What I Expect From Syracuse Football: A Community Sound Off

[Millhouse]

Realistically as long as we have a manageable schedule a typical 4 year stretch should be:

5-7 (assuming young team)
6-7
7-6
8-5 (Senior led team)


That is just over a .500 record over 4 years, 26-25 with 3 Bowls. Every now and then we will have everything go wrong (3-9) and every now and then we will have everything go right (10-3).

would you prefer a little more variability if it meant more 9-10 seasons and a few less wins overall?

I would trade multiple wins from 5 win seasons for an extra one win in a good season. but i know that's just me

I'll try to find some concrete real examples of teams where i bet half the board would want to be one and half would prefer the other

 

[baggerbob]

Lived through the 2 good periods 1955-1968, and 1987-1998. At 75 would like one more time to be competitive every week and where we win most of our games.

 

[cuse309]

What I have come to expect is 4-5 wins yearly.

What I realistically want, is 6-7 wins on an avg year. I expect 8-9 wins every few years, and I expect a 10+ win season once a decade. In 10 years, we should be able to get to at least 1 New Years 6, and a handful of tier 1 bowls. I would love to see attendance no lower than 30,000, and 45+ for the big games.

 

[Roger N]

**This WILL NOT be a thread to bash each other, just to express what each of us REALISTICALLY expects from the football program.**

I expect a well oiled machine. Win or lose. Excellence in time management, discipline on the field, good performance in the classroom, and good representation in the community.

I expect to win more than lose. But I expect loses. Because that is realistic.

I expect a decent punter, a decent kicker, and a decent quarterback. I would expect that these positions would like to come pad their stats in a controlled environment. And I expect the ones who are recruiting these positions use that pitch to help bring them in. I assume they do.

I expect traditions. Whether they be old, new, or both. Traditions that did exist seem to have faded. I wish them back although I'm not sure I'll ever see it. It's up to us, and the program, to create new ones.

I expect a bowl game more often than not.

I expect top 25 rankings more often than not. *EDIT* I've come to realize now that this expectation is indeed UNREALISTIC. Not sure what I was thinking. You can add the off and on top 25 ranking to my list of highs that come with the lows.

I expect to be program who consistantly wins 7,8,9 games per season. This will occasionally include 6, maybe even 5. But it may also include the excitement of 10 or 11. And every once in a while, when the stars align just right, a magical '59 or '87 type season. I believe this is a realistic expectation. And as a fan, it's actually what I think I would be most happy with. It's great to have the success of an Alabama, but we have something they haven't had in a long time. A fair amount of loses. And as frustrating as those loses are, they provide us a special thing. Elation. Joy. Overwhelming happiness and excitement when we win. If Alabama goes undefeated and wins the championship, I promise you at this point that they do not feel the same way as we would were we to win it all. Remember how 2018 felt? Remember heading into the Sugar Bowl 11-0? Do you think 2018 would have been so great without the crappy season before it? It sounds ridiculous, I know. Do you think Duke winning the NC feels the same to them as it made us feel when we did it in 2003? Not a chance. Loses and disappointment make the wins and happiness better.

I expect many of you to laugh at my expectations.

I want to wear my SU hat in Florida and have fans of other power 5 teams nod at me as an equal and have “Go Cuse” yelled at me.

 

[DownTheField]

This would not even impact me, but I expect a legitimate spring game and I expect if there's an open practice/fan event that people can actually see the fun parts of football and not have the time dominated by special teams shenanigans.

Imagine how bad the team would be if Dino wasn’t so secretive.

At this point I just want to feel like we’re building a solid program that gets better each year. Basically I want to have hope in SU football again.

 

[FortyFourCT]

I have been a fan since 1991. I expect 1 national title in my life. I'll maybe settle for a playoff appearance if it stays at 4. A couple if it goes to 8.

 

[Orangepace]

I'd prefer higher variability rather to hold straight to a 6 win trendline. But like Bees said, just entertain me. I actually enjoyed this season very much, pre-bye week. The team was competitive every single game. You don't buy a Kia Sorrento and expect it to ride as smooth as a Range Rover. Syracuse will never be able to afford the Range Rover, but they can give us a damn Wrangler.

 

[IthacaMatt]

**This WILL NOT be a thread to bash each other, just to express what each of us REALISTICALLY expects from the football program.**

I expect a well oiled machine. Win or lose. Excellence in time management, discipline on the field, good performance in the classroom, and good representation in the community.

I expect to win more than lose. But I expect loses. Because that is realistic.

I expect a decent punter, a decent kicker, and a decent quarterback. I would expect that these positions would like to come pad their stats in a controlled environment. And I expect the ones who are recruiting these positions use that pitch to help bring them in. I assume they do.

