvation Army’s Kettlethon.
“I’m playing,” McCord said. “Yeah, I’m playing. I’m playing. I’m playing. I’m playing.”
In the background, volunteers answering phones for the event rang bells in celebration. Members of the Syracuse football team were answering phones for the event.
Earlier in the week, Syracuse head coach Fran Brown made it very clear which direction he thought his quarterback was headed, saying: “I think Kyle is playing. If you’re going to have a football game, Kyle McCord will play in the football game.”
Brown shared a similar message for the rest of the Orange’s star players, saying: “We don’t opt-out around here. We play football. We like the game. The more football you play, the more the NFL watches.”
Few, if any, of Syracuse’s players are currently projected as first or second-round NFL Draft picks, the range where sitting out bowl games has become common practice in order for players to avoid risking huge financial rewards.
Still, there are a parade of college stars each season that don’t play in the bowl games so that they can ensure they are able to attend events like the NFL Combine and various all-star games at full health.
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East-West Shrine Bowl on Instagram: "Gamebreaker DE @fdiggs.10 from @cusefootball has officially accepted his invite to the 100th East-West #ShrineBowl! #ShrineBowlWHOSNEXT "
1,723 likes, 18 comments - shrinebowl on December 11, 2024: "Gamebreaker DE @fdiggs.10 from @cusefootball has officially accepted his invite to the 100th East-West #ShrineBowl! #ShrineBowlWHOSNEXT ".
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ACC News
After formal ACC exit notice, Florida State now says 'we never said we wanted to leave' (usatoday)
Nearly 16 months after its formal notice of withdrawal from the ACC, Florida State has taken a new and odd public stance as its acrimonious lawsuit against the conference continues to play out.
Who said we ever wanted to leave the ACC?
“We’re in the league the last time I looked,” FSU athletic director Mike Alford told USA TODAY Sports during the Sports Business Journal Intercollegiate Forum. “We never said we wanted to leave the league.”
Actually, they did.
In Florida State’s August 2023 lawsuit against the ACC, on page 32 of the 38-page complaint, item 151 states: “Florida State be deemed to have issued its formal notice of withdrawal from the ACC under Section 1.4.5 of the ACC Constitution, effective August 14, 2023.”
At issue is the school’s media rights deal with the ACC through 2036, which according to Florida State officials tops out at $42 million annually — nearly $30 million behind the annual payout to neighboring SEC schools.
During an August 2023 meeting, the Florida State Board of Trustees said it wanted an exit plan from the ACC by August of 2024.
“It’s not a matter of if we leave,” former Seminoles quarterback and Board member Drew Weatherford said during the 2023 meeting. “But when and how.”
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How NFL owners, SMU alums helped Peruna run at the ACC title game (texasfootball.com; Craven)
How Tavia Hunt, Nicole Tepper, and Liz Armstrong rallied together to getSMU mascot Peruna a front seat to the ACC championship game againstthe Clemson Tigers
The private jet owned by Bill and Liz Armstrong was stocked with SMU royalty as it hurled throughthe air from Dallas to Charlotte for the ACC championship game.Pony Express stars Craig James and Lance McIlhenny were part of the 14-person entourage with Board of Trustee members Richard Ware and Connie O’Neill.
The clash against Clemson for a guaranteed spot in the rst 12-team College Football Playo was on the line. The biggest game for the Ponies since James and McIlhenny marched down the eld on opponents in theearly 1980s.
But it was a missing member of the SMU family that was the main topic of conversation.Peruna was a patent medicine popularized in the late 1800s as a cure-all for “the ills of winter”such as coughs, colds, and bronchitis. It packed more of a punch than a cure given the bunkelixir was at least 25% alcohol.
The word “Peruna” was introduced into the SMU fight song inthe 1910s and the live mascot – a black Shetland Pony – was dubbed with the same moniker in1932. Peruna I also packed a kick as it famously killed the Fordham ram Ramses in the 1934 season –an event Fordham insists is more legend than history – with a swift kick to its head on thesideline of a game in New York. One that the pony reached inside of a taxi.
