I’ve been watching SU football since 1994

[Frozen]

Granted, that’s not as long as many of you. It’s still nearly 30 years, so it’s not a small sample size, either.

I just went back and checked every SU schedule from 1994 to today. And I found that in that time, (unless I am wrong, and please correct me if I am) SU has swept only one non-conference home-and-home series vs. a power conference school.

Purdue.

The Purdue series is the only one where SU won both games of the series. Seems like it should be more than just one over 30 years…

 

[DoubleDee]

Well, I’m too lazy to check your work, so I’ll just say wow that is crazy. That’s a crazy stat.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

That would make a great trivia question.

 

[dasher]

Granted, that’s not as long as many of you. It’s still nearly 30 years, so it’s not a small sample size, either.

I just went back and checked every SU schedule from 1994 to today. And I found that in that time, (unless I am wrong, and please correct me if I am) SU has swept only one non-conference home-and-home series vs. a power conference school.

Purdue.

The Purdue series is the only one where SU won both games of the series. Seems like it should be more than just one over 30 years…

What about Alabama, Ga., and LSU during the G-Rob years?

 

[IthacaMatt]

What about Alabama, Ga., and LSU during the G-Rob years?

All kidding aside, we had a pretty good stretch of games against southern teams in the 90s and early 00s.

 

[texascpa]

I think this was brought up post game somewhere that the last time was in the 50's (or 70's) maybe, against Maryland or something like that. But that was a three-year gap between the two games. I don't know, my memory may be way off here.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

I think this was brought up post game somewhere that the last time was in the 50's (or 70's) maybe, against Maryland or something like that. But that was a three-year gap between the two games. I don't know, my memory may be way off here.

Trivia Question

Prior to these two Purdue wins in 2022 and 2023, when was the last time that Syracuse played a home-and-home against a P5 opponent, and won both games?

syracusefan.com

 

[texascpa]

Trivia Question

Prior to these two Purdue wins in 2022 and 2023, when was the last time that Syracuse played a home-and-home against a P5 opponent, and won both games?

syracusefan.com

LOL, got the team right but was waaaaaayyy off on the decade.

 

[MSOrange]

It's a crazy stat but it makes sense when you think about it. Our non-conference schedules had a lot of Power 5 opponents in the 90s and we haven't been very good several years since the turn of the century.

 

[Chip]

So close with Auburn in 2001 and 2002 and Michigan in 1998 and 1999.

 

[CuseGrad94]

So close with Auburn in 2001 and 2002 and Michigan in 1998 and 1999.

That OT loss at Auburn only bested by that INT thrown by TN at the end of the Michigan game, ughhhhhhh

 

[anomander]

All kidding aside, we had a pretty good stretch of games against southern teams in the 90s and early 00s.

Just don’t schedule ECU

 

[GoSU96]

So close with Auburn in 2001 and 2002 and Michigan in 1998 and 1999.

Texas 1-0-1

 

[NJCuse97]

Texas 1-0-1

Kicking game was off that day in Texas if I remember right

 

[Cusefan95]

Just don’t schedule ECU

I don’t remember all the details, but I’m pretty sure ECU burned their bridge with Syracuse. We had something like a ten game series that was supposed to end in the Dome the early 2000s, but ECU threatened to buy the last game out if we didn’t sign another long term series with them. Pretty sure it was part of an effort of theirs to get a Big East bid. Syracuse told ECU to pound sand, ECU bought out the last game and created a schedule issue for Cuse - and with that I believe the bridge was burned.

And while we’re two decades down the road and two ADs removed from those events, I’m pretty sure a TV guy/Cuse alum like Wildhack would remember those events and would still have ECU blacklisted.

 

[Eric15]

That would make a great trivia question.

Seems like a pretty lame trivia question, if you ask me.

 

[Scooch]

I don’t remember all the details, but I’m pretty sure ECU burned their bridge with Syracuse. We had something like a ten game series that was supposed to end in the Dome the early 2000s, but ECU threatened to buy the last game out if we didn’t sign another long term series with them. Pretty sure it was part of an effort of theirs to get a Big East bid. Syracuse told ECU to pound sand, ECU bought out the last game and created a schedule issue for Cuse - and with that I believe the bridge was burned.

And while we’re two decades down the road and two ADs removed from those events, I’m pretty sure a TV guy/Cuse alum like Wildhack would remember those events and would still have ECU blacklisted.

There's also no reason to schedule ECU when we play in a conference with four schools in North Carolina. We're pretty well represented in that state. Just a tad.

 

[FrancoPizza]

Kicking game was off that day in Texas if I remember right

O'Neill wasn’t a natural place kicker but we lost John Biskup to graduation and had nobody else. We had a chance to win with a walk-off FG and it sailed wide. That season was such a disappointment coming off the fiesta bowl win.

It took a couple good recruiting years to bounce back - but maybe Mac should’ve taken more heat for not recruiting better in 89-90. Seems like there was a drop off once the 87 recruits graduated in 92.

 

[Cusefan95]

O'Neill wasn’t a natural place kicker but we lost John Biskup to graduation and had nobody else. We had a chance to win with a walk-off FG and it sailed wide. That season was such a disappointment coming off the fiesta bowl win.

It took a couple good recruiting years to bounce back - but maybe Mac should’ve taken more heat for not recruiting better in 89-90. Seems like there was a drop off once the 87 recruits graduated in 92.

My roommate had a science class with O’Neill where they ended up being lab partners. He came over to our apartment to work on a lab report, and I was shocked at how big he was since - on the field, next to other players - he looked so lanky. I don’t think I realized before that how much bigger than average high level college football players are.

Anyway, in looking up info on him prior to posting, I found out Pat O’Neill is now an orthopedic surgeon in Florida. I always like it when I look up info on former players and find out something like that - I didn’t get a lot of time to interact with him but he was obviously a smart and nice guy; I’m happy to see he’s had that kind of professional success.

 

[elimunelson]

Being 0-2 vs Oklahoma and those two particular games in 94 and 96 make it an insanely close situation where we should have been 2-0.

Minnesota game still kills me in 96...

 

[elimunelson]

O'Neill wasn’t a natural place kicker but we lost John Biskup to graduation and had nobody else. We had a chance to win with a walk-off FG and it sailed wide. That season was such a disappointment coming off the fiesta bowl win.

It took a couple good recruiting years to bounce back - but maybe Mac should’ve taken more heat for not recruiting better in 89-90. Seems like there was a drop off once the 87 recruits graduated in 92.

I think Pat played for the Patriots for a few years if memory serves

 

[NJCuse97]

My roommate had a science class with O’Neill where they ended up being lab partners. He came over to our apartment to work on a lab report, and I was shocked at how big he was since - on the field, next to other players - he looked so lanky. I don’t think I realized before that how much bigger than average high level college football players are.

Anyway, in looking up info on him prior to posting, I found out Pat O’Neill is now an orthopedic surgeon in Florida. I always like it when I look up info on former players and find out something like that - I didn’t get a lot of time to interact with him but he was obviously a smart and nice guy; I’m happy to see he’s had that kind of professional success.

He married Heather Chase, an AA field hockey player back then. I believe one of their kids is a lax goalie at Utah. When they split up, she was with Casey Powell for a while.