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There are a handful of burning questions for the Syracuse Orange this coming season, and the state of the quarterback position is certainly one of them. That doesn’t mean SU should be worried about what it’s getting from former four-star passer Tommy DeVito. It just points out that it’ll be different from what Eric Dungey brought to the table.
Where there are questions could be beyond DeVito, however. As we’ve discussed before, having a 1A and 1B situation as the Orange did last year with Dungey and DeVito was a blessing — and one that showed itself in wins over Florida State and North Carolina. The situation’s not the same this year as there’s a much steeper drop-off to the next players on the depth chart (no offense to those QBs).
Elsewhere in the ACC, you’re seeing some similar situations, while others are better and others are worse. If I’m ranking the ACC QB positions right now, it probably looks something like this (by tiers):
Tier 1 — Clemson, Florida State,
Tier 2 — Syracuse, Miami, Wake Forest, Boston College, Duke, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Virginia
Tier 3 — Georgia Tech, NC State, North Carolina, Virginia Tech
SU has less meaningful depth at the position than most of the schools in the top two tiers... for whatever that’s worth.
More on that, plus the rest of your Syracuse-related links below:
ACC Spotlight: Breaking down QB situations across the league (Rivals)
Syracuse is pretty thin at quarterback right now but they are going to rely heavily on Devito this fall. He had some bright spots in relief of Eric Dungey last year and Dino Babers and his staff are confident in Devito’s abilities. All three back-ups have a ways to go before getting the stamp of approval from the coaching staff.
Liberty football early 2019 opponent preview: Syracuse Orange (A Sea of Red)
The biggest question mark for the Orange in 2019 will be how they replace standout quarterback Eric Dungey who has graduated. Tommy DeVito will get the opportunity to guide Babers’ squad, and he had extensive reps in game action for the injured Dungey on several occasions last season. Most notably, DeVito relieved Dungey and helped guide the Orange to wins over Florida State and North Carolina.
State of the program: Opportunity awaits Duke in more ways than one (The Athletic)
The schedule becomes more manageable after Week 1, all the way through October, when the Blue Devils will get their first look at a non-triple-option Georgia Tech system and a new-look North Carolina, both programs with new head coaches. An idle week at the start of November comes at a critical time, with Notre Dame and Syracuse — who combined for 22 wins last season — following in back-to-back weeks.
Shannon Doepking wants to rebuild Syracuse as 1st-year head coach (Daily Orange)
The plethora of hand-written letters in Doepking’s office quantify her brief, seven-month impact on Syracuse (20-28, 8-13 Atlantic Coast) as head coach of the Orange softball team. Doepking goes out of her way to get lunch or coffee with her players, a drastic shift from former head coach Mike Bosch who waited in his office for players to approach him, players Miranda Hearn and Hannah Dossett said.
Hack look backs on being a woman in sports journalism (Daily Orange)
Both the setting and his tone made me realize that, to him, the conversation was not between two professional photographers. To him, it was between a man and a woman. To him, it was a surprise to see a woman know what she was talking about when it came to sports. To him, I wasn’t a photographer.
Top undrafted rookie free agents following the 2019 NFL Draft (NFL.com)
Carmelo Anthony does not rule out reunion with Knicks (SNY)
Syracuse needs freshman AJ Kaiser’s power (Daily Orange)
Syracuse drops to No. 10 in Inside Lacrosse Rankings (Daily Orange)
Meiga “Happy and Blessed” for Syracuse Offer (CuseNation)