sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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Welcome to National Bacon Day!
According to the Bacon Day website, the day was created by Danya Goodman and Meff Leonard. They came up with the day as a way to celebrate bacon and The Simpsons. In The Simpsons episode "I Love Lisa," Homer asks, "Is it Bacon Day?" This is how the creators of the day tied the celebration of two things they love together.
So what's the story of bacon? Bacon is a popular treat cut from the meat of a pig. In the United States, bacon refers to meat from the belly of the pig, known as the pork belly. Bacon from the loin is called Canadian bacon. To make bacon, the pork is cured using salt, and is then dried, boiled, or smoked. The smoking of bacon is often done with hickory, mesquite, or maple wood, and flavors such as brown sugar or maple may be added. More often than not, bacon is pan fried, and it is popular as a breakfast food, in sandwiches like the BLT or club sandwich, as a complement to salads, and in wrapping other foods. "Bacon mania" has swept the United States and Canada since the late 1990's, where there has been a great increase in the amount of bacon being eaten, and in the amount of new bacon recipes. The high sodium and nitrate content of bacon that lower its health benefits has not seemed to much slow down the bacon craze.
How to Observe Bacon Day
The creators of the day suggested the following ways to celebrate:- Have a party and invite everyone you know, as well as people you don't know.
- Have a "big, non denominational, gift giving December holiday"; get at least one person a gift on the day.
- Eat a large amount of bacon; try different varieties and qualities.
- Watch movies that star Kevin Bacon, movies with "Bacon" in the title, movies about bacon, or movies about preprocessed bacon—such as Babe.
- Play "loud and diverse music" and drink "spirituous beverages".
- Dress up like a pork product.
- Kiss under mistletoe made of pork fat.
- Taunt vegans and vegetarians.
- Toasting to bacon and Bacon Day.
- Email everyone you know and wish them a very happy Bacon Day.
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SU News
Syracuse special teams coordinator not expected to return next year (report) (PS; Carlson)
Syracuse special teams coordinator James Vollono is not expected to return to the Orange next season, according to a report by ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
Vollono’s units struggled for much of the season with placekicking issues lasting the entire year and multiple problems with blocking that led to touchdowns.
Syracuse made just 59.1 percent of its field-goal tries (13 of 22) this season while trying three different kickers at the position. That was the worst percentage in the ACC, a mark made more dismal by the fact that the Orange play in a dome.
The Orange also finished 15th out of 17 teams in the ACC in net yardage per punt, averaging 36.2 yards each time that veteran Jack Stonehouse kicked.
The issues on special teams were at their worst early in the season when returning kicker Brady Denaburg had multiple kicks blocked, contributing to his demotion. The Orange needed overtime to beat UNLV after giving up 14 points on two poor punts, including one that was blocked and recovered in the end zone.
Syracuse head coach Fran Brown defended Vollono during the poor start, expressing confidence in the coach and saying that any blame should be aimed at him.
The worst of the issues improved during the second half of the season as Jackson Kennedy provided a measure of consistency at kicker.
Still, Washington State blocked a punt and scored a touchdown in the Holiday Bowl and nearly blocked a second. The Orange also missed a field goal.
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Syracuse RB LeQuint Allen says he will discuss his future with football coach Fran Brown this week (PS; $; Carlson)
Syracuse running back LeQuint Allen said he will discuss his future with SU head coach Fran Brown this week, a conversation that should solidify one of the most important offseason questions for the Orange.
Brown has called Allen a future NFL player and asked late in the year for anyone having conversations with Allen to try to encourage him to return to the Orange for his final season of college.
The running back participated in Syracuse’s Senior Day this season but that does not always mean a player plans to leave the program.
“I’m still talking about it,” Allen said during an on-field interview after Friday night’s Holiday Bowl with Fox Sports’ Jenny Taft.
“I’m going to talk to Fran on Tuesday and see what he’s talking about. We’re going to talk about it. I love Syracuse. Syracuse changed my life. I wish the best for me and everyone else on this team.”
Allen was not among the two SU players brought in for post-game interviews after its 52-35 win over Washington State.
The running back has rushed for 1,000 yards in two consecutive seasons for the Orange and has been regularly called the “heartbeat” of the team by his coach.
