SU2NASA
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Lately, there’s been a number of posts about feelings concerning the state of the program and I’ve wanted to respond but rather than post a single reply, I wanted to instead post my thoughts as a single thread.
As those that have met me know, Syracuse University and Syracuse Orangemen football are among the great loves of my life. I grew up in Michigan and like any little kid; I grew up with Michigan football. The winged helmet, the stadium, the Victors, and all of the tradition of the University of Michigan. I remember my first visit to New York City when I was about 9 years old and being in awe of it, and I remember when my parents were talking to someone on the street that I asked what was the big university in New York and Syracuse was his response.
Everything I learned about SU made me fall in love with the school. The on-campus dome, the tradition, the campus; I was hooked. From then on, I fell in love with Syracuse University. My mom worked in television with the local Fox affiliate in Detroit and she’d have the station dial up SU games on their satellite dish and I’d watch them at her work. I’d tape SU bowl games that were on TV. I still have VHS recordings of the 1990 Aloha Bowl, 1992 Hall of Fame Bowl, and 1993 Fiesta Bowl. I remember the '92 Miami game and being devastated when Chris Gedney was tackled at the 3.
When given an assignment in middle school to write a letter to your hero, I wrote mine to Marvin Graves. I received an autographed 1993 SU football poster, which I had framed and currently hangs in my man cave. My parents rewarded me for my good grades one year by taking me up to Syracuse for the Boston College game in 1993 (SU lost 33-29, and it started my dislike of BC). My parents bought me a white #5 jersey, which I got autographed by Marvin Graves after waiting outside of the dome for the team to go in for its Friday walkthrough. When I graduated I took a picture in the same spot in the dome as I'd taken that day when I was 13 and first visited SU.
So while all of my friends were Michigan fans, my loyalty was to SU. As a hockey player, my dream was to play hockey for Syracuse. I turned down the chance to play NCAA D-I hockey, and a contract to play major juniors, to go to SU, where I was fortunate to get a top-notch education that has enabled me to achieve things I would never have dreamed. I was also fortunate to continue my education at UofM, and in my two years as a student at Michigan, grew to become a fan again (though always 2nd to my alma mater).
So over the past decade, I’ve carried dual citizenship so to speak, though SU being my true home. And during this time, I’ve had the unique experience of seeing two different programs, unfortunately both with more bad times than good. For the first time since falling in love with SU, I can honestly say that I have no excitement about the direction of our football program. I’ve remained steadfast in the belief that we are a football school. After all, the reason the dome was built, the very reason that 44 is special, and all of the words to our fight song, are because of football. I’m forced to admit now, we are no longer a football school.
Even during the mediocrity of the later Pasqualoni years, and even during Greg Robinson’s cratering, I could look at our team and it was still Syracuse Orangemen football. Now when I go to a game, or turn on the TV, I see a team that just happens to call itself Syracuse. And this goes beyond another thread about uniforms. This has to do with tradition.
One of the great quotes I’ve heard about tradition is from Bo Schembechler when he first came to Michigan:
The point is, we have Syracuse tradition, and that’s something that no one else has. But rather than embrace that tradition, I see a school that’s pissed all over it. Rather than embracing the whole tradition that is Syracuse, we instead have an AD that smacked Ernie Davis’ name on some things and called it a day. When I think Syracuse, it’s the orange helmets with the blue-white-blue stripes. It’s the name Orangemen. It’s the number 44 on the field. And for those older than I, it’s the ATO cannon, and the Saltine Warrior, amongst many others. Things may have changed and evolved, but they did organically. There was continuity. A lineage.
Instead, we’ve abandoned the traditions that were built across decades and generations. We’ve retired 44 for a novelty half-time ceremony, changed our name because Nike told us it would be good branding, and now we’re trying to look more like Oregon with flashy uniforms that the kids like. To be honest, I don’t care what fad the kids like. This is our university. The players and the students are there to build on the legacy of Syracuse University, not replace it. When I look at SU, I don’t recognize our football program. I’ve stayed a loyal fan through the down years because of my emotional connection to the school. And as much as I try, I just can’t feel the same way.
