In his Syracuse Orange football career, senior wide receiver Michael Acchione had exactly zero catches for zero yards and zero touchdowns heading into this past weekend's Rhode Island game.
After the game, his stat line was much improved.
Acchione, a senior who made his first career catch for the Orange in the second quarter, found himself the hero after hauling in a 12-yard strike from Nassib in the corner of the end zone midway through the final quarter.
"Absolutely. It’s a dream come true. I’ve been dreaming about this my whole life," said Acchione, a Solvay High School graduate whose father, Garry, played football at SU from 1978-81.
You want a feel-good story, Syracuse fan? You got it. Here's what the former walk-on said before this season, his first as a scholarship player.
"It’s always been my dream to just come out of the tunnel, but now to actually get on the field is just going to be amazing for me. It’s going to make me proud. It’s going to prove a lot of people wrong, because coming out of high school there were a lot of doubters. I used that as motivation to get better every day. It’s going to be great. It’s going to be real great."
Great, indeed.
In speaking about the play afterward, Ryan Nassib explained just how impressive the catch was for the wideout.
"Acchione really was not supposed to be a receiver on that play. He was supposed to have a clear route but the corner jumped and he worked with me on the scramble. I was able to put the ball where only he could catch it and he hung on for dear life."
Looking forward to seeing more from the senior, who is your new favorite person.
"Words do not really describe it. Coach Doug Marrone gave me a great opportunity here. I have thanked him a thousand times already. It is just overwhelming how much support you get from players and coaches."