Allen’s ability to run the ball capably, while also displaying high-level ability as a receiver, is part of what makes him such an effective player and helps provide the Orange offense some balance.
Allen finished the season with 1,021 rushing yards and 521 receiving yards.
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Syracuse football 2025 schedule: Who does SU face next season? (PS; Mink)
Syracuse football capped its 2024 season with a 52-35 victory against Washington State in the Holiday Bowl.
It’s time to turn the page to 2025.
The Orange will open next season with a nationally televised game against Tennessee at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
The showcase game on Labor Day weekend kicks off a dynamic 12-game schedule that features four opponents that competed in this year’s College Football Playoff (all played away from the JMA Wireless Dome), plus home games against former New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick and a school that will reportedly pay its new quarterback $8 million over the next two seasons.
It features road trips to Notre Dame, Clemson, Miami (Fla.), SMU and Georgia Tech.
And, as a result of the neutral-site game against the Volunteers, that comes with a financial guarantee, there are just six home games on next year’s schedule.
The ACC typically releases its football schedule, including exact dates and order of opponents, in late January.
Next year’s schedule is part of a seven-year scheduling model that runs through 2030. Syracuse has protected rivalry games against Pittsburgh and Boston College under the arrangement.
Non-conference games
Aug. 30 vs. Tennessee* (ABC or ESPN)It’ll be the first time Syracuse and Tennessee meet since 2001, and, perhaps appropriately, it may also be SU’s biggest season opener in 24 years, when the Orange faced 10th-ranked Georgia Tech in the Kickoff Classic in the 2001 opener in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
The Orange and Vols will play in the home of the Atlanta Falcons, right in the heart of SEC country.
The game was scheduled in July 2021, when Tennessee was coming off a 3-7 season and reeling from the fallout of a pay-for-play scheme under former coach Jeremy Pruitt. Syracuse was coming off a 1-10 season under coach Dino Babers.
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https://247sports.com/college/tcu/a...e-52-35-pulls-away-in-holiday-bowl-242950473/ (247sports.com; Haugh)
SAN DIEGO - Washington State was out-manned and outgunned in Friday's Holiday Bowl in Snapdragon Stadium ... but not out-fought. Missing numerous players on both sides of the ball, including the nation's leader in total touchdowns, No. 21 Syracuse took advantage of a depleted Cougar roster en route to a 52-35 win.
The Orange pulled away in the second half, dropping WSU to 8-5 to close the book on the season.The Cougs led three different times in the first half, and trimmed the lead to seven late in the third quarter, but couldn't get over the hump in the fourth.
TURNING POINT: The pendulum started to swing Syracuse's way after the Orange stuffed QB Zevi Eckhaus and the Cougs on a daring fourth-and-one at the Syracuse 19-yard line. Eckhaus doesn't quite have the burly frame of Mateer and combined with the offensive line unable to move the Syracuse front, the QB draw failed. Syracuse finished the first half on an eight-play, 80-yard drive capped off by a five-yard touchdown reception.
RUN OF THE GAME: After WSU forced a punt to open the game, Eckhaus drove the Cougs down the field over an eight-play, 68-yard drive capped off by a four-yard touchdown run from Eckhaus, his first career rushing touchdown at Washington State. He oozed emotion as the rest of his teammates ran after the Culver City, Calif., product to congratulate him.
CATCH OF THE GAME: Kyle Williams chose to play rather than cut out early to prepare for the NFL Draft. Williams might have raised his draft stock in doing so. The senior took a crossing route from Eckhaus 66 yards to the house. You could almost hear Chris Berman uttering, 'HE COULD GO ALL THE WAY,' in the background. Williams wound up setting the Holiday Bowl record for receiving yards with 172 hashes, previously set by Dez Bryant with 168 yards.
Related: WSU hanging tough but down 35-21 to Syracuse at half
TACKLE OF THE GAME: The stones go to kicker Dean Janikowski for his hit on the Syracuse kick returner in the first quarter. Maybe there's something about this field for Janikowski who earned himself an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after he pushed a San Diego State player late in the fourth quarter in the Cougars' 29-26 victory over SDSU (Janikowski's hand was broken on the play). Alas, Janikowski missed two makable field goals in the game.
