sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
- Joined
- Aug 15, 2011
- Messages
- 26,408
- Like
- 114,767
I am temporarily filling on for OE as he recovers from surgery. Get well soon Dan.
Recruiting
#23: St Louis Area Y/TE West Lindor Verbals to Syracuse (PS; Bailey)
Affton (St. Louis) High School wide receiver West Lindor verbally committed to Syracuse on Wednesday.
Lindor, a two-star recruit according to At their request, this network is being blocked from this site., stands at 6 feet, 4 inches and weighs 205 pounds. He chose the Orange over offers from Arkansas State, Dartmouth and Southeast Missouri State.
"I felt like the best time to commit would be now just because it's more important to have a spot now than to wait too long and lose a spot," Lindor said.
...
2016 OT Liam Smith (NJ) Offered by Syracuse (247sports.com; Dowlar)
2016 offensive tackle Liam Smith (Red Bank, N.J./Red Bank Catholic) was offered by Syracuse on Wednesday afternoon.
The 6-foot-5, 265-pound prospect has early offers from the Orange, Rutgers, Miami (Fla.) and Virginia.
Smith is a three-star prospect according to 247Sports. He is the No. 28 offensive tackle in the country and the No. 11 prospect from the state of New Jersey for 2016.
...
4 Star LB Anthony McKee Lists SU in Top 5-7 Schools, Plans Summer Visit (PS; Bailey)
Currently, Dontae Strickland and Daiquan Kelly are the only commitments in Syracuse's Class of 2015 ranked by a major recruiting service as four stars. The two are both rated as such by 247Sports.com.
However, that could change if the Orange can reel in a coveted linebacker target from Columbus, Ohio.
Anthony McKee, who will transfer across town from Walnut Ridge High School to Marion-Franklin High School for his senior season, listed SU in his top 10 schools on Twitter Tuesday evening and spoke at length about his recruiting and interest in SU during a phone interview on Wednesday.
...
SU News
SU DB Coach Fred Reed Says Darius Kelly in Position to 'Take It to the Next Level' (PS; Mink)
It will not be a major overhaul, but Syracuse must do some retooling in its secondary this season following the departure of several experienced seniors.
Helping ease the transition is the return of Durell Eskridge, a third-team All-ACC pick who will start at free safety this year. Eskridge is perhaps the team's best defensive player but will need help from the returning contributors if Syracuse wants to be better in pass defense.
One player who will have an increased role is senior Darius Kelly, who defensive backs coach Fred Reed said is sitting on an impact season.
"He's a guy that I think has the potential to really take it to the next level in terms of his performance," Reed said this week. "Hopefully we can take that into next season. Hopefully all that work he's put in pays off this season. I think it will."
...
SU DT Wayne Williams On Pace with Summer Conditioning (PS; Bailey)
Less than a month from training camp, Wayne Williams is still on the track the Syracuse coaching staff wants him.
The 6-foot-4 defensive tackle who arrived on campus in January from ASA College has been steadily shedding pounds and adjusting to the Division I football regimen.
But there's still plenty of room to go before he's ready to contribute on the field.
"Wayne knows that he still has a long way to go before he gets to the standard expectation level of the team," SU head coach Scott Shafer said, "but he's done a nice job and he's had steady improvement."
...
George McDonald
SU OC George McDonald on Feisty Personality and God (PS; Mink)
George McDonald is preparing for his second season as the Syracuse offensive coordinator, and the progress of his unit after an inconsistent 2013 season is one of the major story lines heading into the fall.
I sat down with McDonald earlier this month to cover a smattering of subjects before the grind of the season kicks in, including this year's offense, the frenetic pace on the recruiting trail for the 2015 class and his retreat to Chicago to meet with the Bears and observe head coach Marc Trestman.
We also covered his feisty personality, presented today in a Q&A format, to let McDonald explain in his own words who he is.
Here is some of the transcript.
...
Riley Dixon Named to Ray Guy Award Watch List (PS; Carlson)
In just a year, Syracuse punter Riley Dixon has gone from a walk-on back-up to one of the 25 most respected punters in the country.
