My pep talk

In 1988, we went to the Fiesta Bowl. That season started with a win against Temple. We followed that up by losing to a FOUR-WIN Ohio State team on the road. That was Todd Philcox’s second game as a starter. We lost 26-9. We would go on to be 10-2 that year, with our only other loss being as 31-9 loss to 11-1 West Virginia (11-0 during the regular season).

In 1995, a FR named McNabb led us to an opening day victory at NORTH Carolina on the road in his first game, only to have us suffer a loss at home to EAST Carolina the next week. Somehow, we recovered and were able to finished 9-3 and win the Gator Bowl.

Two years later, we DESTROYED Wisconsin with Ron Dayne in the opener. We then proceeded to lose not one, not two, but three straight games. When we lost the FIesta Bowl, it dropped our record to 9-4.

Of course, this team is probably closer to the 2000 and 2003 editions, where we ended up with 6 wins following the win/loss formula for the first two games.

Needless to say, all you need to do is look at your history of this program to realize that the only thing established by a 1-1 record is that you are not going 0-12 or 12-0.

http://www.jhowell.net/cf/scores/Syracuse.htm

Im done being a fair-weather SU football fan. I believe in Morrone and what hes trying to do with the program and have faith that hes instilling that confidence in players too.

Last night, while disappointing (as it should be when your team loses) I saw a team that did not give up, and kept fighting, through the mistakes, missed cues and bad plays against an opponent that was as equally determined to win.

Its pretty obvious our problems arent with the coaching or the talent, but depth and experience. We are light everywhere, and we have a lot of freshman and rookies as key playmakers. With Morrone at the helm, and more depth and practice, I think within 2-3 years we will start living at the top of the BE pecking order again.

…as opposed to Syracuse.com is because cooler heads tend to prevail on this site. It’s both a credit to the way Sean runs it, as well as to those of us who are regulars and maintain that vibe.

Your analysis is dead on. In years past I would be furious about a 41-20 loss. As it was, I was merely disappointed at the missed opportunities, because we all know it could have (and should have) been a closer game. In the end, though, Jake Locker beat us pure and simple. When you combine that with the fact that our offense just isn’t clicking yet, it spelled disaster.

I also think that any reasonable person can look at this team and see the differences, subtle as they may be, between Marrone and Robinson. It amuses me to see how many unsolicited post game comments we’ve had since Marrone took over, from opposing players who have faced us in the past. Without prompting, they all talk about this Syracuse team is more physical and plays with a toughness that they lacked in years past. That’s how a return to winning starts. Do we have a lot of talent? No. Depth? Also no. But that will come in time, as long as guys continue to buy in and we are able to grind out some wins along the way.

I think this team is getting there. I think that Nassib will continue to improve, and I think the defense will be fairly steady all year. Quite simply, if we play well, I think we can beat many of the teams on our schedule. As usual, though, we have little margin for error. The special teams turnover KILLED us yesterday – that seemed to turn the tide in favor of UW, and when that happens on the road against a good team led by the projected #1 pick in the NFL draft, usually disaster ensues. No mistakes and it’s a different game.

I just really hope that the fickle SU fans pack the Dome when Big East play starts, because with the way this team plays, they have a very good chance of recapturing the home field advantage that was a staple of the Mac/Coach P years. If we stay healthy and if we take care of business against the two FCS teams (no gimme, given recent events across the country), we will be 3-1 heading into the South Florida game. I think there are wins to be had in conference, especially at home, and we have to capitalize. I remain pretty optimistic about this season, because I believe in HCDM and the way he’s doing business. It won’t happen overnight, but I firmly believe that this program WILL get back to winning again.

so long as we beat UConn this year I couldn’t care less where we end up; I’ll still support the team. Expect more KYFs in the future from me.

after the fumbled kickoff, giving UW 10 quick points.

Playing catch-up with that offense is not going to work.

We did a lot of things really well, until that fumble. I saw a lot of good things, a still think this is a good enough team for some beef.

frustrate me so much. I know I’m probably not the best fan (I don’t always watch the end of blowout losses), but it sucks that a lot of times the people who “make or break” attendance are the people who only seem to show up when the team is doing well. It’s so easy to support a team when things are going well. It’s so much harder and so much more worth it to stick around when things are going bad.

Sadly, I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to see a team I root for make the playoffs in the rest of my life. Fan of Blue Jays, Bills, Orange, Kings. Note, I’m 27 so the odds of my teams never making the playoffs again are pretty slim. If it weren’t for Cuse bball, I’d be in sports hell right now.

I didn’t start seeing this as a winnable game until after we rolled Akron. I thought maybe – just maybe – we have a chance. Even if we brought our A+ game and they brought their C game I thought this was a UW win. There was just too much to overcome. Getting down or upset over this game is just pointless. Any team, and I mean absolutely ANY team in the country would have a hard time winning in Husky Stadium.

The fact that SU had a 10-0 lead is a difficult pill to swallow, but as you pointed out, it was basically the product of some early mistakes by UW.