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Syracuse Football: Takeaways from the Cuse's Holiday Bowl Win over Washington State (itlh; Nederveld)
After knocking down Washington State 52-35, the Syracuse Orange have won their 10th game of the season - a feat that has happened only eight times in program history, the last time being 2018.
Head coach Fran Brown's team put together their best offensive performance of the season. Both the 52 points and 606 total yards were season highs, being the most points and yards against an FBS opponent since 2018 and 2019, respectively. Here's what I took away from the game.
My takeaways from Syracuse football's Holiday Bowl win over Washington State.
"We don't opt out around here. We play football."
There was a stark contrast looking at the Syracuse and Washington State rosters and coaching staffs. The Cougars had 31 players enter the portal and were also without their HC, OC, DC, QB coach, and RB coach. While some portal players still played in the game, the majority of the key contributors, who led the Cougars to an 8-4 season, did not.Meanwhile, every Syracuse player who could play did play. There were certainly more players without pads on the sideline than we saw throughout the regular season, but that was all from injuries, including to Fadil Diggs and Devin Grant. But guys like Kyle McCord, Oronde Gadsden II and LeQuint Allen all played when they realistically didn't have to.
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https://insidetheloudhouse.com/here...orts-bucket-list-i-d-love-to-know-yours(itlh; Fiello)
As 2025 approaches, many people will try to establish New Year’s resolutions. Some will succeed, some will fail, and some will try again the next year.
But what about instead of trying to set resolutions that seem like chores, what if instead you chose to achieve a bucket list goal that you can plan for in advance? For instance, Billy Joel is number one on my bucket list and he’s playing the JMA Wireless Dome in 2025. And while some mock it because he’s played there before, for someone like me, it’s still a big deal and I’ve never been able to go and due to ticket prices and greed, I probably never will with those kinds of ticket prices.
And then this got me thinking too. Not only about ways to maybe save up to find a way, despite the high ticket price, but what other bucket list items I might have associated with Syracuse sports in general.
For instance, this year Syracuse football played in the Holiday Bowl and I’ve never been to a bowl game or any post-season game or tournament. How cool would it be to travel to an event like this and maybe partake in fan events with others as well as root on your team one last time for the season?
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twitter.com
Cuse Football: Why LeQuint Allen is likely next season’s MVP (itlh; Fiello)
As the Syracuse football season comes to a close following a 52-35 DirecTV Holiday Bowl win over Washington State, let’s all take a moment to reflect and enjoy a 10-win season.
But after that, we have to ask ourselves, what’s next for this program? Who will stay and who will go and where do we go from here?
As rumors circulate about the future of Syracuse football’s MVP Kyle McCord’s status, one player who is likely in that same conversation with him is Syracuse running back LeQuint Allen. And as Brent Axe shared on social media, it looks like there will be a discussion this week about his future.
LeQuint finished the bowl game with 120 yards rushing and 3 touchdowns (2 rushing and 1 receiving) and even a 2-point conversion. He’s had the winning touchdown in both overtime games this season. He’s a player that Coach Fran Brown says has one of the best work ethics on the team and plays with a determination that you better bring it if you plan to stop him. Whenever Coach Brown is asked about LeQuint, his response is always favorable and almost comparable to his praise of McCord.
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3 takeaways from Syracuse's 75-63 win over Bucknell (tinyurl.com; Sen)
Syracuse wrapped up its season with a 52-35 win over Washington State in the Holiday Bowl, and offered several top prospects ahead of the dead period.
Here's what four of them had to say about their offers.
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natl
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st
-
pos
Derek
Garcia
5.5
RATING
6'3"|192 lbs|PRO
Ventura
Ventura, CA
Class of 2026
undecided
"The Syracuse football program is great. They had a successful season in a hard conference and beat some legit teams."
READ THE JUICE ONLINE'S FULL INTERVIEW WITH DEREK GARCIA
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natl
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st
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pos
Alijah
Jones
N/A
RATING
6'4"|275 lbs|OL
Monroe
Rochester, NY
Class of 2027
undecided
"I’m honestly very proud of myself and just thankful for this offer."
READ THE JUICE ONLINE'S FULL INTERVIEW WITH ALIJAH JONES
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natl
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st
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pos
Jalen
Flowers
N/A
RATING
6'1"|160 lbs|ATH
Palos Verdes
Palos Verdes Estates, CA
Class of 2028
undecided
"I love it. I’m happy they are interested in me."