Turns out,transporting Peruna IX to Charlotte was a much more dicult task. A task Liz Armstrong tookas a personal challenge. “That horse is running on the eld when we play in Charlotte,” Liz announced confidently on the plane ride to the ACC championship game. “It would mean so much to our players and ourfans. That little horse is part of our family.”
The Armstrongs are arguably the biggest reason SMU’s football team is in the College Football.
Bill met Liz as a freshman in geology class at SMU. They graduated in 1982 – at theheight of the Pony Express. He remembers parties attended by the football players and the fratsand, yes, Peruna. He set out a few years ago to return the student experience on the Hill he remembered. And that includes the Shetland Pony.
Liz found out at a party on the Wednesday leading into the ACC championship game week thatPeruna couldn’t roam the sidelines at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte where the Carolina Panthers play. The athletic department had 2,000 worries and tasks to complete by Saturday night, and Peruna was one of the smaller ones.
Pony Express members like James, McIlhenny, and Eric Dickerson attended the Wednesday spirit party. As did Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt and his wife, Tavia. Their daughter is a member of the student body and a cheerleader at SMU.
And that gave Liz an idea.
Like Peruna – the elixir and the pony – the Mustang alumni base is small but mighty.
If the Panthers were holding up Peruna’s involvement at the ACC championship game, surely a callfrom the Hunt family could resolve the issue.
“The field is turf and he’s tiny,” Liz said of the playing surface in Charlotte and the stature of Peruna. “Once Tavia was on it, I knew we’d get it done.”
Tavia went to work. She called her friend, Carolyn Wright, who is the Panthers' Chief Venues Officer.
They've had a 1,000-pound mustang named Warpaint run at Arrowhead and assured thePanthers that Peruna, who is "tiny but mighty" wouldn't hurt their eld. The Panthers agreed,but by this point, it was Thursday and the game was 72 hours and 1,000 miles away.How could Peruna get transported? And where would it stay once it arrived in the Queen City?
Enter Taylor and Hallie Martin. Taylor is Liz’s brother and a former Peruna handler who ran theShetland Pony at SMU home games for all four years of his college life at SMU. Hallie, his wife,operates the largest equestrian boarding facility in the Metroplex.
Taylor had secretly been planning for this exact situation. Taylor and Hallie took that advice andbegan calling folks who are known for transporting horses across the country.
Not only did they need a driver, but they also needed a new trailer. That’s because Peruna’s old trailer, worthabout $25,000 and decked out in SMU logos, was stolen.
The Martins decided they’d pay someone with a trailer big enough to hold Peruna in Charlotte for the night. The trailer was big enough for a stall and for the driver to sleep in, an admittedlyridiculous size for a 150-pound pony that also included air conditioning – essentially an RV for horses.
It costs $8,500 round trip all expenses paid, but it was priceless for Liz, Taylor, and therest of the SMU family.
“Could I have spent $8,500 on something else? Sure,” Taylor said.
“But it was the ACCchampionship game. If we were going, Peruna was going.”
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SEC Already Changing the Playoff; Can’t Stand Big 12/ACC Ahead of Them (youtube; podcast; Kurtz)
Predictably, we already have a Ross Dellenger story from Yahoo Sports outlining the SEC and Big Ten's proposal to change the playoff after the Big 12, ACC, and a G5 champ got byes ahead of their at-large teams. WVU makes a hire, Utah and Iowa State make big moves.
Links, News and Rumors 2024 Dec 11 (RX; HM)
Links, News and Rumors 2024 Dec 11
2024 ACC Championship TV viewership was good, attendance was down as fans perhaps are budgeting for the next round of tickets to buy...
