Syracuse Football-Heating Up

“The pressure’s high, just to stay alive. 'Cause the heat is on.” –Glenn Frey-“The Heat is On”

Though it just feels like that song came out when Syracuse was last relevant on the college football stage, it has been a long time since a respectable football team has played at home in the Carrier Dome. After what has to be considered among the worst stretches in the history of NCAA Division-1 football, the Orange began the long climb to contending in the Big East last year. Though an untimely interception and an awful special teams display destroyed any chance at a bowl game, the team showed signs of progress that were absent from Greg Robinson’s tenure. Now, with fans fed up with losing seasons, and the possibility of fostering a winning team, the heat is on Marrone and company to figure out a way to restore pride to the Orange.

It starts with one player who wasn’t even on campus when fall practice started. Delone Carter, he who almost destroyed his career over a snowball, has returned to be the focal point of the Syracuse offense. And though Antwon Bailey will get his touches during the games, it is Carter who will be expected to use his abilities to carry the offensive burden. If he keeps his off-the-field life in check, and runs with the same tenacity that he showed last season, he could be first-team All-Big East.

Matching that tenacity is middle linebacker Derrell Smith. With the departure of defensive tackle Arthur Jones to the NFL, it is Smith who inherits the leadership role that Jones held for most of last season. Smith’s job is to take a defense that improved under Scott Shafer’s direction, and make it into one that is feared throughout the Big East. Smith has done his part in the past, and is a dark horse candidate for the All-America team.

Smith also has talented players surrounding him on the defensive side of the ball. Doug Hogue is coming off a season in which he had one of the best games ever seen out of a Syracuse linebacker when he introduced Tom Savage to the Carrier Dome turf during the beating of rival Rutgers. Shamarko Thomas, a starter in the defensive backfield, is such a thunderous hitter that they moved the incumbent at his position, Mike Holmes, to another spot so that he, Thomas, could have more playing time. Arthur Jones’ brother, Chandler, will also have a chance to step of out his brothers’ shadows(Jon, the most famous Jones brother, is considered the best prospect in the UFC at his weigh class) after a season in which he had 52 tackles, a high amount for a player who spends most of his time chasing after the quarterback.

Unfortunately for fans, the rest of the offense is an unknown quantity. Can Ryan Nassib keep up his form from last season? Will anyone from the wide receiving corps stand out? And, most importantly, can former Syracuse tackle Doug Marrone finally turn the offensive line into a cohesive unit? With questions like these and a trip to Seattle to face a Washington team that contains Heisman candidate Jake Locker, the team needs to find those answers sooner rather than later.

Fortunately, the Orange have early games against D1-AA foes Maine and Colgate, along with a trip to non-BCS Akron to work out the kinks. With Louisville, Connecticut, Boston College and Pittsburgh all coming to the Carrier Dome as well, the Orange have a chance to win at least six games. Do that, and this Syracuse team could be the first in six years to play in a postseason game. If the team can’t, however, the heat that surrounds Marrone and the Syracuse football program will only grow.