Dixon was named to the Ray Guy Award watch list on Wednesday, a postseason award that honors the country's best punter.
A rising junior, Dixon was an unforeseen bright spot in Syracuse's season last year, taking the starting job away from Jonathan Fisher and running with it. He was put on scholarship before Syracuse's bowl game against Minnesota.
Dixon averaged 42.15 yards on his 75 punts, booming the ball more than 50 yards on 15 occasions and putting opponents inside their 20-yard-line on 21 occasions. His season-high was a 75-yarder in a 49-14 loss to Clemson, one of SU's only highlights in that game.
...
Cuse.com Updates Football Roster for 2014 Season (PS; Bailey)
Fifty-one days before kicking off its season against Villanova, Syracuse has an updated roster on Cuse.com. It now includes 107 players, most notably the new crop of freshmen.
That group includes 22 of 25 Class of 2014 signees (K.J. Williams and Treevon Prater did not qualify academically and Lamar Dawson, who was diagnosed with aplastic anemia, will enroll in January), confirmed preferred walk-ons in center Donnie Foster, long snapper Nathan Hines punter Evan Jakubowski, and reported preferred walk-on kicker Cole Murphy.
See the full list of Syracuse players below, accurate as of Wednesday morning. SU has not announced its training camp schedule yet.
...
Former Players
Tanard Jackson Suspended by NFL for a 4th Time (PS; AP)
Washington Redskins safety Tanard Jackson has been suspended for a fourth time for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy.
The league announced Wednesday that the former Syracuse standout has been suspended indefinitely without pay.
Jackson was also suspended indefinitely in August 2012. He was given what was expected to be his final chance to play again when the NFL reinstated him in May.
The Redskins re-signed him, and he said during a spring practice that this time would be different in part because of the "humbling experience" of having to work in a warehouse during his suspension.
...
ACC News
Potential Starting QB Marquise Williams
2014 ACC Football Countdown: UNC Looks to Avoid Early Hole (PS; Stevens)
With the ACC's annual Kickoff event looming on July 20-21 in Greensboro, N.C., it's time to offer a quick first look at each of the conference's 14 teams. Up today is North Carolina.
2013 record: 7-6 (4-4 ACC)
2013 postseason: Beat Cincinnati in the Belk Bowl
Last season without a bowl appearance:2012
Coach: Larry Fedora (15-10 in two seasons at North Carolina, 49-29 in six seasons overall)
Coordinators: Gunter Brewer (co-offense, 2nd season), Chris Kapilovic (co-offense, 1st season) Dave Disch (co-defense, 3rd season), Vic Koenning (co-defense, 3rd season)
All-conference returnees: PR/WR Ryan Switzer (first team as a specialist), WR Quinshad Davis (honorable mention), Norkeithus Otis (honorable mention), Tommy Hibbard (honorable mention)
...
College News
Rutgers, Why Rutgers? (blackshoediaries.com; Aydin)
...
To confirm the legitimacy of our feelings, we hit up Sean Keeley, manager of SB Nation's Syracuse blog, Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician to give us a primer on what to expect, given that Syracuse and Rutgers were once Big East foes back in the day.
BSD: First of all, thanks for doing this Q&A with us. What is the very first thing that we should know about Rutgers and its fan base? Am I right to diagnose their fan base with a strong case of 'little brother' syndrome? Were they always this obnoxious? I can't begin to tell you how much I'm looking forward to September 13th when we finally get the opportunity to put a damper on their cute little #ChopPSU and 'That Team From Pennsylvania' monikers.
Sean: Rutgers fans didn't actually exist before 2005. I know this because I grew up 20 minutes from New Brunswick in the 80's and 90's. Do you know how many Rutgers fans I knew? Three. THREE. Can you imagine a high school near Ohio State or Wisconsin that isn't loaded with OSU or Wisconsin fans, respectively? That's how little anyone cared about Rutgers. You never saw a Rutgers bumper sticker. You never saw a Rutgers flag. And you certainly never saw anyone wearing Rutgers gear. It just wasn't a consideration at all.