READ THE JUICE ONLINE'S FULL INTERVIEW WITH JALEN FLOWERS
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natl
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st
-
pos
Taihj
Moore
N/A
RATING
5'11"|170 lbs|RB
Deland
Deland, FL
Class of 2028
undecided
"I’m thankful that they offered me to their program."
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Syracuse Football's Offensive Line: The Impact of Diego Pavia's Case | Syracuse Orange Podcast (youtube; podcast; Lockded on Syracuse)
Syracuse Orange Football's offensive line has been directly impact by Diego Pavia's court ruling, granting an extra year of NCAA eligibility to players who started at JUCO programs. Fran Brown's starting center, J'Onre Reed, announced after the Holiday Bowl that he's returning to college. The Orange's starting guards, Jakob Bradford and Mark Petry, could also potentially be granted an extra year of eligibility. If would be outstanding if Cuse can retain all of Reed, Bradford, and Petry. Syracuse's offensive line only allowed Kyle McCord to be sacked 4% of the time, and LeQuint Allen averaged 4.5 yards-per-carry.
Jackson Holzer talks about Syracuse's offensive line on this edition of the Locked On Syracuse Podcast.
0:00- J'Onre Reed Back to College
8:51- Bradford & Petry
16:41- Scenarios
Syracuse Football on Instagram: "ICYMI: @kylemccord breaks down his legacy in the Orange & Blue"
cusefootball on December 29, 2024: "ICYMI: @kylemccord breaks down his legacy in the Orange & Blue".
www.instagram.com
Syracuse Football on Instagram: "Mr. Versatility @lequintallenjr"
6,413 likes, 27 comments - cusefootball on December 29, 2024: "Mr. Versatility @lequintallenjr".
www.instagram.com
Syracuse NIL Store on Instagram: "Season one of the Fran Brown era was one to remember #syracuse #football #cfb #dart"
syracuse.nil.store on December 29, 2024: "Season one of the Fran Brown era was one to remember #syracuse #football #cfb #dart".
www.instagram.com
ACC News
https://athlonsports.com/college/vi...es-24-players-in-first-transfer-portal-window (athlonsports.com; DeLima)
It's not a great time to be an ACC football team as the conference has gone 1-9 in bowl games, including four losses on Saturday.
The Virginia Tech Hokies, who will wrap up the ACC's bowl season in Friday's matchup in Duke's Mayo Bowl against the Minnesota Golden Gophers, have been hit hard by departures via the transfer portal.
At the time of publication, VA Tech has had 24 players enter the first transfer portal window, according to On3.
Two former four-star defensive linemen recruits, per On3Sports, Khurtiss Perry and Gunner Givens, announced their intentions to transfer. Givens committed to Vanderbilt on December 17.
Offensive tackle Xavier Chaplin, rated a four-star transfer by On3Sports, committed to Auburn on December 15.
It's not all bad for the Hokies, as they've partially replenished their roster with two former four-star recruits transferring in: running back Cameron Seldon from Tennessee and safety Sherrod Covil from Clemson.
Running back Terion Stewart, a four-star incoming transfer from Bowling Green, also committed to the Hokies.
While it's important to remember that players can withdraw from the transfer portal, nearly a quarter of the roster seeks to leave the program, which isn't a good sign for Virginia Tech and head coach Brent Pry.
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Friday Results 2024 Dec 27 (RX; HM)
Friday Results 2024 Dec 27
The ACC finally produced a bowl winner in 2024, though it took until the 5th try to do it...
| Holiday Bowl | |
| #21 Syracuse | 52 |
| Washington St | 35 |
Syracuse vs. Washington State Game Highlights | 2024 ACC Football
On a night when Syracuse quarterback Kyle McCord set the single-season ACC passing yards record, the QB also capped his phenomenal season with 453 yards and 5 touchdown passes to lead the Orange to a 52-35 win over Washington State in the DirecTV Holiday Bowl. Syracuse Running Back LeQuint Allen rushed for 120 yards and 2 touchdowns and caught 3 passes for 45 yards and a touchdown as well. Tight End Oronde Gadsden II caught 2 of McCord’s TD passes and Trebor Pena caught the remaining 2, including a 45-yarder. The Orange defense picked off Washington State quarterback Zevi Eckhaus twice in the game as well. Syracuse finishes the season with 10 wins in head coach Fran Brown’s first season.
