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I'll give it to Syracuse University Chancellor Kent Syverud, the man knows how to get SU people talking about SU.
Yesterday, The Syverdude posted a short blogpost asking a simple question. How the heck does one pronounce "Syracuse?"
Dear Orange Friends:
I have a question to ask you: When you say "Syracuse," does the first syllable rhyme with "deer" or with "bear"? I ask because, in three months here, I have heard you say it both ways, and for a newcomer it can be confusing.
I’ve met both "deers" and "bears" everywhere, among those who grew up here, among people from New York City, and even among people from China. Apparently there is no approved way, even for Syracusans, to say Syracuse.
So please, let me know your preference, and why. I will choose one or the other and stick to that from then on.
To the casual observer, it probably seems like a benign request.
To the Syracuse fan or alum, it's tantamount to causing a civil war.
I've seen people defend both iterations to death on Twitter in the day since. People claiming that it depends where you're from. Other claiming the other group are just flat out wrong. I haven't seen Syracuse folks this fired up in...I don't know.
Uniforms? Attendance figures? Inconsequential by comparison...
Personally, I'm #TeamBear. I say Sara-Cuse. Seer-A-Cuse makes my brain tingle and not in a good way. It's like when someone pronounces bagel as "beggel." Chills, man. And, hey, even Coach Hop is with me...
A1: I'm #Teambear all the way. #HopTalks
— Coach Mike Hopkins (@Coach_Hopkins) April 24, 2014
So, let's settle it. Vote below. The results will be binding. If you hear someone pronounce Syracuse in the losing fashion, you have the legal right to put them in a figure four leglock. Even if it's the Chancellor.
