The feeling could only be described as cathartic. All of the anguish that accompanied being a Syracuse football fan for over half a decade seemed to dissipate and it was clear that those loathsome days were over.

My pondering of the season to come, now only days away, began almost immediately. There were so many question marks to consider, particularly on defense, where the Syracuse lost seven starters from a squad that was 7th in the country in total defense in 2010. But for the offense, there was so much to look forward to with nearly everyone returning a year older and wiser. It's been obvious for awhile now to anyone who’s given any thought to this upcoming season-- the Orange offense is going to be expected to step up and carry more of the burden if the team hopes to return to a bowl game and,
perhaps, challenge for a Big East championship.

This, I feel, is a good spot to be in. Or at least, it could be a lot worse. The offense was respectable last year and it would have looked better if it hadn't tailed off in the last few games. Whether that was due to injuries (which almost certainly played some role) or hitting that figurative wall that is often mentioned with teams who are just beginning to learn how to win games is unclear. What we do know is that quarterback Ryan Nassib had a solid season in his first year as a starter and all reports out of training camp suggest that he could be in for a big year. Delone Carter is gone, but it's hard not to be excited about big-play potential that senior tailback Antwon Bailey brings to both the running and passing game.

Here's something to consider:

Delone Carter has been the featured back in Syracuse's offense for the last two seasons. While he was a juggernaut that was nearly impossible for just one man to bring down, his lack of top-end speed kept him from being a serious big-play threat. With a first year starter at quarterback and a group of young receivers last season, Carter was clearly the focus of Syracuse's relatively conservative offense and, consequently, the focus of every defense that they played against. Utilizing a run-heavy offense to pound the football between the tackles for 3-5 yards at a time isn't a way to put up gaudy offensive numbers. Syracuse won seven games during the regular season focusing on ball control and dominating on defense.

This year, the quarterback and top receivers are veterans. If training camp reports about Jarrod West, Dorian Graham, Adrian Flemming and others are any indication, Syracuse could also be much deeper at receiver, despite the loss of Marcus Sales. Combining that with the fact that the top two tailbacks on the depth chart are both smaller, shiftier backs who thrive in open space, I'm expecting to see an offense
that looks to spread things out and pass the ball a lot more. For fans who were hoping to see the New Orleans Saints' offense when Doug Marrone was hired, this might be the moment you’ve been waiting for.

I for one am expecting to see Ryan Nassib throw for more yards than any Syracuse quarterback ever has in a single season. Last year he broke the records for pass completions and attempts and finished just alittle over 200 yards short of Marvin Graves mark of 2,547. That’s a relatively modest figure for today’s offenses and inconsistency was the only thing that kept Nassib from breaking the record in his first year as a starter. This season, injuries are probably the only thing that can keep him from it.

The defense is, of course, the big question mark going into the year though. What we know is that Syracuse could have the best safety tandem in the Big East and, quite possibly, one of the best defensive end duos as well. While those tidbits are encouraging, that's really the only thing that anyone can say for sure. The Orange have a largely unproven group of defensive tackles, linebackers and cornerbacks but
there is some reason to be cautiously optimistic.

Listen:

While small, this should be the fastest defense that Syracuse has put on the field in years. And I think that if there is one thing you really want on defense, it's speed. It doesn't guarantee success, especially if that speed comes at the expense of some size (which, in some cases, it does) but it can help to mask some other issues.

However, this defense’s speed is really secondary to the biggest reason that I believe that this group of players could surprise. The main reason for optimism here is actually the man who will be calling the plays: Scott Shafer.

Two years ago Shafer took over a defense that nobody could have looked at objectively and expected anything but a continuation of the hopelessness of the few years that preceded his arrival. Almost from day one though, the defense turned into a dominant force against the running game and it finished at the top of the Big East in that statistical category. Doug Hogue and Derrell Smith became stars overnight
thanks, in part, to Shafer's aggressive, yet simple scheme which turned them loose--much to the chagrin of many opposing quarterbacks and running backs (I suspect Doug Hogue may still play a featured role in former Rutgers quarterback Tom Savage's nightmares).

