sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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- Aug 15, 2011
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Not a lot to say about a game like that one. In a nutshell, the SU OL dominated the WVU DL and the SU DL dominated the WVU OL. The WVU defense couldn't stop simple running plays even when playing 9 men in the box and WVU was reduced to running screens and draws all game long because just about every time they tried to throw the ball downfield, a disaster ensued.
Great job by Shafer, who again made Geno Smith look like a bumbling idiot, missing reads and making bad audibles all game long.
Great job by Hackett and Marrone, who shocked WVU by focusing on the power run game all game long.
For people who care about these things, Pugh had one of the most dominating games I have ever seen from an OT, just destroying people on every play. I have never seen a tackle making so many good blocks 10 and 15 yards down field. Marrone introduced some plays this season specifically to take advantage of Justin's mobility and they really paid off. Anyway, the reason I bring this up is because it it might have been the straw that broke the camel's back in terms of whether Justin will return next season or not. If he goes, I wish him the best. He certainly went out on a great note. The whole offensive line did a great job and deserves a lot of credit but most of the damage was done on the left side, and Chibane also deserves to be singled out for a dominating performance run blocking on Saturday. He went out in style.
I haven't sat through a game in heavy snow like that since a game at Archbold that was coincindentally also against West Virginia. It was played in 1975, it was the last game of the season, SU was out of bowl contention and was a heavy underdog to an 8-2 Mountaineer team that had just accepted a bid to the Peach Bowl. SU got off to a big lead but almost blew the game when WVU got within 1 late in the game. Bobby Bowden was their coach then and unlike Pat Dye, he was a man and he went for 2 to get the win. SU stopped WVU the first time but a penalty gave them one more chance to win. SU stopped them again though and held on for a 21-20 victory. You can read more about it in this bitter recap written from a WVU point of view.
There was heavy lake effect snow during the entire game in 1975 and it was cold enough for the snow to melt/freeze into ice, so every five minutes or so I would move and a heavy covering of snow/ice armor would crack and fall off my body on to the ground. My eyebrows kept icing over and I had to break icicles off so I could see the game. You couldn't see the yard lines at all and it was hard to make out where the ball was at times. It might sound awful but it was awesome to watch a game being played in such bad conditions and it remains one of the favorite SU games of all time.
What It Looked Like at the Height of the Storm...
A Shot Looking Directly Overhead From My Seat
Looking at Snow on the Big Scoreboard Through More Snow
Anyway, the conditions were similar on Saturday but it was a little warmer. The first quarter or so, the precipitation was mostly rain, not very comfortable. I was happy when it turned to 100% snow...at least you could brush that off you as it came down. I dressed in a bunch of layers, and even though I spent 3 hours tailgating before the game, was never cold. Gave my hand warmer packets (thanks Mike) to an old man next to me (who coached both Krautmans in placekicking) who needed them far more than I did.
On the subject of tailgating, CuseRegular did a tremendous job putting out a big spread of food in the adverse conditions and somewhat keeping it hot and dry. Brats, coneys, burgers, sub sandwiches, pepperoni and spinach calzones, Italian cookies, ziti and sausage, cheese and crackers, other things I am forgetting and also quality ginger ale. He also brought two tents to keep us out of the rain/snow mix that came down hard all afternoon. One had walls and two propane heaters (it was really popular). The Harlem North lots are a nice site for tailgating...we were probably 3 or 4 normal city blocks from the stadium, about the same as the Fine Lot is from the Dome.
The Field Just Prior to Kick Off (Already a Major Mess)
I sat with some of the Syracusefan.com crew...Bees, his brother Dave, some crazy Krautman clan people, Jeremy, LincolnCuse and their women. The seats were near midfield and as far as Yankee Stadium goes, very good. You can see we were not remotely close to the field though...
Some random comments about the game:
Siriki Diabate (I will spell it fully this one time in honor of his excellence in the game) was tremendous all game long. Impressed a kid who grew up in a country like the Ivory Coast, right near the equator, could look so comfortable in such nasty conditions. Gonna miss Diet Tab.
Ross Krautman finished his season strong, with a big Pinstripe Bowl game. The FG he made early was important and helped get the ball rolling. Good to see him kicking like he is capable again.
Thought the SU special teams were again solid. After a bad start, they all improved greatly as the season progressed. Looks to me like DM has finally found the special teams coach he was looking for.
That true freshman safety for WVU was impressive and is going to be an AA some day soon.
Bailey was the best player on the field. Except maybe for PTG, who grew up in Akron, knows all about snow and appears to be one of the rare few who is not bothered running in snow, ice and slush.
The crowd was, IMHO, about 5:1 for Syracuse fans. The SU fans were very loud and quite obnoxious (in other words, many were drunk). Still a good turnout for WVU and the fans that came tried to make some noise. They were completely shocked at how badly they were throttled and some were playing the ref card until they left (few made it to the fourth quarter).
Saw nycfan, cuseguy and SUPhillyDad at halftime. Glad so many from the board made it to the game...sorry I didn't run into everyone that was there.
