Syracuse at South Florida: The Quest for 4-1

It's been a long time since the Syracuse football team had a game. Coming out of the bye week with plenty of rest, the Orangemen will travel to Tampa, Florida to take on the University of South Florida Bulls. Many of you will quickly realize that Tampa isn't in the south of Florida at all, but rather on the west coast, and you will be correct. It's probably the same shock USF fans have when they find out Syracuse isn't in the heart of NYC.

Meanwhile, both squads come into the game carrying a 3-1 record and a share of the three-way tie atop the Big East. The one knock against both teams is that their combined 6 victories came against teams with a combined 2-10 record, giving fans of both teams a lot of uncertainty.

The biggest news story at USF this off-season was the dismissal of the only head coach the school has ever known, Jim Leavitt. Jim Leavitt, who was 95-57 at USF, had just completed the 2nd year of a 7 year contract worth $12.6 million when news broke that he had grabbed a player by the throat (or shoulder pads) and may have allegedly slapped the player as well. While Leavitt denied hitting the player and said he merely was trying to motivate a player during halftime, the school ultimately was very upset because not only did Leavitt lie about the incident, he also went to coaches and players and told them to lie about it as well. Apparently thats a big no-no at USF, and he was fired January 8th, 2010.

The new head coach at USF is Skip Holtz, son of legendary Notre Dame football coach Lou Holtz. Skip is 75-51 all-time as a head coach, coming to South Florida after a five year coaching stint at East Carolina. Many Syracuse fans will remember his name mentioned when SU was looking for a replacement for Greg Robinson. Skip Holtz turned down the offer. Time for some sweet revenge cuse fans!! Let's make him wish he took that job!

As we all should know by now, Syracuse has never beaten the Bulls from South Florida. In the 5 years since USF joined the Big East, Syracuse has lost every game (0-5) and been outscored by an average of 24.2 points per game. The Bulls have also rushed for 814 more yards than the Orangemen have. Needless to say, its time for some pay back. What better way to return the favor of being whooped up on by USF these last 5 years than to beat them in their own building?

Leading the Orangemen into Tampa are Ryan Nassib and Delone Carter. Delone Carter is coming off a game against Colgate where he rushed for 172 yards and 4 touchdowns. Ryan Nassib enters the game as the Big East leader in passing efficiency, and 9 TD passes with just 2 interceptions. Both will have to be effective and protect the football if Syracuse wants to walk out of Raymond James Stadium with a W.

Syracuse's defense will have their work cut out for them. BJ Daniels, USF's dual threat at QB, has had a slow start to the season. Although coming off a solid week of work against Florida Atlantic, his season stats are just 41 completions in 72 attempts for 560 yards, 4TDs and 5INTs. Not very frightening stats but when you factor in his ability to run the ball (187 yards on the year with 2 TDs), stopping Daniels will be a true challenge for a defensive unit that hasn't seen much from a QB not named Jake Locker.

USF has two running backs to watch for: Moise Plancher and Demetris Murray. Murray sat out the Florida Atlantic game with an ankle injury, however he is expected to be in uniform on Saturday. Murray has 223 yards on 36 carries with 1 TD. Plancher ran for 2 TDs last week and 93 yards to give him 231 yards on the season with 4 TDs. Leading receiver on the team is Evan Landi (6'3" 221lbs) who has caught 12 balls for 215 yards, no touchdowns. Dontavia Bogan leads the WR group with 2 TD catches, with 8 balls overall for 152 yards. Matching up against our own Van Chew for Best Name in the Game Contest is Stephen Bravo-Brown, a WR with 6 catches for 80 yards.

The game will be televised live on SNY at 12:00PM. Syracuse will try to hold onto their share of 1st place with a victory, and a win would push their record to 4-1 for the first time since 1999 when Coach P lead the team to a 7-5 overall record. That team was littered with stars like Dwight Freeney, Keith Bulluck, David Tyree, Morlon Greenwood and TROY NUNES on the roster.

