Scoop to Redshirt

It appears as if Syracuse guard and cheese-steak lover Scoop Jardine might be red-shirting this season after playing most of last year with a stress fracture in his lower left leg, the Post-Standard reports.

Right on cue after another devastating loss by the football team at home, some bad news rubs off onto the basketball program.

No, Scoop is not a devastating loss. But, eventually he could be. If we learned anything last year it was it never hurts to have experienced guards on the floor in tight games that have seen some real pressure and can handle it accordingly. So, it won't be like missing Devo or Andy, but this definitely takes a body away, and after last year it's always good to have as many bodies available to play as possible.

Props to Scoop's heart and dedication to the team, though. He fought pretty hard through what is probably a pretty painful injury all season long. He played pretty well considering that fact, as well as the fact he was a freshman that wasn't originally supposed to see much PT anyways.

"I had to play," Jardine said. "We had six guys. I thought it'd be all right if I could just get through the season."

Scoop averaged just over 9 points a game in the last 10 games of the season. (Too bad his team-first attitude never rubbed off on Onte Greene... No D... get it?.... Lame?.... I know).

Scoop never really wowed anyone last year, but he was a solid guard who provided solid play for most of the minutes he was in action. The Orange look to be a pretty deep team to begin with. But, with the depth of the Big East this year it is critical to have a deep bench full of players that can play productive minutes. So, though the removal of Scoop doesn't help, it's not quite what the team and Orange fans had to go through last year with the losses of Andy Rautins and Eric Devendorf.

Bottom line: The team is still pretty talented and pretty deep. Also, it appears as if they have every "position" filled:

Smart/Athletic/Do-it-all Point-Guard: Jonny Flynn
Inside/Outside Slashing Off-Guard: Devo
Sniper: Andy Rautins
Strong/Athletic swingman: Paul Harris
Inside Bruiser: Arinze Onuaku
Hustler: KRISTOF!
Long, Lean, athletic 4 man off the Bench: Rick Jackson

All of that plus a couple pretty good recruits in Mookie Jones and Kris Joseph. While I'll miss Scoop and the energy he brought to the team off the bench, it's a far cry from losing the starting backcourt again. BUT, this would probably hurt the Orange most when Jonny or Eric are in foul trouble, or late in games when the team needs an extra ball-handler on the floor. We'll just have to wait and see how things go.

He's Trying Really Hard....

Greg Robinson, in a piece done by ESPN concerning the absolute free-fall of Syracuse football, said that we should all know he's working as hard as he can.

That may have been the first absolutely brilliant move G-Rob has made in his head-coaching career. Why? Because we apparently are not supposed to know exactly what he's working so hard for.

But it all makes sense now... he's TRYING to get fired. There's no other explanation.

First, he punted after having a 4th and 1 with a 14-3 lead at home against a 2 touchdown favorite. The man has won just 8 of his first 40 games as a head coach and he's worried about
not seeming desperate.

"We had the lead," he said. "We had the lead right there. It was sitting there. It was more than just a fourth-and-one. It was almost two. It was two, really, if you were down where I was. And it was out on the 45-yard line or whatever. Uh uh. That's desperate. That's desperate, in my mind."

Oh, well, thank you so much for clearing that up, Mr. Robinson. You're absolutely right. There's no reason whatsoever for you to act desperate at this point. Especially since you've now clarified that it was 4th and "almost 2" instead of 4th and 1. Is this guy serious? Would ANYONE have questioned whether or not he should have gone for it if they didn't get a first down? Would ANYONE have said to themselves, "That move seems a little too desperate to me."

Then, later in the game, after Pitt tied the score at 24, Robinson sat Curtis Brinkley, who had gained 107 yards on 14 carries (a 7.6 avg.).

"Curtis needed a blow," Robinson said.

How did Brinkley feel about the move, you might ask?

"I wanted to be in the game," he said, "I wasn't hurt or nothing. I wasn't tired. I mean, my momentum carried me throughout the whole game. My adrenaline was rushing from the first play. I ain't get tired throughout any minute of the game."

Kudos to Curtis Brinkley. That's the attitude I like to hear coming from true competitors. G-Rob on the other hand should just hand the headset over to... Otto at this point. But he won't, because he's working his tail off to turn this thing around, so long as "working his tail off" doesn't involve taking risks or jeopardizing his oh-so-valuable head-coaching reputation.

