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Syracuse Football: Punter Riley Dixon Gets A Scholarship, Finally

Dixon, who was basically SU's MVP for a stretch, has been handed a schollie for the next two years.

By Sean Keeley
Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

There was a stretch during the 2013 Syracuse Orange football season when Riley Dixon was the Team MVP. When nothing else was going right, at least Dixon was booting huge punts and giving us some semblance of hope that the carnage wouldn't be as bad as expected.

I don't know about you but I just assumed our star punter was on scholarship. With the weight he was carrying, it just seemed unreasonable to hoist that kind of responsibility on a walk-on. But in fact, Dixon was a walk-on, unlike the punter he beat out, Jonathan Fisher. Scott Shafer remedied that situation by rewarding our star with a scholarship for his final two seasons in orange.

"We are extremely pleased to put Riley Dixon on scholarship," Shafer said in a statement. "He has earned it."

Dixon has two years of eligibility remaining, so the scholarship should keep Syracuse's punting situation in reliable hands through the 2015 season.

Dixon pinned opponents inside their 20-yard-line on nearly 30 percent of his kicks (21 of 71) and booted the ball more than 50 yards on 15 occasions. His punts resulted in touchbacks just four times.

Mazel Tov, Riley.

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