Note: The 1999 team should have been 5-0, but Troy Nunes made mistake after mistake in the Carrier Dome on September 18th against Michigan and Syracuse lost 18-13. A young fan from Long Island went devastated into Cosmos for a post game meal that night. He would never forget the name Troy Nunes.

photo courtesy of syracuse.com

Ryan Nassib's Time to Step Up

Through the first four games of the season Ryan Nassib has looked like the first real quarterback to put on a Syracuse Orangemen uniform since the departure of Donovan McNabb. Syracuse fans have watched Troy Nunes, R.J. Anderson, Perry Patterson, Andrew Robinson, and Cameron Dantley take snaps under center for the Orangemen. We have also been witness to Duke point guard Greg Paulus playing at QB (as weird as that is to type its true). There has been the two headed QB by committee system and there has been outright confusion. Overall, one thing Syracuse has lacked since the late 1990s is a true quarterback.

Enter Ryan Nassib.

In just four career starts, Nassib has already set the record for most TD passes in a single game at Syracuse. Of course it came against the Maine Black Bears, but five touchdown passes in one game is still quite the accomplishment at the college level. Through the early part of the season Nassib has been 61 of 105 pass attempts, 860 yards with 9TD passes and 2 INTs. Now the true test comes. Now is the time for Nassib to show the fans that he isn't just a quarterback that can beat up on lesser opponents. He must prove to everyone that he can perform at a high level against the faster and bigger Big East defenses as well.

Not just a passer, Ryan Nassib has the wheels to run for positive yardage. He moves very well in the pocket and has rushed for 70 net yards this season and 1 touchdown. Nassib has the arm to throw the ball down field to deep threat Van Chew, and he can gun the ball over the middle for quick slants to slot receiver Alec Lemon and Antwon Bailey out of the back field as well. For a team that came into the season with big question marks at wide receiver, Nassib is making the most of the targets he has. Ryan Nassib currently has the highest passing efficiency rating in the conference at 151.4, good enough for 24th overall in the country.

After the loss of Aaron Weaver many SU fans were concerned about the depth at the WR position. Antwon Bailey showed Coach Marrone that he can be a lethal player out of the backfield and our tight ends have shown an ability to not only catch the ball, but pick up yards after the catch as well, most notably Nick Provo. Syracuse's offense hasn't skipped a beat since the season ending injury to Weaver and we are all hoping that the lack of a #3 receiver doesn't burn the team later in the year.

Now the true test for Nassib begins. This Saturday the Orangemen travel to Tampa, Florida to take on the South Florida Bulls. Syracuse has never beaten South Florida since USF joined the Big East in 2005. Of course their arrival to the conference coincided with Greg Robinson's arrival on the Hill so that shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. This year though Syracuse fans everywhere have a reason to believe that the Orangemen have a CHANCE to win this game.

Both teams enter 3-1 and both teams have beaten up on squads with a combined record of 2-10 thus far in 2010. Ryan Nassib has to be the quarterback that takes over the game. He must continue to make time in the pocket with his feet and stretch the defense with attacks through the air. If Nassib can continue to excel within Syracuse's attack, than SU will finally have an opportunity to return to a bowl game for the first time since 2004.

Now is the time for Ryan Nassib to show Orangemen fans that he belongs.

photo courtesy of syracuse.com

Zach Menchini's Concrete Cindarellas: St. John's and Rutgers 2011 Recruits

It's never too early to look toward next year. As Syracuse basketball fans, we've been fortunate to have this year to look forward to for quite some time. Some programs haven't been so skilled, and their fans haven't been as fortunate. Two such programs are Rutgers and St. John's. These two schools have quite a few things in common. They both have new coaches (Mike Rice - Rutgers, Steve Lavin - St. John's), are located in the New York area, have awful campuses but awesome basketball arenas (The RAC* and MSG), and have low hopes for 2010 but 2011 recruiting classes in the top 15 nationally.

(*The RAC has great energy and is a tough place for opponents to play, due to very steep bleachers. Other than that, it sucks for a few reasons: no beer sold, in the middle of nowhere, no good public transportation.)

That's right. The NYC schools are going to shake up the balance of power in the Big East, and pretty soon. Yeah, its early. Yeah, a lot of players (inlcuding 3 of Rivals' top 10) haven't committed. The 2011 classes are starting to fall into place, and it's not just the usual suspects. Mike Rice has assembled a very good class, with four of the Rivals Top 150. ESPN and Rivals has this group as #12 nationally, ahead of perennial powers like Ohio State, Florida, Illinois and Pittsburgh. Rivals national rankings in parentheses.

