Reply to thread

Message: [QUOTE="Crusty, post: 3517202, member: 2265"] I try to remain balanced (it’s hard) when it comes to SU football because we are such a roller coaster program. We haven’t been consistently good (consistently competitive even) since the late 90’s. Think about that for a moment. So, when something like this pandemic hits it simply hits us harder than most. Not rationalization, just the truth. In the last ten years, we are 62-78 for a .443 winning percentage. We have had only 4 winning seasons during this stretch. 2018 10-3 with bowl win Dino (ACC) ; 2013 7-6 with bowl win Shafer (ACC) ; 2012 8-5 with bowl win Marrone (Big East); and 2010 8-5 with bowl win Marrone (Big East) [B]Doug Marrone[/B] Thankfully, Doug Marrone took us from the abyss to respectability and won a couple of good bowl games. Even though they weren’t all his recruits, he developed Justin Pugh, Chandler Jones, Ryan Nassib, Shamarko Thomas, Jay Bromley, Marcus Spruill, Riley Dixon, Doug Hogue, Mike Williams, Andrew Tiller, and Arthur Jones. Apologies to any I left out. Doug could coach ‘em up. He finished 25-25 for a .500 record. Many of us, including me, thought we were on our way back. [B]Scott Shafer[/B] Then, Scott Shafer took a empty shelf and turned it into a 7-6 record and beat a decent Minnesota team in the Texas Bowl with Hunt as MVP. Shafer’s 1st recruiting class (2013) was tough as he had to piece together a class that Doug has largely recruited - Brisley Estime was a notable catch. However, the 2014 class (his 1st full class) yielded such players as Erv Phillips, Jamal Custis, Steve Ishmael, Chris Slayton, and Zaire Franklin. Then came the class of 2015 -19 with Eric Dungey, Dontae Strickland, Shy Cullen and Sterling Hofrichter. Plagued by injuries including his starting QB and bowl MVP and most of his OLine, Shafer’s teams went 14-23 for .378. It seems to me it is not a big reach to find 4 more wins had we had eve normal injuries. That would have made him .500, the same as Marrone. Lest we forget, all of Shafer’s seasons were in the ACC and all of Marrone’s in the Big East. If we evaluate on the facts, it is hard to knock Shafer and elevate Doug and Dino way above him. Doug was 17-20 in his first three seasons for a .459 pct. While Doug arguably started from a lower level he also had some great players left over form little engine AND he played in the Big East. How that nets out is hard to say but difference can’t be huge. [B]Dino Babers[/B] So far, after five seasons and two games Dino is 23-30 for .410 pct. Candidly, not much better than Shafer’s and not better recruiting (arguably worse). He sure did give us some excitment though. I remain committed to Dino because he is a good coach and a great ambassador for SU. I also think he has some very promising Coordinators. I also think that BOTH Marrone and Shafer would have winning records had they lasted a couple of more years. All are good coaches and it simply takes a great deal of time to get consistently good at this level. We just have to stay the course. The rejuvenated dome should help, and the new coordinators have to be given a fair shot. After all, they have been dealt a raw deal installing new systems in the midst of a pandemic. Most of our opponents did not have to face that daunting challenge. Chances are this season could be a disaster – yeah a real disaster. We have endured worse, but we can’t keep throwing out good coaches, especially when they are good men. Now is the time to simply let them do their jobs and see where we are next season. I think they will prove to be keepers. [/QUOTE]

Verification: What is a Syracuse fan's favorite color?