I just don’t think our Athletic Department has ever understood tradition, which is why they don’t understand our football program. More than any part of SU, football, is tradition. We have one of the greatest fight songs in college sports, and I think I was the only person outside of the band that knew the words when I was at SU, and I’d be interested to know if there’s a single player on our team that does.
Over the last few years, SU and UofM have had a lot in common: middling-to-bad teams and a focus more on marketing and brand than embracing tradition. And today I find myself, not a bigger fan of, but much more excited about Michigan football. (If SU and Michigan played, I’d still want to kill them with the burning fire of a thousand suns).
Michigan got rid of Dave Brandon and has finally turned back to embracing its tradition; getting rid of ads in the stadium, stupid rock music, alternate jerseys, etc. etc. When I go to a Michigan game, I know I’m going to see Michigan. And now when I go to watch Syracuse, it’s like watching a disjointed shell of what SU was, and should be.
Now some of you may respond with “who cares” or “we don’t need you” or variations thereof, but when you’re losing fans like me, and like a lot that I’ve seen posting similar thoughts recently, you have a far bigger problem than wins and losses.
Enough is enough. Syracuse University needs to take back its tradition, and take back its football program. No one else has Syracuse Orangemen tradition, and that’s what makes us special and separates us from the Rutgers and Wake Forests of the world. Seeing them as counterparts on our level, having recruiting that’s comparable to them is unacceptable. Greg Robinson has been gone for over 6 years. Unacceptable to be looking at those teams as peers. They’re not, and we shouldn’t be even reasonably happy to be in the same sentence as them. Our recruiting, our results on the field, the fanfare of our program.
In closing to my rant, I love Syracuse. And the state of our program is unacceptable and this needs to stop. I hope that someone from the administration outside of the AD reads this, because I’ve given up on the competence of our Athletic Director to even basically understand what makes Syracuse great. The fans, and the alumni need to take back the tradition of our school. Unretire 44, bring back our true name, sing our great fight song, and damnit, make us look like Syracuse.
That is all.
As those that have met me know, Syracuse University and Syracuse Orangemen football are among the great loves of my life. I grew up in Michigan and like any little kid; I grew up with Michigan football. The winged helmet, the stadium, the Victors, and all of the tradition of the University of Michigan. I remember my first visit to New York City when I was about 9 years old and being in awe of it, and I remember when my parents were talking to someone on the street that I asked what was the big university in New York and Syracuse was his response.
Everything I learned about SU made me fall in love with the school. The on-campus dome, the tradition, the campus; I was hooked. From then on, I fell in love with Syracuse University. My mom worked in television with the local Fox affiliate in Detroit and she’d have the station dial up SU games on their satellite dish and I’d watch them at her work. I’d tape SU bowl games that were on TV. I still have VHS recordings of the 1990 Aloha Bowl, 1992 Hall of Fame Bowl, and 1993 Fiesta Bowl. I remember the '92 Miami game and being devastated when Chris Gedney was tackled at the 3.
When given an assignment in middle school to write a letter to your hero, I wrote mine to Marvin Graves. I received an autographed 1993 SU football poster, which I had framed and currently hangs in my man cave. My parents rewarded me for my good grades one year by taking me up to Syracuse for the Boston College game in 1993 (SU lost 33-29, and it started my dislike of BC). My parents bought me a white #5 jersey, which I got autographed by Marvin Graves after waiting outside of the dome for the team to go in for its Friday walkthrough. When I graduated I took a picture in the same spot in the dome as I'd taken that day when I was 13 and first visited SU.
So while all of my friends were Michigan fans, my loyalty was to SU. As a hockey player, my dream was to play hockey for Syracuse. I turned down the chance to play NCAA D-I hockey, and a contract to play major juniors, to go to SU, where I was fortunate to get a top-notch education that has enabled me to achieve things I would never have dreamed. I was also fortunate to continue my education at UofM, and in my two years as a student at Michigan, grew to become a fan again (though always 2nd to my alma mater).