RUTGERS
(33) Kadeem Jack: 6'8", 210, F, Rice High School, NYC.
From Scout:
"Late blooming insider could be a power forward or center depending on personnel. Like how he's explosive inside and can block shots. Runs well. Offense is elementary but he'll drop the occasional hook. High-major talent."

(119) Myles Mack: 5'11, 155, PG, St. Anthony, Jersey City, NJ
"The young man has always found a way to be one of the best players on the floor. His strength is his jump shot and he'll pull it from all over the court. Has improved his point guard game."

(99) Jerome Seagears: 6'2", 175, PG, Flora MacDonald Academy, Red Springs, NC
More of a true point guard and less of a scorer than Mack. Has the obvious size advantage. This could be an interesting battle before the 2011 season.

(139) Derrick Randle: 6'9", 220, C, South Kent High School, South Kent, CT
"Love how he takes care of business inside. Developing offensive game but a super rebounder who finishes strong. Could be a nice shot blocker in his area." I have no idea why he's listed on Seton Hall's recruiting page. Other sources confirm he's committed to Rutgers.

Steve Lavin has also made a splash in the tri-state area, with a pair of forwards in the top ten at their position. ESPN likes this class more than others, ranking them #14 nationally.

ST. JOHN'S
(44) Jakarr Sampson: 6'8", 200, F, St. Vincent - St. Mary's, Akron, OH
"Sampson is a very talented and versatile forward who excels on the break and off the dribble. He is a good rebounder and multiple position defender that reminds us of a young Scottie Pippen."

(45) Maurice Harkless: 6'7", 200, F, South Kent High School, South Kent, CT
"Harkless is an explosive athlete with great size and length for the wing positions. While he is already capable of dominating games because of his tremendous tools, he still has a lot to improve on before maximizing his potential, which is why he has such a high upside."

If the doormats of the Big East continue to put together talented classes like they have in 2011, it's going to be an interesting decade in the concrete jungle.

Syracuse Athletics Early Morning Notes

First things first, news out of the NFL emerged yesterday about another former SU player getting suspended. Steven Gregory (class of 2005), San Diego Charger's safety, was suspended 4 games without pay for a violation of the NFL's performance enhancing drug policy. He's the second former SU player suspended by the NFL for violating the league's drug policy this season.

Tanard Jackson was suspended for 1 year earlier this season for violating the league's substance abuse policy. Of course, Gregory gave the obligatory "I was completely shocked to find out about this positive test" response to go along with "I have never knowingly used any form of performance enhancing substance." KNOWINGLY being the key word there.

A personal story about Steven Gregory. Junior year at SU I was parking cars in the lot behind my house near the Dome on game day for $10 a spot. All of a sudden I see a Jeep roll up and park in one of my spaces. I walk over to the patron and say its $10 for the game, and notice its none other than Steve Gregory. [Now this was a year at Syracuse where the football team would go 1-10. Under normal circumstances I'd be psyched if I could help the team in any way, even if it was just game day parking.]

On this day I'm already very upset with the team's on-field performance and Gregory tells me its cool that he parks there because he's 'on the football team.' I respond "Yeah, I know who you are. You're Steve Gregory, but you are still going to have to move your car." So after some haggling with me I told him he could roll his jeep up an incline in the back where no one would be parking and that it would be fine for him to park there on game-day. He got back in his car and relocated as requested. Steve's nickname on the team this season was "Toast" by the way. Something about being burnnnnned in coverage. Overall, I wasn't a fan of his arrogant attitude about being on the team. A team that would have the worst record in the HISTORY of Syracuse football.

So imagine my surprise when I find out Gregory cracked an NFL roster. He is a Syracuse guy though and I hope he can put this behind him and continue to be a player in the league. In 4 games this season with the Chargers gregory has 30 tackles (25 solo) and 1 interception.

In unrelated news, Syracuse Orangemen freshman running back Jerome Smith is out for the season. Smith injured his left shoulder on Friday in practice and it will require surgery to repair the joint. He appeared in the Maine and Colgate games on special teams.

Lastly, the NBA preseason match up being held in the Carrier Dome on October 15th between the Timberwolves and Pistons will have another added attraction. Aside from Wes Johnson's return to the Dome floor along with injured Jonny Flynn, David bing will be among 20 Syracuse hoops legends to honor Jim Boeheim for his Coach of the Year award he received following the 2009/2010 season. Boeheim lead syracuse to a #1 ranking and a 30-5 record to earn his first ever Coach of the Year trophy.