Then, all of a sudden when the program shot up in the mid-2000's, Rutgers fans grew up like mushrooms, spouting off wisdom about how they were an elite program, the days of Penn State & Syracuse were over and they were about to take their rightful place among college football's elite. And they've kept this up the whole time, even as the program has underachieved. They refuse to let go of this notion of their unearned greatness. When you meet a Rutgers fan and they start going on and on about how they're going to own Penn State, trust me, they're not being sarcastic. They really mean it.
Always remember: The greatest season in the history of Rutgers football ended in the Texas Bowl. Done.
Let's time travel back to November 9, 2006. Louisville instead of choking away its 25-7 lead, plays like a team actually deserving of its Top 10 ranking and goes on to handle Rutgers. Does the entire trajectory of Rutgers football (and subsequently, its fanbase) change? Are they even invited to join the B1G several years later?
Sean: Honestly, we're still trying to figure out why you guys invited them. Again, I grew up near there. They aren't in New York City. They're barely closer to New York City than they are to Philadelphia, but don't get them started on that stuff. RU fans suddenly turn into Media Market Share PhD's when you bring that stuff up.
As I noted earlier, their amazing 2006-07 run ended in the Texas Bowl, so I'm not sure it would have made that much of a difference in the end if they had lost that game. Ever since then, they've been respectable for sure, but nothing special, certainly not that the level they seem to think they deserve to be at.
Being a Penn State basketball fan can be summed up as a rather insufferable experience, but just taking a quick look at Rutgers' hoops history, we look more like *ahem* Syracuse in comparison to them. Seriously though, what can we expect from having Rutgers as a regular hoops opponent? Is the RAC as dangerous of a place as people claim it to be?
Sean: We have this fun inside joke over at TNIAAM from a time when it seemed like ESPN was really trying hard to make Rutgers basketball relevant. Pat Forde (at ESPN then) included Rutgers vs. Seton Hall in his list of fiercest college basketball rivalries. Not too long after, Andy Katz included Rutgers - St. John's in his list of toughest rivalries in the sport. In all the time since, RU basketball has not only done everything they could to ruin all of those high hopes but they've done it with a succession of awful head coaches who were also terrible human beings. It's been impressive to watch.
The RAC is a good arena but Syracuse fans routinely took it over when we'd play there, nullifying the threat. I don't know if Penn State fans are willing to do that but, if so, it won't be an issue.
Seriously, are there any sports that Rutgers excels at?
Sean: The women's basketball team is pretty good sometimes. So there's that...
...
Purdue QB Danny Elling
PS College Football Ranking/Haiku Fest Nos. 96-100 (Change Comes Slowly for Purdue; PS; Stevens)
100. WYOMING
If you can win in North Dakota, there's probably a decent chance you can win in Wyoming. That has to be part of the thinking behind the Cowboys' decision to hire Craig Bohl, who won three consecutive FCS titles at North Dakota State.
Frankly, it's one of the best moves on the coaching carousel this past offseason. There was little left for Bohl to prove with the Bison, who not only were a juggernaut at their level but had knocked off the likes of Minnesota (twice!), Kansas, Colorado State and Kansas State since 2007. While the Jim Tressel exceptions exist, most FCS coaches don't get plum FBS jobs. This is a logical next step.
...
...
Wyoming in haiku:
Eyeing the future
Headline: Cowboys go Bohl-ing
It just writes itself
...
Other
Mahoney Reveals Design for Amphitheater Along Onondaga Lake (PS; Breidenbach)
Onondaga County Executive Joanie Mahoney gave a virtual tour Wednesday night of the proposed Onondaga Lake amphitheater and shared other plans to encourage pedestrian traffic to and from Solvay.
A video tour of the proposed amphitheater complex shows two concert stages - one 17,500-seat venue for Dave Matthews-style concerts and one smaller community theater with a few hundred seats.
Mahoney's team chose between two concepts for the site of the amphitheater. They went with a design they call "The Cove," which puts the main amphitheater along the natural landscape of the lake's western shore. It has a lower profile than the rejected option, called "The Beacon," which would have placed it at a point with the lake as a dramatic background.