So over the past decade, I’ve carried dual citizenship so to speak, though SU being my true home. And during this time, I’ve had the unique experience of seeing two different programs, unfortunately both with more bad times than good. For the first time since falling in love with SU, I can honestly say that I have no excitement about the direction of our football program. I’ve remained steadfast in the belief that we are a football school. After all, the reason the dome was built, the very reason that 44 is special, and all of the words to our fight song, are because of football. I’m forced to admit now, we are no longer a football school.
Even during the mediocrity of the later Pasqualoni years, and even during Greg Robinson’s cratering, I could look at our team and it was still Syracuse Orangemen football. Now when I go to a game, or turn on the TV, I see a team that just happens to call itself Syracuse. And this goes beyond another thread about uniforms. This has to do with tradition.
One of the great quotes I’ve heard about tradition is from Bo Schembechler when he first came to Michigan:
The point is, we have Syracuse tradition, and that’s something that no one else has. But rather than embrace that tradition, I see a school that’s pissed all over it. Rather than embracing the whole tradition that is Syracuse, we instead have an AD that smacked Ernie Davis’ name on some things and called it a day. When I think Syracuse, it’s the orange helmets with the blue-white-blue stripes. It’s the name Orangemen. It’s the number 44 on the field. And for those older than I, it’s the ATO cannon, and the Saltine Warrior, amongst many others. Things may have changed and evolved, but they did organically. There was continuity. A lineage.
Instead, we’ve abandoned the traditions that were built across decades and generations. We’ve retired 44 for a novelty half-time ceremony, changed our name because Nike told us it would be good branding, and now we’re trying to look more like Oregon with flashy uniforms that the kids like. To be honest, I don’t care what fad the kids like. This is our university. The players and the students are there to build on the legacy of Syracuse University, not replace it. When I look at SU, I don’t recognize our football program. I’ve stayed a loyal fan through the down years because of my emotional connection to the school. And as much as I try, I just can’t feel the same way.
I just don’t think our Athletic Department has ever understood tradition, which is why they don’t understand our football program. More than any part of SU, football, is tradition. We have one of the greatest fight songs in college sports, and I think I was the only person outside of the band that knew the words when I was at SU, and I’d be interested to know if there’s a single player on our team that does.
Over the last few years, SU and UofM have had a lot in common: middling-to-bad teams and a focus more on marketing and brand than embracing tradition. And today I find myself, not a bigger fan of, but much more excited about Michigan football. (If SU and Michigan played, I’d still want to kill them with the burning fire of a thousand suns).
Michigan got rid of Dave Brandon and has finally turned back to embracing its tradition; getting rid of ads in the stadium, stupid rock music, alternate jerseys, etc. etc. When I go to a Michigan game, I know I’m going to see Michigan. And now when I go to watch Syracuse, it’s like watching a disjointed shell of what SU was, and should be.
Now some of you may respond with “who cares” or “we don’t need you” or variations thereof, but when you’re losing fans like me, and like a lot that I’ve seen posting similar thoughts recently, you have a far bigger problem than wins and losses.
Enough is enough. Syracuse University needs to take back its tradition, and take back its football program. No one else has Syracuse Orangemen tradition, and that’s what makes us special and separates us from the Rutgers and Wake Forests of the world. Seeing them as counterparts on our level, having recruiting that’s comparable to them is unacceptable. Greg Robinson has been gone for over 6 years. Unacceptable to be looking at those teams as peers. They’re not, and we shouldn’t be even reasonably happy to be in the same sentence as them. Our recruiting, our results on the field, the fanfare of our program.
In closing to my rant, I love Syracuse. And the state of our program is unacceptable and this needs to stop. I hope that someone from the administration outside of the AD reads this, because I’ve given up on the competence of our Athletic Director to even basically understand what makes Syracuse great. The fans, and the alumni need to take back the tradition of our school. Unretire 44, bring back our true name, sing our great fight song, and damnit, make us look like Syracuse.
That is all.
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