Syracuse Orange 2018 Football Preview
Opening Statement: Syracuse comes into the 2018 season on a 5 game skid, and coming off back to back 4-8 seasons under head coach Dino Babers, who is in, what I call, the prove it or lose it year of his tenure. The upset win over Clemson was huge last fall, but the response to that upset was this 5 game muckfest, and it would seem that the Orange got no bump from it, and you cannot allow that to happen, as it squandered a huge opportunity for the program to turn a corner. The same thing happened in his first season after a win over Virginia Tech, ranked 18th at the time, the Orange finished 1-4. That is a 1-9 record after beating a ranked opponent under Babers, and we call that a trend. Can Syracuse turn a corner this fall, or will anyone finally admit that joining the ACC was putting this program in way over its head?
Breakdown Offense: There are no more excuses. Syracuse returns 8 starters on offense, led by returning QB Eric Dungey, who still has problems staying healthy. He missed 3 games last season, and 3 in 2016, and when Dungey does not start, the Orange does not stand a chance at winning. Even when on the field, his positive numbers get far more attention than the negatives, like completing just 59.7% of his passes, and tossing 9 picks in 9 games to just 14 TD passes. Syracuse needs 2 things from him. Stay on the field, and get consistent. Tommy DeVito is the backup as a RS freshman, and tossed 3 TD passes in the spring game, for what that is worth.
Dontae Strickland is the starter at RB for the Orange, but rushed for just 482 yards last fall, averagin just 3.77 yards per carry. Moe Neal rushed for 488 yards last fall, but socred only one time, but averaged 5.02 yards per carry. In all, Syracuse ra nked just 70th nationally last fall, rushing as a team for 161.5 yards per game, but no single back rushed for more than Neal, and Dungey led the team with 577 yards. A star is needed here, or even someone who wants to take the reigns.
Devin Butler is back to start at WR, but 2 new starters are needed to pair with him. Butler, as is, caught 33 passes, but averaged just 9.91 yards per catch last fall. Someone needs to step in to stretch the field. Sharod Johnson and Nykeim Johnson are slated to fill the two open jobs, but only Nykeim caught any passes last season, and he caught just 8. There is no actual developed depth behind this group.
TE Ravian Pierce returns, and caught 29 passes, but mostly of the shorter variety. he did manage to score 4 times last season.
The line returns 4 starters this fall in Cody Conway (LT), Sam Heckel (C), Evan Adams (RG), and Airon Servais (RT). Aaron Roberts, a senior, projects to start at LG. All five of these linemen have starting experience, and Syracuse has not had that luxury in 30 years.
Breakdown Defense: Syracuse ranked 105th nationally in total defense, allowing 444 yards per game. Once again, 7 starters return, so excuses are running thin.
Three starters return on the line in DE Kendall Coleman, DE Alton Robinson, and DT Chris Slayton. Slayton is the leader of this group after finishing with 8.5 TFLs last fall. Robinson added 6 TFLs, and led the team with 5 sacks. Coleman finished with just 2.5 TFLs last season, and could be the wek link. McKinley Williams is projected as the new starter at DT, and totaled 4 TFLs as a sophomore in rotation last fall.
All 3 starting LBs must be replaced this fall. Ryan Guthrie, Kielan Whitner, and Andrew Armstrong are the starters coming out of spring football. Lakeim Williams, Tyrell Richards, and Nadarius Fagan will likely also be in the mix, but none are very experienced, and Williams, specifically, was banged up in camp and is behind the group in terms of learning curve.
There is, however, experience coming back in the secondary, as 3 starters return in CBs Chris Fredrick and Scoop Bradshaw, and SS Evan Foster. Fredrick and Bradshaw combined for 10 PBUs last fall, but Fredrick was the only player of the 2 to pick off a pass, and he had just one, which tied for the team lead. Foster totaled 4 PBUs, and finished 3rd on the team with 64 tackles. Antwan cordy is expected to step in and win the FS job. Cordy is an injury risk, as he has missed most of the last 2 seasons. There is a massive drop in talent when it comes to the second team players here, and this was also a unit that finished just 97th nationally against the pass, allowing 247.3 yards passing per game.
Breakdown Special Teams: Cole Murphy hit 20/27 FGs last season, but now has to be replaced. Starting Punter Sterling Hofrichter will likely handle both jobs this fall. He did manage to hit 2/3 FG attempts in limited action last fall, and he has a solid leg on punts, averaging 43.19 yards per punt.
Sean Riley handled a bulk of the KR duties last fall, and averaged 24.48 yards per return, and is back to handle the job once more. He also averaged 7.76 yards per punt return on the season, and will handle that job as well.
Final Analysis: This is a critical season for Dino Babers and his staff, as Syracuse should be pushing for a bowl bid in year 3. The issue is that they don't have the roster, or the talent, to make that push, and if Syracuse were to make it that far in 2018, it would be a miracle of miracles. In short, I believe that Babers could be on the hot seat at the conclusion of the coming season, and even though I think it would be likely, short of a massive disaster, to see him return in 2019, but the expectations would be win now, or else. I just do not see the Orange having what they need to take the next step, and that is discouraging for the further development of the program under Babers at this point.
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