In some ways, this year's defense feels a bit like the one that Syracuse put on the field two years ago. Really, the entire defense was one massive question mark because there was no proven talent to be found aside from Arthur Jones and, to a lesser extent, Mike Holmes. Evaluating this year's defense in the preseason, there's significantly more proven talent (Jones, Marinovich, Spruill and the Thomases) and we also have the knowledge that Shafer's system is one that guys can pick up quickly.

There is one major difference though and it's this: Syracuse ended up at the bottom of the league in scoring defense because the secondary couldn't stop even the weakest passing attacks and big plays were a common occurrence. This time around, the unquestioned strength of the defense is its safeties and the talent at cornerback also seems to have been upgraded in a big way. So, assuming nothing disastrous happens there, the big question is whether the defense can assuage the concerns about its
size deficiency. If they can do that, whether by scheme or by skill, this defense could really surprise some people.

It's hard to say what kind of success this team will have with any certainty. A big step forward is a possibility, but then, so is a step backwards. There's also a chance that the Orange could turn into an even better team than they were in 2010 and have nothing more to show for it if the Big East takes a collective leap forward. The league certainly can't be any worse than it was last year so Syracuse could have a tougher path to a bowl game. Nevertheless, the bar has been raised and anything less than a
bowl will be a massive disappointment. But while anything is possible, after watching Doug Marrone hoist the Pinstripe Bowl trophy into the air on that snowy evening in December--that moment that will come to symbolize Syracuse University's return to college football prominence--I wouldn't advise betting against him or his team in 2011.

Syracuse Football picture at the Pinstripe Bowl provided by goddam.

On both of his comments, Ryan tried to insutl and test the work ethic of a 3 time Super Bowl and multiple MVP winner. Brady has put it more work than any other quarterback in the league this season with the streak of 319+ consecutive passes without an interception and his lowest amount of interceptions for a season in his career.

Between Rex Ryan at the podium, Braylon Edwards and Dustin Keller on Twitter and Fireman Ed, I don't care what any of them have to say. Tom Brady is going to continue to do his talking on the field and much to Rex's desire, he will rub it in and will celebrate and stare at Ryan each and every time that the Patriots put one in the end zone.

Mark Sanchez showed his lack of stamina last week against the Colts, he showed that he's losing some accuracy on his throws and struggles under pressure. If the Jets can't rely on the run game, I'm more than happy to put the outcome of the game in Sanchez's hands...and I'm sure that Belichick and Brady feel the same way.

I will leave you with this. At the end of the 45-3 Monday Night game, Rex Ryan claims he said, "I'll see you in round 3" to Belichick and that Bill's response was a silent stare. Although this is reported by Ryan, I can absolutely believe it. That's how it's been the entire time, Ryan runs his mouth and the Patriots do their talking on the field. Come Sunday at Gilette, the Pats are going to win by knockout, 60 minutes into the third round!

Photo credit: bryanwright5@gmail.com | CC BY ND 2.0

April is quickly approaching (not really, but, hey, I'm a Bills fan), which means the NFL Draft is right around the corner. For Bills fans like myself, this is a time filled with excitement, wonder and fear. Why fear, you ask? Well, just take a gander at our recent draft history and you'd quickly answer your own question. Buffalo GM Buddy Nix proudly proclaimed after this past draft that, "There's only one Spiller(CJ), and we got him."

Buddy was right, there is only one, and the other 31 NFL teams are probably happy about this, considering backs who average 3.8 yards per carry don't register a single 100 yard game in a season and fumble the ball like it's on fire are usually not desired. The worst part is, Buffalo already had two quality backs on it's roster (Fred Jackson, Marshawn Lynch) prior to drafting the speedy Spiller from Clemson. Keep in mind Lynch was a former first round pick himself (12th overall in 2007). After trading Lynch for a bag of footballs and a $25 gift card to Target, Spiller was expected to take off, he might as well have, considering his impact on the field was very minimal. A team as bad as Buffalo shouldn't be shelving top 10 picks for any reason other than injury. I'm not closing the door on CJ, but, considering running back is supposed to be an easy transition from college to the pros, he's not off to a good start.