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Sad to say, Georgia Tech didn't fare as well as Syracuse...
| Birmingham Bowl | |
| Georgia Tech | 27 |
| Vanderbilt | 35 |
The Yellow Jackets defense appeared formidable against Miami (a win) and Georgia (8 OT loss), but they struggled to stop the Commodores (ok, lots of teams struggled with that this season - including Alabama - especially when the referees are sho
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Syracuse QB Kyle McCord makes ACC history, breaking Deshaun Watson’s record with legendary Holiday Bowl performance | Sporting News (sportingnews.com; Shoemaker)
Kyle McCord was thought to be written off after he entered the transfer portal from Ohio State last season. But after Friday night, McCord had a season for the ages, cementing his place as one of the best quarterbacks in college football.
The Syracuse signal-caller shattered Deshaun Watson’s ACC single-season passing record during a dominant performance in the DirecTV Holiday Bowl, throwing for 453 yards and five touchdowns to lead the Orange to a 52-35 victory over Washington State. McCord’s record-breaking season now stands at 4,779 passing yards—nearly 200 more than Watson’s 2016 mark of 4,593.
“It means the world,” McCord said after accepting the Holiday Bowl Offensive MVP trophy. “Coming here a year ago, just to see how it all worked out, it’s exactly what [Coach Fran Brown] said it would be. To be standing on this stage with 10 wins and these guys behind me, it means the world.”
McCord’s historic campaign capped off a remarkable first season for Fran Brown as Syracuse’s head coach. The Orange finished with 10 wins for the first time since 2018 and just the third time since 1992. Under Brown’s leadership, Syracuse set bowl game records with 52 points and 606 yards of total offense.
“It’s a testament to what this program can achieve,” Brown said. “I’ve said it before—Kyle has been a godsend for us. He had a lot to prove, and he proved it.”
McCord’s arrival from Ohio State was a turning point for Syracuse. After being overlooked in Columbus, McCord found a fresh start in Central New York. With 36 total touchdowns, 12 interceptions, and a top-15 QBR in all of college football, McCord earned Second Team All-ACC honors and finished 10th in Heisman Trophy voting, per College Football Report.
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Longest Bowl Streaks as of 2024 (RX; HM)
Longest Bowl Streaks as of 2024
Playoff snubs, opt-outs, transfer portals and the like have me questioning whether bowls matter at all any more - but there was a time when they clearly did matter (and still do for some teams).
ESPN examined the question: which colleges have the longest bowl game streaks (i.e. played in a bowl game every year without missing one)? Hint: it's really a measure of consecutive winning seasons.
| Team | # seasons | Years |
| Florida State | 36 seasons | (1982-2017) |
| Nebraska | 35 seasons | (1969-2003) |
| Michigan | 33 seasons | (1975-2007) |
| Georgia | 28 seasons | (1997-2024)* |
| Virginia Tech | 27 seasons | (1993-2019) |
| Oklahoma | 26 seasons | (1999-2024)* |
| Alabama | 25 seasons | (1959-1983) |
| Florida | 22 seasons | (1991-2012) |
| Wisconsin | 22 seasons | (2002-2023) |
| Alabama | 21 seasons | (2004-2024)* |
| Clemson | 20 seasons | (2005-2024)* |
| LSU | 20 seasons | (2000-2019) |
| Boise State | 18 seasons | (2002-2019) |
| Georgia Tech | 18 seasons | (1997-2014) |
| Oklahoma St | 18 seasons | (2006-2023) |
| * streak still active |
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NC State vs UNC: Who's the better FB school? (RX; HM)
NC State vs UNC: Who's the better FB school?
We often hear non-ACC fans talk about UNC as the prize team in realignment, and they are correct in the sense that UNC has a bigger fan base and usually draws a bigger television audience than NC State. However, that doesn't answer the question: which is the better football program?Head-to-Head, by decade
One pro-Wolfpack X account posted the head-to-head results by decade:As you can see, NC State has a winning record against UNC over the last 40 seasons - although it's a little misleading the way he presented the data: the non-cumulative records by decade would be
Even so, NC State has a pretty solid 22-18 series advantage over the last 40 seasons.