I expect traditions. Whether they be old, new, or both. Traditions that did exist seem to have faded. I wish them back although I'm not sure I'll ever see it. It's up to us, and the program, to create new ones.

I expect a bowl game more often than not.

I expect top 25 rankings more often than not. *EDIT* I've come to realize now that this expectation is indeed UNREALISTIC. Not sure what I was thinking. You can add the off and on top 25 ranking to my list of highs that come with the lows.

I expect to be program who consistantly wins 7,8,9 games per season. This will occasionally include 6, maybe even 5. But it may also include the excitement of 10 or 11. And every once in a while, when the stars align just right, a magical '59 or '87 type season. I believe this is a realistic expectation. And as a fan, it's actually what I think I would be most happy with. It's great to have the success of an Alabama, but we have something they haven't had in a long time. A fair amount of loses. And as frustrating as those loses are, they provide us a special thing. Elation. Joy. Overwhelming happiness and excitement when we win. If Alabama goes undefeated and wins the championship, I promise you at this point that they do not feel the same way as we would were we to win it all. Remember how 2018 felt? Remember heading into the Sugar Bowl 11-0? Do you think 2018 would have been so great without the crappy season before it? It sounds ridiculous, I know. Do you think Duke winning the NC feels the same to them as it made us feel when we did it in 2003? Not a chance. Loses and disappointment make the wins and happiness better.

I expect many of you to laugh at my expectations.

Generally, I expect us to be around 8-4 or 7-5 with regularity.
Bad year is 6 wins, a good year is 9 or 10.

 

[NineOneSeven]

6-8 wins 2 times over a 3 year period (aka two bowls). I would be content.

 

[HRE Otto IV]

would you prefer a little more variability if it meant more 9-10 seasons and a few less wins overall?

I would trade multiple wins from 5 win seasons for an extra one win in a good season. but i know that's just me

I'll try to find some concrete real examples of teams where i bet half the board would want to be one and half would prefer the other

It is really really really difficult to go worse than 5-7 without unique circumstances. If you do go worse than 5-7, then you most likely have a bad HC. And that HC isn't getting you to a 9-10 W season. I don't want to fire coaches. If there is a HC change I want it to be because he did well and someone stole him. Less than 5 Ws is unacceptable most of the time.

It is hard for a school like SU to have frequent 9-10 W seasons. We can have a season like 2018 but we won't have them often.

I would take 5-7, 6-7, 5-7, 6-7, 5-7, 10-3. That is 5 years of mediocrity and one great season. You are playing for a Bowl every year and make it half the time. Overall you are 32-31. But I think realistically making a jump from 5-6 Ws to 10 Ws isn't a fair expectation. Also is that much variability?

Back to my original point I was talking a typical 4 year stretch. But there will be times like 2018 or Wake/Pitt this year where you are an 8-5 team but go 10-3 due to things breaking right.

 

[IthacaBarrel]

6-8 wins 2 times over a 3 year period (aka two bowls). I would be content.

I am 2 over 4 but those would be mine. Bowl games 50% of the time

 

[OburgOrange]

We have such low expectations. Makes me sad

 

[HRE Otto IV]

I am 2 over 4 but those would be mine. Bowl games 50% of the time

As long as we are playing 1 FCS, 2 G5s, and 9 P5s it is really hard to be below 6-6 50% of the time. That means we had 2 seasons in 4 years where we either A. lost to a G5 team or B. went 2-7 vs P5 teams. That will leave you content?

Obviously when we have 10 P5 games that changes. I can understand the Tennessee game as it is a special opportunity. The Purdue series though was dropping the ball. We need to schedule smart. But even with 10 games to not get to 6 Ws means that you either have to A. go 3-7 vs P5 teams or B. lose your G5 game. If 50% of the time we have a .300 W % against P5 teams I know I can't be content.

 

[All4SU]

I expect a team and coach who represent my alma mater with honor, dignity and respect on and off the field.

I expect a school that participates in major athletics but recognizes that their primary responsibility is education.

I expect a competitive team that gets to bowl games most years, and on occasion compete for a conference championship.

 

[Bayside44]

Juniors and Seniors on the lines and at LB.

Reasonable depth, which we seem to be at or close.

Competitive games.

Go for the win playcalling at the end of games.

Whatever the offense is be consistent with it.

A head coach that carries himself as a pro.

Flip the cameras so the Cuse side is on TV with the students

 

[donniesyracuse]

I also expect the program to be in-front of, or to at least keep pace, with social change. I am personally proud that the first black Heisman winner came from Syracuse. They also embraced black QBs before other programs, ditched a racist mascot, and currently have a black head coach when they are still underrepresented.