Speaking of first round picks who don't produce, we'd like to intruce you to LB/DE Aaron Maybin, the 11th overall pick in 2009 out of Penn State. In two full seasons Maybin has as many sacks as I do, zero. And has only collected 24 tackles. He was also inactive for almost half the season despite being healthy, think about that. The 11th overall pick of 2009 wasn't even considered good enough to dress for a defense ranked near the bottom of the league in every category and doesn't have a legitimate pass rusher on the roster. This stings, especially knowing rushing the passer was supposed to be Maybin's forte. Meanwhile, the other two players Buffalo had considered taking with the 11th pick, Brian Orakpo (106 tackles, 19.5 sacks) and Brian Cushing (199 tackles, 4.5 sacks, 4 INT) have enjoyed pro bowl careers already. Bills coach Chan Gailey described Maybin's future with the team as "tenuous", while Orakpo and Cushing will terrorize offenses for the next 8-10 seasons. Aaron Maybin may not even be in the league. Despite being only 22 years old. Spiller and Maybin are just two of the most recent flops, go down the list of recent high round picks:

2010

RB CJ Spiller 9th overall - We touched on him, less than 300 yards rushing with 0 TD's. A glorified return man at the moment.

DT Torell Troupe 41st overall - Inactive for most of year, didn't make impact when on the field.

DE Alex Carrington 72nd overall - Like Troupe, was inactive a handful of games, wasn't overly effective. Showed some flashes late in the season.

2009

LB/DE Aaron Maybin 11th overall - A bust in every sense of the word. 24 tackles 0 sacks. Career in Buffalo already likely done.

OG Eric Wood 28th overall - Despite being injured often, has been a solid player when healthy.

FS Jarius Byrd 42nd overall - Had pro bowl rookie year (9 INT's), but came back down to earth in 2010, collecting just 1 in the final game of the season.

OG Andy LeVitre - Best player out of the 09' class, consistent, solid player.

2008

CB Leodis McKelvin 11th overall - Mediocre at best CB, mostly known for key fumble against New England on MNF which cost Buffalo the game. Then hurt leg, missed rest of season.

WR James Hardy 41st overall - Out of the league, taken ahead of DeSean Jackson

DE Chris Ellis 72nd overall - Out of the league
　
2007

RB Marshawn Lynch 12th overall - Had two 1,000 yard seasons, got into off field trouble, and then watched on field production dwindle.Traded to SEA for 4th round pick

QB Trent Edwards 92nd overall - Started 2 seasons, showed flashes,but regressed. Released, claimed by JAX.

*LB Paul Posluszny (2nd rd-34th overall) - is the only player from the 2007 draft class still with the team.

2006

SS Donte Whitner 8th overall - 5 INT's in 5 years, chosen ahead of DT Haloti Ngata, QB Jay Cutler. Whitner never became even a top 15 safety, let alone an all pro.

DT John McCargo 26th overall - Tried to trade him, failed physical. Dead weight.

CB Ashton Youboty 70th overall - Has never earned solid playing time.

2005

No first round pick, took WR Roscoe Parrish in 2nd round-55th overall. Roscoe has been a solid return man, if anything else.

2004

WR Lee Evans 13th overall - Good player, one trick pony deep threat. Not worth contract.

*QB JP Losman 22nd overall - Had one decent year(3000+ yds, 19 TD). Released. Third stringer with Seattle.

DT Tim Anderson 74th overall - Out of league. Probably one of the least talented linemen you'd ever see.

*Buffalo gave a 1st and 5th round pick, and swapped 2nd's with Dallas to move up to get Losman.

