Syracuse Orangemen
This is a key season for the future of Syracuse football. Passed over for the new ACC and missing out on bowl games each of the last two seasons, this doesn't appear to be the fringe powerhouse it was several years ago. With Paul Pasqualoni going into his 14th season, his team has to make a big splash in the Big East or else there might be major, sweeping changes.
This is a good team, but not a great one banking on the tailback tandem of Walter Reyes and Damien Rhodes to carry things. There are the usual fantastic athletes on both sides of the ball, but are they great football players? The recruiting has been unspectacular over the last few years and there's a shocking lack of proven playmakers at wide receiver and the defensive line. The quarterback situation is promising with fantastic prospect Xzavier Gaines and Perry Patterson battling it out, but neither has completed a pass on the collegiate level. On the plus side, there's a ton of potential. It all just has to be realized in a hurry.
The Schedule: This is a fun schedule with a nice mix of high-profile
games and good home dates highlighted by the showdown against Florida State.
Going on the road to play Virginia and Purdue will be big tests as part of
three of the first four games on the road. Hopes for a Big East title might
be dashed with road games at West Virginia and BC.
Best Offensive Player: Senior RB Walter Reyes. Has there been a more
productive player at a big-name program that has received less love that Reyes?
All he has done is rush for 2,489 yards and score 38 times over the past two
seasons. He's not just a runner, he can catch as well with 45 career grabs.
Best Defensive Player: Senior SS Diamond Ferri. Everything depends
on Ferri's off-the-field problems. If all turns out fine, he'll be one of
the best safeties in the Big East making 120 tackles last year after starting
off his SU career as a tailback.
Key player to a successful season: With an unproven receiving corps,
it's up to the quarterbacks to make them great and keep the heat off the great
running game. Xzavier Gaines and Perry Patterson have great arms and can move,
but they have to prove they can handle the job. Gaines has the inside track
and will have to grow up in a hurry with a road date at Purdue to start things
off.
The season will be a success if ... Syracuse wins the Big East. It's
time to get the program back to where it was, and the Big East isn't so good
that the Orangemen can't win it. It won't be easy with road games at West
Virginia and Boston College, but they both come in the second half of the
season when, hopefully, all the kinks are worked out of the Orangemen attack.
Key game: Oct. 20 at West Virginia. The Mountaineers appear to be the
favorite to win the Big East title, and it'll be hard for SU to have a shot
at the championship without beating them. A win would be a huge shot of confidence
going into the meat of the conference slate.
2003 Fun Stats:
- Passing touchdowns: Opponents 22 - Syracuse 10
- Rushing touchdowns: Syracuse 27 - Opponents 11
- Sacks: Syracuse 20 - Opponents 15
Offense Breakdown and Analysis | Defense Breakdown and Analysis