Such is the culture Greg Robinson has created for the football program at Syracuse University, and now we, the fans, have to swallow hard and ride it out.

Everyday. It. Gets. Worse.

Panthers Win

22 Big East Games. 20 Losses. Thats the real story of the Syracuse-Pitt game Saturday at the Dome. Other key points however, include 2 real positives Citrus Nation can take from the loss, and, as usual, Greg Robinson's.... strategery.

First, the team, and the defense for 3 quarters, apparently showed some real fight that I haven't seen in this team in a couple years. The player's effort has never matched G-Rob's (horrible) attempt to look fired up and enthusiastic on the sidelines. Today, the guys out there actually somewhat resembled a football team... (at least that's what Dick MacPherson said on the post-game show... I unfortunately had to work until the end of the 3rd, so I only saw what I've come to expect from the product on the field... a blown 11 point lead that turned into a 10 point loss).

Anyways, the fight was there, but the tackling was apparently pretty poor and the defense still lacks the ability to make stops when it absolutely HAS to.

Second strong point to hang our hat on: G-Rob is one day closer to his inevitable walk out the door.

(Example:

MY FIRST THOUGHT WHEN I LEARNED SU WAS UP BY 11 IN THE 3RD: Still a statistical chance to win the Big East.

MY SECOND THOUGHT: S#!+, that means there's no way Gregory loses his job this week, or at any point mid-year.)

So, though it's pretty sad, that is a plus (harsh, but true) that we can all focus on in the next few days. I don't normally wish for anyone to lose their job, but I think G-Rob will be ok with the 4.4 million dollars he's stolen from ...errr... been paid by the University. I also don't root for Syracuse to lose, but theres no harm in finding the positives in a negative.

This would be the best time to fire Robinson (other than last year, in hindsight). As the Axeman wrote, it makes almost too much sense at this point to let him go. But, in a stunning (not really) move, G-Rob, thinking strategically (or not at all) benched Curtis Brinkley (his best offensive player so far this year) for a critical 4th quarter drive after Pitt tied the score at 24 (and for the seemingly 1, 085th time in 5 games sealed his fate as the worst coach in BCS history).

With Syracuse's offense desperate to answer, Robinson inserted true freshman tailback Antwon Bailey into the game. Bailey had yet to play this season through the first four games. Now, he was being asked to generate some ground game at a pivotal point in the game. Bailey rushed for 2 yards on his first carries and 3 on his second. On third down, there was confusion just getting the play called from the sidelines. Cameron Dantley barely got the snap in time to beat the play clock and was thrown for a 4-yard loss on what may or may not have been some type of quarterback draw. The end result - three and out. Pitt scored on the next possession with what proved to be the winning points on another Lee field goal.

So how did the Orange get themselves in such a mess at that stage of the game?

Robinson said tailback Doug Hogue had sprained his ankle and that starting tailback Curtis Brinkley needed a chance to catch his breath. Of course, why did Brinkley need to catch his breath after the Pitt offense ripped off an 89-yard drive that took 4 minutes and 41 seconds? (Donnie Webb & Bud Poliquin of the Post-Standard)

I know if my job were on the line, or completely shot for that matter, I'd sit my starting halfback who had gained approx. 100 yards on the day in the most important drive of the young, but seemingly long and endless, season.

What is so upsetting about that point is not how dumb Greg Robinson is, but how much of a coward he looks like by making that call. A day after the Washington Post.com reports how coaches who's jobs are hanging in the breeze face the challenge of stepping up, fighting, and leading their teams through everything, G-Rob sits his best chance of fighting back.

What does that say to the players he's supposed to be leading? I'll tell you. It doesn't say "I believe in all of you... and that all of you can be successful out there." No, what a move like that really says is: "Kids, when the chips are down and the odds are against you, there are still risks that are too great to take in life... walk away from those battles, and save yourself for the next one. Oh, and punt on 3rd down... or when you're down by 20 on the road at the opposing teams 45..."

I'm not sure Jim Brown, as G-Rob put it, "knows I'm doing all I can and working my tail off." I certainly don't believe it.