I've briefly shown our previous seven years of drafts, profiling 22 players total drafted in the first three rounds. Out of those 22, you can make a case 5 of them (Evans, Poz, LeVitre,Wood,Byrd) are starting NFL caliber players, 3 are fringe starters, solid, nothing more (McKelvin, Lynch, Whitner), and the remaining 11 are complete washouts (Not counting Spiller/Troupe/Carrington) who despite only having at the MOST 6 years of NFL service, are either out of the league or barely hanging on. Buffalo is easily the worst drafting team in the NFL. For a team who states they don't like building through free agency, you'd think they'd take every precaution to draft well. I titled this piece, ' Start getting excited?', reason being, picking 3rd overall in the first round, and picking in the top four of the second, and third rounds, you would expect Buffalo can find three good players who can help us right away. However, history indicates something else. Buffalo has found some good players late in drafts (Stevie Johnson 7th round 224th overall 2008, Kyle Williams (2010 Pro bowler) 5th round 134th overall), but you can't continue to miss on high round picks and expect to compete with teams like New England, who stockpile picks and always find good players. Will this April be any different? Probably not, but I've already taken April 28th off from work, so here's to hoping Ralph Wilson either dies, or falls asleep prior to the draft and Buddy Nix can find us a high round pick who lives up to the billing.

Follow Mike Bovenzi on twitter @The_Bunk

Photo credit: NYCMarines | CC BY 2.0

Get ready Boston, this is going to be a year where we very well could win a championship in all four major sports. This isn't the first encounter that we've had with bandwagon jumpers, after the Patriots won 3 Super Bowls in four years at the beginning of the decade, the birth of Red Sox Nation in 2004, Green 18 and the "We want it as bad as you do" era of the Bruins.

There's no need to get our boxers in knots, panties in bunches and start to get defensive. We know who we are and the fairweather fans may never have the intensity that we do, but the more noise that's made and the more support for our teams can't be hurtful in any way. So with open arms, come aboard the bandwagon ladies and gentlemen, enjoy the ride that we've been waiting for our whole lives and have had the opporunity to enjoy over the past decade.

This could be the precursor to the Heisman Trophy presentation to Cam Newton, that he is more than deserving of, for being the best player on the field for any team in 2010. On the other side of the fence, this could be the NCAA acknowledging Cam Newton's amazing season but not allowing him to win the Heisman based on all of the off the field allegations that have not been proven to be true yet. The story so far states that Newton'w father, who has already said he will not attend the Heisman Trophy presentation to not be a distraction, was shopping Cam around to agents without Newton's knowledge of the incidents. In an attempt to prevent what happened with Reggie Bush, the Heisman Trust and the voters may not want to have a similar situation occur with Cam Newton winning the Heisman only to have to vacate it if later found guilty of any misconduct.

Running The Numbers

Regardless of the alleged off the field incidents, Cam Newton defines the Heisman Trophy this season as being the best player on the field, as shown by his achievement of the Walter Camp Award.

Cam has 2,589 passing yards and 28 touchdowns this season. Although he has the least amount of passing yards between the three quarterbacks in the running for the Heisman, Newton has thrown the same amount of touchdowns as Andrew Luck and only has 5 less than Kellen Moore. Cam also has the highest passer rating of the three (188.2)

What Newton does have over both quarterbacks is his 1409 rushing yards (only 273 yards less than full-time running back LaMichael James) and 20 rushing touchdowns (only 1 less than James). Giving Cam Newton a total of 3,998 combined yards and 48 touchdowns. The man is two drives short of 4,000+ total yards and 50 touchdowns (which by the way, he will finish with both after the BCS national championship because bowl game stats count in college).

If Cam Newton doesn't win the Heisman trophy with his posted numbers against his three opponents in the race, then we will all know that the voters and Heisman Trust did not base anything on his performance and simply did not want to make the same mistake they made with Reggie Bush. This kid has not been found of any wrongdoing and allegations alone should not effect the voters decisions. All I can say is, Cam Newton for Heisman!

The New England Patriots moved to 10-2 on the season and took over first place in the division as well as the conference. Not to mention, we also own the tie-breaker over the Jets now. We also own the tie-breaker over the Steelers, Ravens and Colts (who may not even make the playoffs this season, fingers crossed). The 2010 Patriots are starting to look like the teams from the beginning of the decade, an offense that slowly and methodically moves up field, chews up clock and scores at the end of a 12 play, 87 yard drive. They follow it up with a younger, bend but don't break defense that ranks last in the league in almost all of the statistical categories yet they still manage to win. Why? Beacuse they get stops and turnovers when they need them and they make big plays when they need to be made.