The WVU band was huge and very impressive. They were marching so it was hard to count but they had somewhere in the range of 20-24 tubas (I know they are really sousaphones but sousaphones is too damn hard to type so I am not going to do it except when I explain why I don't do it). They sounded good too. Liked their arrangement of the NA. Didn't like their capes.
The SUMB was in fine form at halftime. They do a great job with what they have. I look forward to the new unis for next season (if you haven't done so already, please consider donating to the fund for this purpose; see the tacked thread above). More than anything, we need more numbers...not just tuba/sousaphones, but everything. Hope the move to the ACC generates more interest from the students. I think (Justin please correct me if I am wrong) that interest could be heightened if the SUMB is sent to at least one away conference game every season, preferably to someplace warm and pleasant, where the guaranteed road trip can be used as a carrot to get fence sitting prospective band members to make that substantial committment of their time and effort to be a member. We are a big time football program. We need a big time band too. If you are listening SU people, please take a small piece of the extra $$$ from being a member of the ACC and do this.
There was a tremendous amount of trash talking the whole game. It started before the game, when the talk almost escaladed into a giant brawl between the teams and it continued from there. I have never seen a team that has lost 5 out of its last 7 and was getting destroyed again continue to talk smack like the Mountaineers did. They think they are far far better than they are.
I wonder about the future of the West Virginia program. They are suffering major graduation losses. They have largely depended on recruiting in the South and NJ, Pennsylvania and now that they are no longer playing in those areas, one wonders if they will be able to continue to have success in those areas. Where else are they going to go to get decent players? I expect them to rely more and more on JUCO players as time goes on and their ties to the East and Florida disappear.
There have been many great Syracuse-West Virginia games over the years. We have a nice rivalry with them...they are one of the few schools we play that actually sends some fans to Syracuse (and NYC as it turns out). A reprise of this game in MetLife might make sense. Would be fine with a 1-1-1 series being set up with the Mountaineers. My guess is that WVU would love to do it to help retain some relevance with Eastern recruits but they might also be reluctant to play a tough OOC opponent in the future given their desire to go to bowls and the fairly tough Big 12 conference schedule they play. Time will tell.
The setup of the bathrooms at Yankee Stadium is laughably bad. You enter and immediately see the sinks and hand dryers. Have to brush by the people there to get to the urinals and stalls. The exit is after that but if you want to wash your hands, you have to go upstream to do so, then either reverse field and get past the urinal and stall lines to get to the exit or exit through the entrance. Plus no stainless steel urine troughs. What a backwards hicktown setup.
This was a really fun season to be a Syracuse fan. The team, even in defeat, was always entertaining. Really love the new offense. Already looking forward to the Penn State game to start 2013.
Great job by Shafer, who again made Geno Smith look like a bumbling idiot, missing reads and making bad audibles all game long.
Great job by Hackett and Marrone, who shocked WVU by focusing on the power run game all game long.
For people who care about these things, Pugh had one of the most dominating games I have ever seen from an OT, just destroying people on every play. I have never seen a tackle making so many good blocks 10 and 15 yards down field. Marrone introduced some plays this season specifically to take advantage of Justin's mobility and they really paid off. Anyway, the reason I bring this up is because it it might have been the straw that broke the camel's back in terms of whether Justin will return next season or not. If he goes, I wish him the best. He certainly went out on a great note. The whole offensive line did a great job and deserves a lot of credit but most of the damage was done on the left side, and Chibane also deserves to be singled out for a dominating performance run blocking on Saturday. He went out in style.
I haven't sat through a game in heavy snow like that since a game at Archbold that was coincindentally also against West Virginia. It was played in 1975, it was the last game of the season, SU was out of bowl contention and was a heavy underdog to an 8-2 Mountaineer team that had just accepted a bid to the Peach Bowl. SU got off to a big lead but almost blew the game when WVU got within 1 late in the game. Bobby Bowden was their coach then and unlike Pat Dye, he was a man and he went for 2 to get the win. SU stopped WVU the first time but a penalty gave them one more chance to win. SU stopped them again though and held on for a 21-20 victory. You can read more about it in this bitter recap written from a WVU point of view.
There was heavy lake effect snow during the entire game in 1975 and it was cold enough for the snow to melt/freeze into ice, so every five minutes or so I would move and a heavy covering of snow/ice armor would crack and fall off my body on to the ground. My eyebrows kept icing over and I had to break icicles off so I could see the game. You couldn't see the yard lines at all and it was hard to make out where the ball was at times. It might sound awful but it was awesome to watch a game being played in such bad conditions and it remains one of the favorite SU games of all time.
What It Looked Like at the Height of the Storm...
A Shot Looking Directly Overhead From My Seat
Looking at Snow on the Big Scoreboard Through More Snow
Anyway, the conditions were similar on Saturday but it was a little warmer. The first quarter or so, the precipitation was mostly rain, not very comfortable. I was happy when it turned to 100% snow...at least you could brush that off you as it came down. I dressed in a bunch of layers, and even though I spent 3 hours tailgating before the game, was never cold. Gave my hand warmer packets (thanks Mike) to an old man next to me (who coached both Krautmans in placekicking) who needed them far more than I did.