Soooo... You're telling me there's a chance?

At the beginning of the College Football season, everyone thought it was possible for OSU to beat USC. Everyone just thought it would be Ohio St.... Not Oregon St.

Why is this important to College Football? Some are citing the help it gives to the now wide open National Title Race. I, on the other hand, see one more reason this helps the world of college football.

What color was Oregon St. wearing last night? That's right... ORANGE! Its the power of the best color in the spectrum of refracted light and if there is one team that has more orange power than any other its THE Orange.

We may be able to look upon this win by Oregon St. and think, "Man, thats when everything turned around." Maybe the current Orange will be so inspired that they'll come out this weekend and fight their tails off for a win. Probably not, but it's nice to think it could happen. It's nice to think that maybe, a couple of years down the road, when we have a new coach and a new system and a new culture, that we'll be able to celebrate defeating a ranked team at home again.... wouldn't that be grand?

OrangeNews

+ Orange(women) land big recruit

+ Damone Brown is doing pretty well for himself in the NBDL

+ US Women's Lacrosse team to play at/against SU

...and since I'm too lazy to write about any of that, I certainly don't want to do the work of previewing the rushing clinic that will be put on us by Pitt this weekend




....We're in trouble....

But, Can He Play Football?

As reported this morning by the Post-Standard, star lacrosse recruit Kevin Drew will do his best Deion Sanders impression... Orange style.

Drew will double up and walk-on to the basketball team as well as playing lacrosse.

So, the obvious question that we have left to ask is... how is his tackling? He's used to wearing shoulder pads, cleats, and even a helmet... and there is no real reason to think that if he's athletic enough to play lacrosse and basketball at SU, then he should certainly be able to work his way onto the football field as well.

Greg Robinson could not be reached for comment. An unsolicited call from Daryl Gross is pending...

SU Football's Dunce of the Day

Has it really gotten to the point where we have to appoint someone that has anything to do with the Syracuse Football program with the "Dunce of the Day" award?

Every, SINGLE day I wake up and think to myself, "Okay... Now, SERIOUSLY, there is NO POSSIBLE WAY the football program/Dr. Gross/G-Rob situation could be ANY WORSE!

But, ALAS... it is...

"The thing I really like is Daryl is very up front about that. Nobody is going around giving excuses." - Nancy Cantor


That's Nancy Cantor's statement today in a story by Donnie Webb concerning the football programs inability to keep up with (get ready for this) the Syracuse Cross Country team, or their newly acquired Women's Ice Hockey team.

Well... I, for one, am completely relieved that Dr. Gross is taking care of those two tradition-rich programs!

I digress for a moment, however, to address just how dumb Cantor sounds when she makes statements like the one above (or any statement at all for that matter). If making and unsolicited call to ESPN to whine about how good of a job you're doing in the sports NO ONE CARES ABOUT COMPARED TO FOOTBALL isn't an excuse... then please, comment at the end of this post and tell me what is! The whole justification of giving Gross a contract extension is an excuse that reflects the football situation.

However, I tried some of Gross' tactics and they worked. For instance, I just told one of my professors that I'm not coming to class for the rest of the semester. You know what I told him? That I'm doing such a great job in my yoga and pottery classes, that he should ignore the fact I won't be doing ANYTHING for him the rest of the year. Using Nancy Cantors logical thinking, he gave me three A's instead of just one because I "didn't make excuses."

The article by Webb also cites how Gross stated:

"When I came into this situation, a lot of people were really upset about the old regime. But no one thought it could get worse, nor did I. We were all hoping for some success. We knew it wasn't going to happen right away. Sometimes when you have a coaching transition, there is a fallout with recruiting and those things aren't as stable as you want them to be. You know it takes a little while to grow properly. It takes a change in systems, all the dynamics were there that haven't clicked at all to the point we're not where we should be in year four. At the end of the day, it all falls on the athletic director."

Anyone else see whats wrong there? How about the fact that the first half of that quote is a lame, self-dignifying, self-satisfying, EXCUSE!? So, I didn't think it was possible, but Nancy Cantor is at least as intellectually inept as Greg Robinson. Sometimes I get the feeling that Dr. Gross goes home at night and cries. But he's not crying because he feels he's done a poor job, or because the football team has made him look like a fool. Instead, he's crying because he's stuck between two total blockheads, that are making him look equally as foolish with everything they say.