I hope everyone else is buying in and realizing that we have one of those special teams on our hands again. It's back to those scrappy, hard playing, giant hearted guys that will put themselves on the line play after play to get the job done. It starts with winning the Division and then conquering the entire league to close out the decade with our fourth Super Bowl championship.

Thanks to Keith Allison for the picture of Tom Brady.

As our prayers do go out to Collie who was said to have been seated upright and talking in the locker room later in the game, a flag was thrown for hitting a defenseless receiver. My thoughts are that the NFL is taking this way too far. Not to minimize the impact of head on collisions, concussions and possible paralysis, but that's the way the game is played. How can a receiver be deemed defenseless after making a reception? Are the refs now telling safeties that they can't hit players that catch the ball if their positioning isn't ideal after the catch?

In my opinion as well as members of both teams opionions, it was a clean hit. The pass was ruled incomplete although it was an obvious fumble. Collie caught the ball, made a football move, lowered his head and got drilled, resulting in losing the ball. It's beginning to be insulting that the Colts are the Kobe Bryant of the NFL. Another flag was thrown later on an Eagles defender for causing Peyton Manning to fumble the ball on a strip sack. The refs called illegal contact to the helmet...again, on a play where the Colts would have either turned over the ball by fumble or on downs. It is becoming far too ridiculous.

I agree with anyone who says that something does need to be done to protect players and keep them safe from concussions and head/neck injuries, but at the same time, football is a contact sport. I agree with penalties and fines when the defenders primary objective was to earhole a receiver with a helmet to helmet hit. However, the refs need to pay attention and see that not every time a player gets laid out that it was a dirty hit. Last night, Austin Collie made a reception and got laced cleanly and dropped the ball. I hope that Collie ends up ok, but at the same time, just because he got drilled doesn't mean that it wasn't clean.

The following weekend, the Philadelphia Eagles played a primetime night game again. I don't even remember who the opponent or returner for the Eagles was, but I remember that he got laid out and carted off the field on a stretcher after a helmet to helmet blast. The Eagles returner lowered his head and the defender from the kickoff team did the same. The replay showed the Eagles player getting his head pushed back into his shoulderpads, slump one arm and drop to the ground hard and fast. There was no penalty, no suspension and no fine.

The announcers in the booth said that it was a legal hit because the returner was not a defenseless player. Define what a defenseless player on a football field is, in my opinion, it shouldn't be anyone carrying the ball, catching the ball or throwing the ball. If you are on a football field and have possession of the ball, you damn well know that eleven men are coming to clean your clock.

If the goal of this rule is to protect players from concussions, neck and spine in juries and general safety of the player, than why is it acceptable to pummel a man in some instances but not in others? Make up your mind Godell and give us a straight forward, black and white ruling on helmet to helmet hits, not just making it up as you go along and revising the rule and fining some and not others based on the severity of the hit that week.

Photo Credit: wallyg

For starters, the introduction for NBC's Sunday Night Football has appearances by the man himself, Peyton Manning, Reggie Wayne and Dwight Freeney. That's three Colts players in a two minutes segment that should reflect all of the NFL on their primetime stage. There are however, no New England Patriots at all in the opening introduction. You would think that the season record holder for touchdowns may appear, a team that won three Super Bowls this decade may sneak one player in or a team that went 16-0 in a regular season would maybe even get their coaches face to pop up on the screen for a quick second.

I'm not attempting to minimize Peyton Manning and the Colts for their acheivements, winnings and talent, but how can one network be so biased toward the rest of the league. In the past two weeks, Peyton Manning has played primetime games on NBC's Sunday Night Football. The first against the Patriots where he threw three interceptions and the second against the San Diego Chargers where he threw four more picks.

In his game ending interception against the Patriots, Chris Collinsworth went out of his way to comment over and over again about how Peyton doesn't throw interceptions and that the interception was caused because he was forced to change his throwing motion based on the pressure brought by linebacker, Jermaine Cunningham. Collinsworth also stated that one of the first two interceptions were the receivers fault for cutting a route short or stopping early or something lame.