...
Recruiting
#23: St Louis Area Y/TE West Lindor Verbals to Syracuse (PS; Bailey)
Affton (St. Louis) High School wide receiver West Lindor verbally committed to Syracuse on Wednesday.
Lindor, a two-star recruit according to At their request, this network is being blocked from this site., stands at 6 feet, 4 inches and weighs 205 pounds. He chose the Orange over offers from Arkansas State, Dartmouth and Southeast Missouri State.
"I felt like the best time to commit would be now just because it's more important to have a spot now than to wait too long and lose a spot," Lindor said.
...
2016 OT Liam Smith (NJ) Offered by Syracuse (247sports.com; Dowlar)
2016 offensive tackle Liam Smith (Red Bank, N.J./Red Bank Catholic) was offered by Syracuse on Wednesday afternoon.
The 6-foot-5, 265-pound prospect has early offers from the Orange, Rutgers, Miami (Fla.) and Virginia.
Smith is a three-star prospect according to 247Sports. He is the No. 28 offensive tackle in the country and the No. 11 prospect from the state of New Jersey for 2016.
...
4 Star LB Anthony McKee Lists SU in Top 5-7 Schools, Plans Summer Visit (PS; Bailey)
Currently, Dontae Strickland and Daiquan Kelly are the only commitments in Syracuse's Class of 2015 ranked by a major recruiting service as four stars. The two are both rated as such by 247Sports.com.
However, that could change if the Orange can reel in a coveted linebacker target from Columbus, Ohio.
Anthony McKee, who will transfer across town from Walnut Ridge High School to Marion-Franklin High School for his senior season, listed SU in his top 10 schools on Twitter Tuesday evening and spoke at length about his recruiting and interest in SU during a phone interview on Wednesday.
...
SU News
SU DB Coach Fred Reed Says Darius Kelly in Position to 'Take It to the Next Level' (PS; Mink)
It will not be a major overhaul, but Syracuse must do some retooling in its secondary this season following the departure of several experienced seniors.
Helping ease the transition is the return of Durell Eskridge, a third-team All-ACC pick who will start at free safety this year. Eskridge is perhaps the team's best defensive player but will need help from the returning contributors if Syracuse wants to be better in pass defense.
One player who will have an increased role is senior Darius Kelly, who defensive backs coach Fred Reed said is sitting on an impact season.
"He's a guy that I think has the potential to really take it to the next level in terms of his performance," Reed said this week. "Hopefully we can take that into next season. Hopefully all that work he's put in pays off this season. I think it will."
...
SU DT Wayne Williams On Pace with Summer Conditioning (PS; Bailey)
Less than a month from training camp, Wayne Williams is still on the track the Syracuse coaching staff wants him.
The 6-foot-4 defensive tackle who arrived on campus in January from ASA College has been steadily shedding pounds and adjusting to the Division I football regimen.
But there's still plenty of room to go before he's ready to contribute on the field.
"Wayne knows that he still has a long way to go before he gets to the standard expectation level of the team," SU head coach Scott Shafer said, "but he's done a nice job and he's had steady improvement."
...
George McDonald
SU OC George McDonald on Feisty Personality and God (PS; Mink)
George McDonald is preparing for his second season as the Syracuse offensive coordinator, and the progress of his unit after an inconsistent 2013 season is one of the major story lines heading into the fall.
I sat down with McDonald earlier this month to cover a smattering of subjects before the grind of the season kicks in, including this year's offense, the frenetic pace on the recruiting trail for the 2015 class and his retreat to Chicago to meet with the Bears and observe head coach Marc Trestman.
We also covered his feisty personality, presented today in a Q&A format, to let McDonald explain in his own words who he is.
Here is some of the transcript.
...
Riley Dixon Named to Ray Guy Award Watch List (PS; Carlson)
In just a year, Syracuse punter Riley Dixon has gone from a walk-on back-up to one of the 25 most respected punters in the country.
Dixon was named to the Ray Guy Award watch list on Wednesday, a postseason award that honors the country's best punter.
