Dino Babers on Syracuse vs. Scott Shafer: ‘... show Dad that you can cut the grass’

Dino Babers spoke to the media on Monday afternoon, five days before the Syracuse Orange (1-0) take on the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders (0-1) at the Carrier Dome this Saturday.

In a faceoff against former Syracuse head coach and current Blue Raider defensive coordinator Scott Shafer, Babers understands that this is a not a very common situation.

“For me, you know it’s more of a ‘step out of the way’ moment,” said Babers. “You raise your kids and now they have an opportunity to prove they can do it without Mom or Dad. This is an opportunity to show Dad that you can cut the grass.”

For some of the older players on the team, this is an opportunity to show their development in front of the man who provided them the opportunity to play ACC football.

Babers said, “A lot of these guys are in the room because Scott Shafer recruited them. And that’s a positive. Now it’s an opportunity for them to go back and say ‘hey, you recruited me and... this is how I’ve grown up.’”

He also raved about Eric Dungey’s performance against Central Connecticut State last Friday.

“From a quarterback stand point, it was the best game he ever played here,” he said. “The grade that he got was a very very high first game grade... [now] he just needs to be around for 12 games.”

Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

Dungey accumulated 328 passing yards, three touchdowns, and 50 rushing yards in a 50-7 win. He registered a 96.0 Quarterback Rating. Babers remark about him being around for 12 games is obviously a nod to the quarterback’s injury history. After game one, it certainly appears that the junior will continue to play as aggressive as always.

Coach Babers had no update on the injury to star safety Antwan Cordy, who left with a leg injury in the first half vs. CCSU.