It's Gotten WAY out of Hand

It's been a while... but the Bleeding Orange has returned. Grad school and a move have kept we away for a long time... (I left before the basketball season even ended), but if there's anything that can bring you back to blogging, its the stench of a rotting orange (the football program... what else?).

I'm probably not going to say anything that hasn't been said already by the many members of the orange nation bloggers. However, I thought it was probably time to come out and add my two cents to the millions of pennies that sit in the "Wow... we suck this bad?" pile.

I was at the Penn St. game a week and a half ago. It was one of the most depressing days of my life. My father has spent the better part of the last 24 years telling me what the atmosphere of a Penn St. game was like at the Dome. He would tell me of the hatred and the passion. But, alas, the rivalry has turned into a one-sided laugher. I never pictured it would look like this:



I've seen countless football games in the Dome. I was at every single game Donovan played there. I watched Keith Bullock run wild on defense and Marvin Harrison break the schools reception record. I even remember when Donovan Darius beat up North Carolina's punter! I never imagined there would days like the one's we are going through right now... Days where we have more missed tackles than passing yards, more interceptions than sacks, and more hanging heads than post season Cubs fans.

We can spend all day, all year, and probably will have to spend most of the next decade blaming the whole line of administrators who have played a part in this debacle. The players are...


Coach P: His on the field record does not match the discipline and game-planning issues he presented to the program. Yes, as Lee Corso pointed out, he had a pretty good record. But, if you were a Syracuse fan, as nunes pointed out, you know thats not the whole story. He had a tendency to get embarrassed on national television by A LOT of points (Purdue for example). So, yes he did play a large part in this.





Doctor Gross: He hired the next guy on this list... enough said. But, I'll say more. Everything about his mentality is wrong for Syracuse University. We are not USC. We never will be USC. They have 6 or 7 Heisman winners... Syracuse has one that Gross "honored" by making him a bronzed Nike Ad. He wants to turn the Hill into the Hollywood hills, and thats not what Syracuse is about. We have a history of being overlooked and underappreciated. We're not spoiled, and we're not dynastic, but we're also not too far out of range for anyone to ignore the shade of orange on the horizon. Amongst all the things Ernie Davis represents, that point should be one of the most obvious. We're the "almost forgotten." Hollywood made 700 Rocky films, but missed out on the Jackie Robinson story of college football until 2008? (see what I mean?) SU is cold, dreary, and often forgotten amongst the powers... three things Southern Cal has never been, nor ever will be. Gross tried to change a culture that didn't need changing, and he tried to change it to the extreme. It hasn't worked... at least not for football.

G-Rob: Where to start with this guy? Worst Coach in Division I Football. Defensive genius who can't coach how to tackle. Master recruiter who doesn't get recruits. Head coach who can't motivate, game-plan, make sense, or address the media in any sort of coherent fashion. I have no doubt he's a nice guy. I met him. He took his picture with me. He's very nice. But he's a terrible football coach. 8-31 speaks for itself. 2 conference wins in 3 years is pathetic. He should NEVER have another coaching job on any level higher than high school (that's not an exaggeration, its the truth).





But, through all this, there is one more player in this dreary nightmare that Orange fans are living through. That player, is the players. Jim Brown said it best on ESPN on Saturday morning... You can not have talent and still be able to tackle. You can not have talent and still be able to fight. Yes, the sad and apparent truth is that the players have fallen face first into the losing culture that Coach Robinson has created and maintained at Syracuse. They don't believe they can do it. They don't believe they can turn it around and they don't believe they can win. There's no heart, no competitiveness, and no fight.

I'm sure a lot of players are trying their hardest and playing their butts off. But for those who aren't giving their all: They should be ashamed to put on any uniform, let alone an Orange one. Losing doesn't make you losers, the way you lose, however, does. And the way the Orange are losing is embarrassing. So, while most of the blame does rest in the hands of administrators like Darryl Gross and Greg Robinson, at least some of the blame should be put in the hands of those who have forgotten how hard guys like Jim Brown and Ernie Davis worked to build a tradition they never thought would come crumbling down.