A rising junior, Dixon was an unforeseen bright spot in Syracuse's season last year, taking the starting job away from Jonathan Fisher and running with it. He was put on scholarship before Syracuse's bowl game against Minnesota.
Dixon averaged 42.15 yards on his 75 punts, booming the ball more than 50 yards on 15 occasions and putting opponents inside their 20-yard-line on 21 occasions. His season-high was a 75-yarder in a 49-14 loss to Clemson, one of SU's only highlights in that game.
...
Cuse.com Updates Football Roster for 2014 Season (PS; Bailey)
Fifty-one days before kicking off its season against Villanova, Syracuse has an updated roster on Cuse.com. It now includes 107 players, most notably the new crop of freshmen.
That group includes 22 of 25 Class of 2014 signees (K.J. Williams and Treevon Prater did not qualify academically and Lamar Dawson, who was diagnosed with aplastic anemia, will enroll in January), confirmed preferred walk-ons in center Donnie Foster, long snapper Nathan Hines punter Evan Jakubowski, and reported preferred walk-on kicker Cole Murphy.
See the full list of Syracuse players below, accurate as of Wednesday morning. SU has not announced its training camp schedule yet.
...
Former Players
Tanard Jackson Suspended by NFL for a 4th Time (PS; AP)
Washington Redskins safety Tanard Jackson has been suspended for a fourth time for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy.
The league announced Wednesday that the former Syracuse standout has been suspended indefinitely without pay.
Jackson was also suspended indefinitely in August 2012. He was given what was expected to be his final chance to play again when the NFL reinstated him in May.
The Redskins re-signed him, and he said during a spring practice that this time would be different in part because of the "humbling experience" of having to work in a warehouse during his suspension.
...
ACC News
Potential Starting QB Marquise Williams
2014 ACC Football Countdown: UNC Looks to Avoid Early Hole (PS; Stevens)
With the ACC's annual Kickoff event looming on July 20-21 in Greensboro, N.C., it's time to offer a quick first look at each of the conference's 14 teams. Up today is North Carolina.
2013 record: 7-6 (4-4 ACC)
2013 postseason: Beat Cincinnati in the Belk Bowl
Last season without a bowl appearance:2012
Coach: Larry Fedora (15-10 in two seasons at North Carolina, 49-29 in six seasons overall)
Coordinators: Gunter Brewer (co-offense, 2nd season), Chris Kapilovic (co-offense, 1st season) Dave Disch (co-defense, 3rd season), Vic Koenning (co-defense, 3rd season)
All-conference returnees: PR/WR Ryan Switzer (first team as a specialist), WR Quinshad Davis (honorable mention), Norkeithus Otis (honorable mention), Tommy Hibbard (honorable mention)
...
College News
Rutgers, Why Rutgers? (blackshoediaries.com; Aydin)
...
To confirm the legitimacy of our feelings, we hit up Sean Keeley, manager of SB Nation's Syracuse blog, Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician to give us a primer on what to expect, given that Syracuse and Rutgers were once Big East foes back in the day.
BSD: First of all, thanks for doing this Q&A with us. What is the very first thing that we should know about Rutgers and its fan base? Am I right to diagnose their fan base with a strong case of 'little brother' syndrome? Were they always this obnoxious? I can't begin to tell you how much I'm looking forward to September 13th when we finally get the opportunity to put a damper on their cute little #ChopPSU and 'That Team From Pennsylvania' monikers.
Sean: Rutgers fans didn't actually exist before 2005. I know this because I grew up 20 minutes from New Brunswick in the 80's and 90's. Do you know how many Rutgers fans I knew? Three. THREE. Can you imagine a high school near Ohio State or Wisconsin that isn't loaded with OSU or Wisconsin fans, respectively? That's how little anyone cared about Rutgers. You never saw a Rutgers bumper sticker. You never saw a Rutgers flag. And you certainly never saw anyone wearing Rutgers gear. It just wasn't a consideration at all.