On the subject of tailgating, CuseRegular did a tremendous job putting out a big spread of food in the adverse conditions and somewhat keeping it hot and dry. Brats, coneys, burgers, sub sandwiches, pepperoni and spinach calzones, Italian cookies, ziti and sausage, cheese and crackers, other things I am forgetting and also quality ginger ale. He also brought two tents to keep us out of the rain/snow mix that came down hard all afternoon. One had walls and two propane heaters (it was really popular). The Harlem North lots are a nice site for tailgating...we were probably 3 or 4 normal city blocks from the stadium, about the same as the Fine Lot is from the Dome.
The Field Just Prior to Kick Off (Already a Major Mess)
I sat with some of the Syracusefan.com crew...Bees, his brother Dave, some crazy Krautman clan people, Jeremy, LincolnCuse and their women. The seats were near midfield and as far as Yankee Stadium goes, very good. You can see we were not remotely close to the field though...
Some random comments about the game:
Siriki Diabate (I will spell it fully this one time in honor of his excellence in the game) was tremendous all game long. Impressed a kid who grew up in a country like the Ivory Coast, right near the equator, could look so comfortable in such nasty conditions. Gonna miss Diet Tab.
Ross Krautman finished his season strong, with a big Pinstripe Bowl game. The FG he made early was important and helped get the ball rolling. Good to see him kicking like he is capable again.
Thought the SU special teams were again solid. After a bad start, they all improved greatly as the season progressed. Looks to me like DM has finally found the special teams coach he was looking for.
That true freshman safety for WVU was impressive and is going to be an AA some day soon.
Bailey was the best player on the field. Except maybe for PTG, who grew up in Akron, knows all about snow and appears to be one of the rare few who is not bothered running in snow, ice and slush.
The crowd was, IMHO, about 5:1 for Syracuse fans. The SU fans were very loud and quite obnoxious (in other words, many were drunk). Still a good turnout for WVU and the fans that came tried to make some noise. They were completely shocked at how badly they were throttled and some were playing the ref card until they left (few made it to the fourth quarter).
Saw nycfan, cuseguy and SUPhillyDad at halftime. Glad so many from the board made it to the game...sorry I didn't run into everyone that was there.
The WVU band was huge and very impressive. They were marching so it was hard to count but they had somewhere in the range of 20-24 tubas (I know they are really sousaphones but sousaphones is too damn hard to type so I am not going to do it except when I explain why I don't do it). They sounded good too. Liked their arrangement of the NA. Didn't like their capes.
The SUMB was in fine form at halftime. They do a great job with what they have. I look forward to the new unis for next season (if you haven't done so already, please consider donating to the fund for this purpose; see the tacked thread above). More than anything, we need more numbers...not just tuba/sousaphones, but everything. Hope the move to the ACC generates more interest from the students. I think (Justin please correct me if I am wrong) that interest could be heightened if the SUMB is sent to at least one away conference game every season, preferably to someplace warm and pleasant, where the guaranteed road trip can be used as a carrot to get fence sitting prospective band members to make that substantial committment of their time and effort to be a member. We are a big time football program. We need a big time band too. If you are listening SU people, please take a small piece of the extra $$$ from being a member of the ACC and do this.
There was a tremendous amount of trash talking the whole game. It started before the game, when the talk almost escaladed into a giant brawl between the teams and it continued from there. I have never seen a team that has lost 5 out of its last 7 and was getting destroyed again continue to talk smack like the Mountaineers did. They think they are far far better than they are.
I wonder about the future of the West Virginia program. They are suffering major graduation losses. They have largely depended on recruiting in the South and NJ, Pennsylvania and now that they are no longer playing in those areas, one wonders if they will be able to continue to have success in those areas. Where else are they going to go to get decent players? I expect them to rely more and more on JUCO players as time goes on and their ties to the East and Florida disappear.
There have been many great Syracuse-West Virginia games over the years. We have a nice rivalry with them...they are one of the few schools we play that actually sends some fans to Syracuse (and NYC as it turns out). A reprise of this game in MetLife might make sense. Would be fine with a 1-1-1 series being set up with the Mountaineers. My guess is that WVU would love to do it to help retain some relevance with Eastern recruits but they might also be reluctant to play a tough OOC opponent in the future given their desire to go to bowls and the fairly tough Big 12 conference schedule they play. Time will tell.
The setup of the bathrooms at Yankee Stadium is laughably bad. You enter and immediately see the sinks and hand dryers. Have to brush by the people there to get to the urinals and stalls. The exit is after that but if you want to wash your hands, you have to go upstream to do so, then either reverse field and get past the urinal and stall lines to get to the exit or exit through the entrance. Plus no stainless steel urine troughs. What a backwards hicktown setup.
This was a really fun season to be a Syracuse fan. The team, even in defeat, was always entertaining. Really love the new offense. Already looking forward to the Penn State game to start 2013.