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https://athlonsports.com/college-football/fans-roast-acc-bowl-game-record-saturday (athlonsports.com; Wadleigh)
Saturday had a flurry of college football bowl games take place, including the Alamo Bowl, Pop-Tarts Bowl and the Pinstripe Bowl.
In total, eight bowl games happened on Saturday. The final one of the day was Army defeating Louisiana Tech in the Independence Bowl.
Up until now, one conference has done very poorly: The ACC.
All of NC State, Miami (FL), Boston College and North Carolina lost on Saturday. On Friday, Georgia Tech lost to Vanderbilt, and Rutgers and Pitt lost the day before that.
All of a sudden, the ACC is just 1-9 during bowl game season. The lone win was Syracuse defeating Washington State on Friday at the Holiday Bowl.
As such, fans were quick to roast the ACC for the large number of losses.
"The ACC is now 1-9 in bowl games for those wondering," the Barstool SEC account posted.
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2024-25 Bowl Games and Playoffs prove the ACC is no 'Power' conference (bamahammer.com; Evans)
The college football bowl season is not over. But already the performance of one conference has made it clear the designation of a 'Power Four' in college football has earned the ACC a RIP status. The 'Power Four' of the SEC, the Big Ten, the ACC, and the Big 12 is dead. It was killed by the pathetic performance of ACC teams in the 2024 post-season.
A distracted contingent of college football fans and media pundits need to refocus. This week's biggest story is not that Navy beat Oklahoma, which had dominated the Alabama Crimson Tide in the regular season. The biggest story is the ACC is 1-9 in post-season play, and the single win did not come against a Power Four team. Syracuse beat Washington State 52-35 in the Holiday Bowl. So far ACC teams have lost every other game.
ACC Post-Season Losses through Dec. 28
- LA Bowl - UNLV Rebels 24 - California Golden Bears 13
- GameAbove Sports Bowl - Toledo Rockets 48 - Pittsburgh Panthers 46
- Birmingham Bowl - Vanderbilt Commodores 35 - Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 27
- Fenway Bowl - UConn Huskies 27 - North Carolina Tar Heels 14
- Pinstripe Bowl - Nebraska Cornhuskers - Boston College Eagles 15
- Pop-Tarts Bowl - Iowa State Cyclones 42 - Miami Hurricanes 41
- Military Bowl - East Carolina Pirates 26 - North Carolina State Wolfpack 21
- CFP First Round - Penn State Nittany Lions 38 - SMU Mustangs 10
- CFP First Round - Texas Longhorns 38 - Clemson Tigers 24
Why Duke Football Should Be Considered A Dark Horse in ACC (youtube; podcast; Witty CB)
In Episode 131 of Witty CFB, host Rob Sheply offers praise to what Duke has accomplished this season and their future as a football program moving forward. It seems like a distant memory in terms of what the football program used to be under head coaches Ted Roof and the beginning stages of the David Cutcliffe era. However, in three seasons, coaches Mike Elko and Manny Diaz have turned around the program in quick order, making it one of the more desirable programs to play within the state of North Carolina. Although challenges will be ahead of them, what they accomplished on the football field and their success recruiting in North Carolina should make fans excited for the future. Photo Credit Helen Comer Daily News Journal
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The lamb loin special at Noble Cellar in downtown Syracuse. (Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com)(Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com)
CNY’s best dishes of 2024: Our food writers pick their favorites (PS; Miller)
Let’s take a delicious stroll down memory lane, revisiting the year’s most unforgettable meals — the dishes that dazzled our plates and delighted our palates.
Jared Paventi, Jacob Pucci and I logged serious miles (and calories) across about 75-plus restaurants, uncovering treasures that remind us just how rich Central New York’s food scene is. These culinary gems turned up everywhere — from elegant dining rooms to a cozy diner and even a lively downtown bar.
Keep in mind, this roundup only includes spots we featured on syracuse.com and in The Post-Standard in 2024. We can’t hit every restaurant every year, so if your favorite didn’t make the cut, don’t worry — it might be next year’s star.