Then, all of a sudden when the program shot up in the mid-2000's, Rutgers fans grew up like mushrooms, spouting off wisdom about how they were an elite program, the days of Penn State & Syracuse were over and they were about to take their rightful place among college football's elite. And they've kept this up the whole time, even as the program has underachieved. They refuse to let go of this notion of their unearned greatness. When you meet a Rutgers fan and they start going on and on about how they're going to own Penn State, trust me, they're not being sarcastic. They really mean it.
Always remember: The greatest season in the history of Rutgers football ended in the Texas Bowl. Done.
Let's time travel back to November 9, 2006. Louisville instead of choking away its 25-7 lead, plays like a team actually deserving of its Top 10 ranking and goes on to handle Rutgers. Does the entire trajectory of Rutgers football (and subsequently, its fanbase) change? Are they even invited to join the B1G several years later?
Sean: Honestly, we're still trying to figure out why you guys invited them. Again, I grew up near there. They aren't in New York City. They're barely closer to New York City than they are to Philadelphia, but don't get them started on that stuff. RU fans suddenly turn into Media Market Share PhD's when you bring that stuff up.
As I noted earlier, their amazing 2006-07 run ended in the Texas Bowl, so I'm not sure it would have made that much of a difference in the end if they had lost that game. Ever since then, they've been respectable for sure, but nothing special, certainly not that the level they seem to think they deserve to be at.
Being a Penn State basketball fan can be summed up as a rather insufferable experience, but just taking a quick look at Rutgers' hoops history, we look more like *ahem* Syracuse in comparison to them. Seriously though, what can we expect from having Rutgers as a regular hoops opponent? Is the RAC as dangerous of a place as people claim it to be?
Sean: We have this fun inside joke over at TNIAAM from a time when it seemed like ESPN was really trying hard to make Rutgers basketball relevant. Pat Forde (at ESPN then) included Rutgers vs. Seton Hall in his list of fiercest college basketball rivalries. Not too long after, Andy Katz included Rutgers - St. John's in his list of toughest rivalries in the sport. In all the time since, RU basketball has not only done everything they could to ruin all of those high hopes but they've done it with a succession of awful head coaches who were also terrible human beings. It's been impressive to watch.
The RAC is a good arena but Syracuse fans routinely took it over when we'd play there, nullifying the threat. I don't know if Penn State fans are willing to do that but, if so, it won't be an issue.
Seriously, are there any sports that Rutgers excels at?
Sean: The women's basketball team is pretty good sometimes. So there's that...
...
Purdue QB Danny Elling
PS College Football Ranking/Haiku Fest Nos. 96-100 (Change Comes Slowly for Purdue; PS; Stevens)
100. WYOMING
If you can win in North Dakota, there's probably a decent chance you can win in Wyoming. That has to be part of the thinking behind the Cowboys' decision to hire Craig Bohl, who won three consecutive FCS titles at North Dakota State.
Frankly, it's one of the best moves on the coaching carousel this past offseason. There was little left for Bohl to prove with the Bison, who not only were a juggernaut at their level but had knocked off the likes of Minnesota (twice!), Kansas, Colorado State and Kansas State since 2007. While the Jim Tressel exceptions exist, most FCS coaches don't get plum FBS jobs. This is a logical next step.
...
...
Wyoming in haiku:
Eyeing the future
Headline: Cowboys go Bohl-ing
It just writes itself
...
Other
Mahoney Reveals Design for Amphitheater Along Onondaga Lake (PS; Breidenbach)
Onondaga County Executive Joanie Mahoney gave a virtual tour Wednesday night of the proposed Onondaga Lake amphitheater and shared other plans to encourage pedestrian traffic to and from Solvay.
A video tour of the proposed amphitheater complex shows two concert stages - one 17,500-seat venue for Dave Matthews-style concerts and one smaller community theater with a few hundred seats.
Mahoney's team chose between two concepts for the site of the amphitheater. They went with a design they call "The Cove," which puts the main amphitheater along the natural landscape of the lake's western shore. It has a lower profile than the rejected option, called "The Beacon," which would have placed it at a point with the lake as a dramatic background.
...