 

[chugg21]

Read through all of this thread again. I think what I expect and want is basically what Minnesota found with PJ Fleck. I think they are a fairly decent comparison for us though they are obviously in a much bigger city, it's certainly no football recruiting hot bed. Most of the negative recruiting against us also applies to them. They took a swing at a hotshot young coach and have been able to retain him and so far are having a 5 year run that is essentially everything we all have been voicing that we want.

5-7, 7-6, 11-2, 3-4, 8-4.

If we could be Minnesota right now, I would be extremely happy. They had exactly 1(2003) 10 win season in the entire history of the program so it's not like they have any kind of history that compares to ours.

 

[MSOrange]

I expect us to be competitive in ACC play. That means a 4-4 record or better each season. Though I would be okay with an occasional 3-5 record.

I expect us to schedule OOC so we are favored to win 3 of the 4 games each season. And to win at least 3 OOC games each season. So we should end up with a minimum of 7 wins a season. Maybe 6 for a bad year.

I expect us to go to a bowl game every season.

I expect a minimum of 7 home games every season.

I expect a spring game, a real spring game, where fans are allowed to attend, the team is split into 2 teams and score is kept, every season.

I expect a weekly coaches TV show where highlights of the previous game are shown, the coach discusses what happened and a discussion on the next opponent is held. This should be an hour long show and include in depth behind the scenes features on players and coaches. Assistant coaches should be guests on the show. As well as players. It is unfathomable to me that we have stopped doing this but competitors like Rutgers, Penn State, Notre Dame (and probably every other school in the ACC) do it, and do it well, with impressive production values.

I expect some kind of presentation to season ticket holders and supporters of the program highlighting the new recruiting class at or near each national letter of intent football recruiting period. It should be an in person event with support for people who can't be in Syracuse that day.

I expect an open practice featuring a scrimmage, as part of each preseason that all season ticket holders are invited to.

I expect us to occasionally have good years, where we get 8-10 wins, get ranked and contend for a major bowl.

I expect us to have good facilities for football (and all other sports). Not the best in the ACC or the country, but middle of the road in the ACC. This includes a state of the art football operations center. Good to hear progress being made on this front.

I expect us to pay a middle of the road (for the ACC) salary to our HC and to our coaching staff. I expect us to have middle staffing levels for football. I expect our recruiting classes to be middle of the road for our conference.

I am okay with the dome as it is currently configured. No expectations for further major improvements. It would be nice to have comfortable individual seating, wider concourses and better food selection at the concession stands (the pee troughs and foot operated hand washers are perfect as is). But none of that is very important to me.

I expect the SUMB to have the size and quality of the other schools in the ACC. It currently does not. Not a jab at the kids in the band or the band director. I think SUAD needs to focus more money and attention on this.

A lot of what I expect are things we used to have that we have lost. The fan base that supports the program deserves better treatment than it is currently getting from SUAD.

Very good post. I feel strongly about the open practice, a real spring game and a program to show off the recruiting class. Those are so easy to do. People may say only the diehards would go. But to me that's the point, give the people who are season ticket holders and donating to the program some bang for their buck with the simple things.

 

[BomberOrange]

My expectation is a bowl every year. That could be 6-6 or 10-2, but a bowl game regardless. For those of us who were around, you will remember that we missed out on bowls in the 90's with a records of 6-4-1, 7-4, & 6-5 (2000). Today those would all be bowl seasons but back then bowls were earned and there weren't 40 plus bowls. Today you just need to get to 6 wins which doesn't seem all that hard. But we are in the ACC, not the Sun Belt so it is definitely harder to achieve this goal. Because of that I realize that it won't happen every year, but it is still my expectation.

 

[DoubleDee]

What I'm seeing so far is a group who has expectations near or worse than what you had with Coach P. Who HAD TO GO.

 

[Forza Azzurri]

I expect top 25 rankings more often than not. *EDIT* I've come to realize now that this expectation is indeed UNREALISTIC. Not sure what I was thinking. You can add the off and on top 25 ranking to my list of highs that come with the lows.

I expect to be program who consistantly wins 7,8,9 games per season. This will occasionally include 6, maybe even 5. But it may also include the excitement of 10 or 11. And every once in a while, when the stars align just right, a magical '59 or '87 type season. I believe this is a realistic expectation.

I expect many of you to laugh at my expectations.

Based upon the above, you are essentially expecting that, on average, the team have a record of 8-4.

When you start to look at records over a time period of a decade or more, a winning percentage of 67% is consistently ranked in the high teens to low twenties.

Therefore, you cannot expect to be, on average, 8-4 and then also say that expecting a consistent top 25 ranking is unrealistic. They go together.

I am not laughing at you but I do wonder if you, and others since there are similar expectations throughout this thread, actually look at the data before posting said expectations. I suspect not. Averaging 8-4 would put us in relatively rarified air.

