I’m starting to get old. We make fun of it on the podcast. Not as experienced as some of our fans, but three decades around this program since ten year old I watched a freshman Donovan McNabb on television, but damned if I don’t know that this year, Syracuse Orange football feels different. There’s an intangible feeling on the Hill, and through the city in general, that hasn’t been present in years. I have numerous additions to the group of season ticket holders that are with us this year. I’ve had more people asking me around town what the feel is on the site, or “behind the scenes.” In general there is a buzz that hasn’t surrounded this team, dare I say in this century.
Fran Brown came in with his staff and invigorated a program that, while not downtrodden, per se, had become stagnant. They breathed life into the program and the city that hadn’t been there under prior regimes.
Let’s walk it back to the turn of the century:
- Under Dino Babers, there was an initial promise that ultimately laid bare;
- Under Scott Shafer there were a multitude of issues leading to the state of the program;
- Under Doug Marrone, an air of unfinished business and promise cut too short;
- Under Greg Robinson, an initial hype dashed by the immediate on-field results;
- Under Paul Pasqualoni, a strong program that had become compliant.
It’s been quite a while waiting around here…
During the last regime the fans were asked to have faith, for belief without evidence. This staff has quickly gained a prophetic following, based on seeing that evidence in the flesh. The team is out in the community, working at cleanups or soup kitchens, engaging with the area and the city around them. Conversely, media is able to see into the program as well, not just the facade that is crafted for you to see. We’re encouraged to talk to the coaches, to the strength and conditioning staff, to the recruiting staff even. With the latter, we get a lens into some of the most profound mounting and tangible evidence.
To see recruiting turn around as it has, to see top classes and top transfers commit to Syracuse of all places, seems foreign and yet this staff has pulled it together in less than half a year.
They have just landed multiple members of the Class of 2026, including Izayia Williams, a 247 Composite 0.9839 linebacker and Demetres Samuel, a 0.9666 safety, both from Florida. These two rank respectively numbers three and four on the all-time commitment list at Syracuse. The only recruits rated higher since the year 2000 were Cecil Howard and Johnnie Morant. Morant, any of you fellow “olds” would know. Cecil Howard was more obscure, but he is also the highest rated recruit in the history of the program. I mention this, as a reminder that there are things beyond star number that go into the success of a recruit.
Photo by Rick Stewart/Getty Images
That puts the Class of 2026 at the #3 spot nationally for 247Sports.com. It’s early, but to type those words just seems insane. The Class of 2025 is currently #9 in the country. His current class without a full offseason is ranked at #37. These spots are highly unlikely to hold, but the fact that they’re there at present is another foreign concept. In 2023, the Orange were ranked 73rd, 65th the season before that. In fact, you would have to go back to 2007 in order to find a class ranked within the Top-50 in the nation. That year he was 44th overall. The only higher class was 2001 under Coach P at #29.
Finally this week we got to see the first look of Fran the coach, not just Fran the recruiter. His attention to every little detail was noticeable. Also noticeable was his desire to get alums involved. There were over thirty five recruits, dozens of alums of all ages, and significantly more people in the stands than I have ever seen. The ability to mobilize more than 10,000 people for football in the spring in New York seemed an insurmountable task after these last few seasons. Is there usually an uptick in interest after the “new coach bump?” Absolutely. But like I said, I don’t know why but this feels different.
The spring game was another piece in the mosaic of evidence that continues to build. On the field last weekend we were able to visualize the extra strength and conditioning work we’d only heard about. We were able to tangibly see the lack of discipline based penalties during the game (I didn’t know it was possible to only have one false start). It was a glimpse into what the DART mantra and everyone’s new favorite catch phrase, “Entitlement will not live here,” meant. And… it was good. It felt good to be in the stands watching. Talking to Mike, it felt good from the press box. There was an excitement, a vigor in the fanbase that has been lacking for a good while, slowly eroded to mediocrity.
If his staff’s ability to coach in a game situation remotely mirrors what we’ve been seeing these last few months and what we’ve seen during the few hour preview on last Saturday, Orange fans are in for a heck of a fun fall.