That 6.0 million TV viewers is down a little from last year (FSU vs Louisville). It's worth pointing out that, while the Big XII was only up against the MAC Championship, and the SEC had no competition at all in its time slot, the ACC CG went up against both the Big Ten and Sun Belt Championships and still pulled in 6.0 million viewers. You won't hear that from media talking heads!
Attendance was down as well for the 2024 ACC CG, although the number still looks like a P4 conference, at least, being closer to the Big Ten than the Mountain West, according to SBJ:
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Bad News for Virginia Tech (theclemsoninsider.com; Staff)
The hits keep coming for this ACC football program.
According to ESPN’s Max Olson, three more Virginia Tech players have entered the NCAA transfer portal, including starting left tackle Xavier Chaplin, starting safety Mose Phillips III and running back Malachi Thomas.
Per Olson, Virginia Tech has already seen 12 scholarship players hit the portal to this point.
A College Football News Third Team All-American last season, the 6-foot-7, 323-pound Chaplin redshirted as a freshman in 2022 before enjoying strong seasons as a starter in 2023 and 2024. He has two years of eligibility remaining.
Phillips, meanwhile, tallied 65 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, one sack, four passes defended, an interception and one forced fumble as a starter this season. The 6-foot-2, 193-pound sophomore has two years of eligibility left.
Thomas, a redshirt junior, was Virginia Tech’s backup running back behind Bhayshul Tuten. He rushed for 1,127 yards with seven rushing touchdowns across his four seasons with the Hokies. The 6-foot, 215-pounder has one year of eligibility remaining.
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A Sicilian pizza from Napoli Pizzeria in North Syracuse, the 49th stop on our CNY Pizza Tour. (Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com)(Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com)
CNY Pizza Tour, stop #49: New pizzeria brings decades of pizza-making experience to North Syracuse (PS; $; Miller)
A customer walked into Napoli Pizzeria on its first day in business and made owner Mike Perrucci a promise: “If you’re good, I’ll come back once a week. If you’re great, I’ll be here twice a week.”
That was Nov. 13, a Wednesday.
“You know what?” Mike asked. “That guy has been in here seven times already, and I would bet he’ll be back tonight.”
He’s not the only returning customer. Napoli opened last month with no fanfare and no advertising. Customers quickly spread the word on Google and our Where Syracuse Eats Facebook group. Business has grown exponentially. Roughly 75% of the orders come from walk-ins and telephone calls. The rest is online via DoorDash.
Napoli is hidden inside a 1,100-square-foot storefront on Taft Road. It had last been a Subway sandwich, next door to a takeout Chinese restaurant and a Dunkin. After signing the lease, Mike filled it with two used Blodgett pizza ovens, a prep station and a couple two-person tables and four chairs.
He then created a menu modest enough to not tax the tiny kitchen.
“I don’t have a big place. I don’t have a big menu. At this point in my life, this is all I need,” he said. “I just want to make damn good pizza.”
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This is the latest snowfall map issued Thursday morning by the National Weather Service.National Weather Service
State of emergency declared: 2-3 feet of snow, high winds forecast for North Country, Western NY (PS; Coin)
Update: Map above has the latest forecasts as of Thursday morning.
Gov. Kathy Hochul Wednesday evening declared a state of emergency for Western New York and the North Country due to forecasts calling for heavy snow and high winds.
Areas east of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario are forecast to get two to three feet of snow along with wind gusts of 30-45 mph beginning tonight and continuing through Saturday, according to the National Weather Service.
“Travel will be very difficult with deep snow cover on roads and very poor visibility,” the weather service said. “Areas of blowing snow will significantly reduce visibility, with near whiteout conditions at times.”
The state of emergency is in effect for Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Franklin, Genesee, Hamilton, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Oswego, St. Lawrence, Wyoming and contiguous counties, according to the governor’s office.
The Thruway Authority is implementing a tandem and empty tractor trailer ban in both directions on the Thruway (Interstate 90) from Exit 53 (Buffalo (Downtown) - Canada - Niagara Falls - Interstate 190) west to the Pennsylvania state line until further notice.
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