Give the state of the program, the inherent limitations and the resources available, my expectations are to average 6-6.

 

[Forza Azzurri]

I expect to be entertained.

Try ancient Rome.

 

[Chip]

It is really really really difficult to go worse than 5-7 without unique circumstances. If you do go worse than 5-7, then you most likely have a bad HC. And that HC isn't getting you to a 9-10 W season. I don't want to fire coaches. If there is a HC change I want it to be because he did well and someone stole him. Less than 5 Ws is unacceptable most of the time.

It is hard for a school like SU to have frequent 9-10 W seasons. We can have a season like 2018 but we won't have them often.

I would take 5-7, 6-7, 5-7, 6-7, 5-7, 10-3. That is 5 years of mediocrity and one great season. You are playing for a Bowl every year and make it half the time. Overall you are 32-31. But I think realistically making a jump from 5-6 Ws to 10 Ws isn't a fair expectation. Also is that much variability?

Back to my original point I was talking a typical 4 year stretch. But there will be times like 2018 or Wake/Pitt this year where you are an 8-5 team but go 10-3 due to things breaking right.

Agree. You start the year with a built in W against FCS. So have to go 5-6 to make a bowl game. There's typically at least 1 other OOC that should be a sure win (often 2, but not next year). So now you have to go 4-6 to make a bowl game. 3-7 to just go 5-7.

If a new coach came in, blew it all up, decided to start all young players as a long term strategy, ok maybe. If there's an unusual rash of injuries that forces way too many young players, ok maybe.

But in the transfer portal days, no one is going to go the young guy, develop on the field route. They're going to develop them in practice, weight room, and try to fill the gaps (and hope they don't transfer if they don't start right away). It's why a guy like Hafley could walk right in and go to bowl games. You saw what what happens with no Jurkovec.

5-7 should be the every so often low bar, and frankly, the ACC isn't THAT good.

So we either have a Dino problem, or a Syracuse problem that very few can solve. Better hope it's the former.

 

[IthacaMatt]

Generally, I expect us to be around 8-4 or 7-5 with regularity.
Bad year is 6 wins, a good year is 9 or 10.

I don't get why that's so funny, Comstock. I guess you feel we'll never be a good program again. But those numbers are hardly "un-obtainable". I've been a fan for nearly 60 years (egads, is that possible?) and for at least half that time, we have been at that level.

 

[IthacaMatt]

I expect us to be competitive in ACC play. That means a 4-4 record or better each season. Though I would be okay with an occasional 3-5 record.

I expect us to schedule OOC so we are favored to win 3 of the 4 games each season. And to win at least 3 OOC games each season. So we should end up with a minimum of 7 wins a season. Maybe 6 for a bad year.

I expect us to go to a bowl game every season.

I expect a minimum of 7 home games every season.

I expect a spring game, a real spring game, where fans are allowed to attend, the team is split into 2 teams and score is kept, every season.

I expect a weekly coaches TV show where highlights of the previous game are shown, the coach discusses what happened and a discussion on the next opponent is held. This should be an hour long show and include in depth behind the scenes features on players and coaches. Assistant coaches should be guests on the show. As well as players. It is unfathomable to me that we have stopped doing this but competitors like Rutgers, Penn State, Notre Dame (and probably every other school in the ACC) do it, and do it well, with impressive production values.

I expect some kind of presentation to season ticket holders and supporters of the program highlighting the new recruiting class at or near each national letter of intent football recruiting period. It should be an in person event with support for people who can't be in Syracuse that day.

I expect an open practice featuring a scrimmage, as part of each preseason that all season ticket holders are invited to.

I expect us to occasionally have good years, where we get 8-10 wins, get ranked and contend for a major bowl.

I expect us to have good facilities for football (and all other sports). Not the best in the ACC or the country, but middle of the road in the ACC. This includes a state of the art football operations center. Good to hear progress being made on this front.

I expect us to pay a middle of the road (for the ACC) salary to our HC and to our coaching staff. I expect us to have middle staffing levels for football. I expect our recruiting classes to be middle of the road for our conference.

I am okay with the dome as it is currently configured. No expectations for further major improvements. It would be nice to have comfortable individual seating, wider concourses and better food selection at the concession stands (the pee troughs and foot operated hand washers are perfect as is). But none of that is very important to me.

I expect the SUMB to have the size and quality of the other schools in the ACC. It currently does not. Not a jab at the kids in the band or the band director. I think SUAD needs to focus more money and attention on this.

A lot of what I expect are things we used to have that we have lost. The fan base that supports the program deserves better treatment than it is currently getting from SUAD.

Tremendous, well thought out list. Send it to Wildhack!