Also on hand will be Derrick Coleman, Billy Owens, Pearl Washington, John Wallace, Lawrence Moten, and Jason Hart, who will be playing in the game on a try-out offer from the T'Wolves. I guess that two SU players on their team wasn't enough. David Bing, the Mayor of Detroit, will do the ceremonial jump ball to start the game.

Catching Up with the Syracuse Orangemen Defense

The Syracuse Orangemen's football season is one third of the way through and the defense has been responding in a big way. Last season Syracuse's passing defense left much to be desired and it was the rushing defense that kept the Orangemen in the game. This season with a year of experience and a few fresh faces both areas of the defense have seen improvements and the early season results are in.

We are all very aware that SU has played two FCS opponents and Akron, however after enduring years of losing and humiliation at the hands of college football's bottom feeders, it feels good to win the games you EXPECT to win. Now Syracuse has to carry these good vibes and winning ways into the conference schedule. A conference schedule packed with mediocre teams.

FBS Defensive Standings:

Points per game - 16.3 - 23rd overall

Rushing yards - 526 - T-29th overall

Rushing yards per attempt - 3.7 - T-41st overall

Passing yards - 678 - 16th overall

Passing yards per game - 169.5 - 23rd overall

Total Yards per game - 301.0 - 25th overall

Individually Syracuse has gotten big performances out of Derrell Smith, Chandler Jones and true freshman Marquis Spruill. Smith is currently the team's leading tackler with 39 total tackles in 4 games, 23 of them unassisted, 3 tackles for a loss and two forced fumbles. Phillip Thomas is second on the team in tackles with 32 total and Spruill is third with 24 tackles, 12 of them solo and 3 tackles for a loss.

Chandler Jones has 2 sacks and 2 forced fumbles to go along with 20 tackles. He is clearly one of the leaders on the defense along with Derrell Smith, and his huge frame has helped him to knock down 3 passes thus far this season. Jones also has 2.5 tackles for a loss. If the junior can continue to put up big numbers once the conference schedule gets underway, Syracuse fans might be watching Jones on Sunday.

Syracuse's rushing defense has done a great job except in the case of Nate Eachus. Eachus, Colgate University's lone offensive threat, was able to rack up 147 yards on 35 carries in the Dome. This is worrisome considering the quality of opponent, however Syracuse has been decent at limiting the rush, holding opponents to just 3.7 yards per attempt. Syracuse fans will just have to hope that it was Eachus' unique rushing ability and relentless drive that enabled him to attain those totals.

The secondary has done a much better job not giving up big plays outside of the game at Washington. Da'Mon Merkerson and Mike Holmes have one interception a piece, and internet sensation slash heavy hitter Shamarko Thomas has 18 tackles. The true test for this group will be once the conference schedule gets underway. The first match up against USF will be the second strong QB the team will see on the road so far this season.

BJ Daniels, starting quarterback for the Bulls, was 14/19 for 155 yards and a TD pass this past Saturday against Florida Atlantic. Daniels is also a threat to run the ball, and as we have seen so far this season Syracuse is very susceptible to the ball fake. He will be a tremendous challenge for Syracuse's defense. Last season, Daniels came into the Dome as a freshman and walked out having completed 12 of 20 passes for 208 yards and 2 TDs including 32 rushing yards leading the Bulls to a 34-20 victory.

Derrell Smith & Co. will need a huge all around effort to keep Syracuse atop the Big East standings. If Syracuse intends to go bowling this season, the defense will need to be the group driving the bus.

photo courtesy of syracuse.com

Big East Conference Roundup (Week 5)

It was supposed to be a week of redemption for Big East football. A week for all the teams in the conference to get back into the swing of things and get a win under their belt before the conference schedule gets underway this weekend for many conference members.

Unfortunately, no one bothered to phone the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. On a weekend where many assumed it to be a foregone conclusion that the Big East would go 5-0, Rutgers managed to lose to lowly Tulane out of Conference-USA. On Homecoming weekend in Piscataway, NJ Rutgers lost to a Tulane team that had lost 6 straight road games dating back to last season. Final score: 17-14.

