Doug Marrone is taking convention and throwing it directly out the friggin' window.
Coming off a disappointing 5-7 season and entering the critical fourth year of his tenure while facing down a schedule that includes the likely preseason No. 1 team in the nation, two Big Ten schools and an SEC school, He Who Would Save Syracuse Football doesn't much care for doing things just because that's how it's usually done.
He's closed spring practice to the media indefinitely. What they does is leave everyone to wonder exactly what's going on behind closed doors, even to the point where we just start making it up. It makes us question if there are problems with players and if we're ever going to see the depth chart.
Hey, that reminds me...where's the depth chart?
"You want a depth chart? Here's your God damn depth chart." - Doug Marrone, while making an obscene gesture.
"We’re going to come out with a two-deep after the spring. That’s one of the goals," he said.
"You sit here as a head coach and you say, ‘This spring is open competition.’ Everyone is earning their position or role on the team. But if you say it’s open competition, and ‘Oh, by the way, here’s the two-deep’ … everyone just kind of falls into place," he said.
Fair enough. Pre-spring depth charts are a bit like preseason polls. They're mostly based on conjecture and exist more to give us something to talk about than to help the team.
Nolan Weidner has his rough depth chart here based on returning players, last year's starters and new arrivals.
What's interesting is that when Doug Marrone arrived at Syracuse, he was all about doing things traditionally. He wanted to get back to how "things are supposed to be done." Now in his fourth year, with success hard to sustain, Marrone is throwing simple traditions to the wind in order to field his team the way he wants them. Good for him.
Of course, if we all show up for the Spring Game and Beckett Wales is our starting quarterback, we're going to have some questions...