Noble Cellar: Pan-Seared Duck Breast
Address: 304 E. Onondaga St., Syracuse; (315) 303-2003.From Jared Paventi: On an evening of exquisite food and masterful service, this was the dish to highlight. Long Island duck was pan-seared to rare and served over stewed greens with a cherry demi-glace. There was a thin layer of fat on the duck breast, but it was nearly fork tender and ate like a pork tenderloin. It was mild in flavor and absorbed the cherry sauce well. The pairing of chard and other leafy greens was thoughtful and added an earthy complement.
Noble Cellar: Lamb Loin Escabeche
From Charlie Miller: The chef lightly pan-seared the marinated loin to my desired rare temperature. He sliced it into four equal pieces and placed them over quinoa tabbouleh before topping them with green olives, sliced cherry tomatoes, shallots, capers and preserved lemon. It’s served with with soubise, a thick white sauce made with sweet onion.
You don’t see a lot of restaurants serving lamb these days, and this is the most tender cut of the animal. I could’ve cut this with a fork, but I did use the provided steak knife, just to fit in.
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CNY Pizza Tour: After eating 52 pizzas in 2024, this is my favorite (video) (PS; Miller)
On Jan. 4, I walked into Francesca’s Pizza & Italian Kitchen in Liverpool and told the manager to make me her favorite pizza on the menu, the one she would bring home after work.
I got a history lesson on the restaurant. I learned about the ingredients they rely on and their approach to pizza. I watched them make it, I photographed it, and I ate it.
Over the year, I repeated that exercise 51 times, and I’ve realized Central New York is blessed with great pizza. You probably already know that.
During my pizza tour, readers often asked my favorite. I was reluctant to answer because I always had more to eat. Now that the journey is over, I can honestly share: The Grandma Pizza from Mario & Salvo’s in DeWitt.
“Wow, this is awesome,” owner Mario Di Marco said when we presented him and his brother Gus with the Best Pizza in CNY award. “This recognition means the world to us and is a testament to our amazing staff, and all the hard work they put in every day and the relationships that we’ve built with the customers along the way.”
Mario & Salvo’s version of the Grandma Pizza came from longtime pizza-maker Tony Oliveri. “One day, I wanted something to eat, so I asked them to let me make it,” Tony said. “And we’ve been doing it since.”
It’s a rectangular pizza invented on Long Island that has the sauce on top of the cheese with fresh basil clipped from the plant. While it’s a simple pizza, putting it together is time-consuming.
This is just one of a lot of great pizzas in our area. Many of you pick your favorite based on what you grew up with. Twin Trees has a tremendously loyal following. So does Pavone’s, Paladino’s, Avicolli’s and Peppino’s. They’re all great, but so are some of the lesser-known shops that I hadn’t even heard of before 2024.
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A sausage and mushroom pizza at Twin Trees in Syracuse. This is our 52nd and final stop on the CNY Pizza Tour. (Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com)(Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com)
CNY Pizza Tour, stop #52: Twin Trees is the epitome of Syracuse pizza (PS; Miller)
After a year of devouring New York-style wedges, Sicilian squares, Chicago deep-dishes and whisper-thin New Haven slices, it’s only fitting that my pizza pilgrimage ends where it began: right here in Syracuse.
Twin Trees is unique to our salty city. Don and Joe Rescignano opened the first Twin Trees Restaurant on Avery Avenue in 1957. Family members have branched out and opened satellite locations over the years, including Twin Trees Too just down the road on Milton Avenue.
Don Ross, Don’s grandson, owns the original now. He sticks to the same recipes and uses the same Blodgett ovens and pans. And of course he still serves each pizza with the West Side strip cut.
Keaton McGurk now runs the kitchen. He answers the phone, punches the orders into the point-of-sale system, and he makes the food. He grew up on this pizza, back when his mother worked here. He’s been working here since high school. He’s 33 now.
“I learned from the best,” he said on Saturday. “When they say this place is family-owned and operated, they mean it.”
Let’s grab a Syracuse strip ...
Address: Twin Trees, 1100 Avery Ave., Syracuse. (315) 468-0622.
Do they deliver: Yes.
What I ate: A large sausage and mushroom pizza.
Why this pizza? Believe it or not, this is the most popular pizza here. It always has been. This is what I judged for the Best of CNY Pizza Playoffs in 2012. It hasn’t changed. “I can’t explain why it’s the most popular, but it is,” Keaton, the kitchen manager, said.
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