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The most important person in Syracuse Orange head coach Scott Shafer's career is the person who runs his offense. As a defensive coach, and a damn good one at that, he's had to entrust his offense to someone else while he manages the overall team.
So far, he's 0-for-1.
Shafer hired George McDonald for his recruiting prowess but had to give him the offensive coordinator position as part of the deal. It didn't work out as McDonald's "full-bore fast" scheme fizzled under it's own weight. Now he's at North Carolina State and Tim Lester ascended to take his place.
Lester had a chance to implement some changes last year but he'll get a chance to start from the beginning in 2015. How he does won't just affect his future as OC but it'll probably have a huge impact on whether or not Scott Shafer is still running things in 2016 as well.
So far, Scott Shafer is fine with that bet.
"I feel really strongly about where we're headed," Shafer said when asked about how team's personnel fits Lester's offense. "I feel good about it. I think things fit better than they have in the past."
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