Additionally, Rutgers starting QB Tom Savage who came into the game with bruised ribs was knocked out of the game late 2nd quarter and did not return. Interestingly enough for the Scarlet Knights, they have given up the fewest points in the conference by far with 48, however they have also scored the fewest points at 77. Rutgers will open up their conference schedule with a Friday night showdown against UCONN 7:30 on ESPN.

Speaking of the University of Connecticut, the Huskies defeated Vanderbilt at home this weekend after surviving a 2nd quarter scare. UCONN was up 14-0 in the 2nd quarter before surrendering 21 straight points to fall behind 21-14. UCONN would not go away, and after scoring a game tying touchdown with just over a minute left in the half they rattled off 19 unanswered second half points for a 40-21 victory over the Commodores. Running back Jordan Todman ran for 190 yards and 2 TDs. He has run for over 100 yards in 7 of his last 8 games.

Elsewhere in the Big East, Pittsburgh beat Florida International 44-17 and South Florida defeated Florida Atlantic 31-3. Before the University of Pittsburgh opens up conference play they will be traveling to South Bend, Indiana to take on a team that SHOULD be in the Big East for football, the Fightin' Irish. Kick-off is scheduled for 3:30 and of course the game will be televised on NBC. Everyone in 'Cuse country knows that Saturday at 12:00PM South Florida will be welcoming the Orangemen to open up both team's conference schedule. The game will be shown live on the Big East Network, a.k.a. SNY.

Lastly, Louisville got a little tune-up game of their own this past Saturday, playing the Arkansas State Red Wolves out of the Sun Belt Conference. Although the Cardinals nearly blew a 24 point second half lead, they managed to hold on and defeat the Red Wolves on the road 34-24. Louisville will take on Memphis this Saturday in the final warm-up before they open conference play next week against Cincinnati.

There are two other games this weekend, both non-conference match ups. West Virginia will host UNLV Saturday at 3:30 and at 7PM Cincinnati will play Miami of Ohio at home.

BIG EAST STANDINGS (through week 5)

1. SYRACUSE 3-1

2. South Florida 3-1

3. West Virginia 3-1

4. Connecticut 3-2

5. Louisville 2-2

6. Pittsburgh 2-2

7. Rutgers 2-2

8. Cincinnati 1-3

C.J. Fair: The Next Josh Pace?

Freshman C.J. Fair is a very talented forward prospect out of Brewster Academy in New Hampshire. Originally from Baltimore, Maryland I am beginning to detect a lot of similarities between Fair and former Syracuse Orangemen spark plug Josh Pace.

For starters and the most obvious similarity is that both players are natural lefties. Cuse fans will never forget how every opponent knew the left-handed runner in the lane was coming, yet they were unable to stop it. Many referred to the left-handed shot in the lane to be "ugly," but everyone knew it as one word, effective.

Josh Pace stood 6'6" tall and weighed about 190 during his time at on the hill. C.J. Fair comes in an inch taller and 6-10 pounds heavier giving them very close frames on the court. Much like Pace, Fair has very active hands on defense and creates a lot of turnovers. He also attacked the boards at the high school level and cuse fans are hoping to see more of the same out of Fair in college.

Ultimately, Josh Pace will be remembered for being a tremendous role player. Coaches always preach "play within yourself" and Pace exemplified that. Orangehoops.org describes Pace's game as "if you needed a loose ball pick up, or a key offensive rebound, or a guy to drive the lane, he was often able to deliver." That is exactly the kind of player Jim Boeheim will be looking for coming off the bench this season for the Orangemen.

One area C.J. Fair excels in that Pace couldn't is his shooting ability. Pace wasn't much of a shooter, particularly from the the foul line. Pace shot 50.6% from the foul line during his time at Syracuse and Orangemen fans will surely expect more than that from Fair. C.J. also has a 15-17 foot jumper that Pace never had in his repertoire.

C.J. Fair may grow into a starter and a consistent scorer for the Orangemen in the coming years, but this season Syracuse will need a Josh Pace effort out of Fair off the bench. Much like the role Pace played in the championship season of 2003. If Syracuse was down in the second half and needed a spark, there was Pace and his trusty lefty runner.

Jim Boeheim was asked who he thought the most under appreciated player at Syracuse was during his tenure thus far. His answer? Josh Pace. If Syracuse needs a spark off the bench this season, we will look to C.J. Fair and hopefully, like Pace, he will deliver.

CJ Fair photo courtesy of suathletics.com, pace picture courtesy of orangehoops.org