Manning then followed up that game with his four interceptions against the Chargers, again, according to Collinsworth, none of which were his fault. NBC even put an asterisk under Manning's stat line that read, *2 interceptions (made contact), trying to make sure that the world knew that he was hit before he made the pass and that's why it was picked off. The third interception was replayed three or four times where Collinsworth had to make a point that the receiver was hooked and turned and there was no flag throw for pass interference and that was the only reason Eric Weddle made the play. The final interception, coming as his last throw, ending his second week in a row throwing the game ending interception, Manning was throwing it up in garbage time where any other team would have had a backup in or ran out the clock and walked away. He deserved that one.

What was even more arrogant was the fact that Manning threw seven interceptions combined in those two games, threw game ending interceptions in both and lost bot games. Not to be denied, Collinsworth and NBC came out with every excuse in the world for Manning and the Colts and even talked more about Manning than the winning teams in the post game. I am offended, pissed and actually sick of NBC and Chris Collinsworth.

Thanks to shriak for the photo of the New England Patriots v. Oakland Raiders Playoff game in the snow.

Owner Zygi Wilf promoted Defensive Coordinator Leslie Frazier as Interim Head Coach. However, I think that Josh would agree with me when I say that Wilf made a huge mistake. The Vikings are almost certainly not making the playoffs so why not continue the circus atmosphere and hire Brett Favre as a Player Coach? Can you imagine the press conferences after a tough loss where Favre would tear up while explaining to the media how he shouldn't have thrown those three interceptions that hindered the team. Then imagine having to go back to the podium and try to explain why his starting QB/himself tried to force the ball into the hands of a receiver triple covered down the field.

Forget the press conferences, what about his role on the field? How great would it be to see Favre yelling at his receivers after he horribly overthrows them. Maybe Favre could bring his gunslinger attitude to the defense and call out blitzes every play and watch as he stares blankly when the defense gives up huge plays down field. The possibilities are endlessly entertaining.

Zygi Wilf should realize that since this season is lost, the best way to fill the Metrodome is by making Favre coach. Does anyone seriously believe that Childress actually coached the team in any shape or form since Brett Favre joined the team? This would just be a formality and make Favre's role on the team the past season and a half official. The circus can continue for the rest of the season and keep the Vikings interesting and relevant. Bad publicity beats no publicity, right?

Thanks to Jvstin for the photo of Brett Favre

It has been so heartbreaking to see the Pioneers, who came out to a 4-0 start, to drop three of their last four games. Even worse that all three losses came to Empire 8 opponents, with two of those three games practically being given away due to mistakes and the inability to close the games out against St. John Fisher and Springfield.

The Pioneers have set many records this season and reached many "firsts" in program history. Utica has been absolutely inspirational to alumni, fellow students and the surrounding community, recording their best attendance each and every home game this season. With the final two games of the season, the Pioneers aren't getting ahead of themselves, nor will they ever give up. Coach Faggiano is taking the same approach that he has taken for each game this season:

"Tough loss vs. Ithaca College but [we] have to just move forward, work harder and make some adjustments. All efforts are [in] defeating Hartwick this week. Hartwick is well coached and their players play hard. We are hungry to get back in the Win column."

The Pioneers couldn't move forward and got outworked by Hartwick when it was all said and done. For a team that opened the season in impressive fashion with a 5-1 record, first time votes for national rankings and being in the top 10 nationally in multiple offensive and defensive team and individual statistic leaders, the season has begun to fall hard and fast. In two of their three losses over the past month, Springfield and Hartwick beat UC by a combined 7 points. If there's anything that Utica needs to accomplish going into the final Empire 8 game of the season, it's playing 60 minutes of football and closing out games when they have the lead.

Utica still looks promising to end the season on a positive note by taking out the powerhouse of Alfred at Gaetano Stadium. I don't want to fall into the trap of looking ahead to next season before the week is out, but the younger guys are going to be veterans, the new class will come in with more speed, strength, ability and determination and the Pioneers will have that 0-0 clean slate again. With a plethora of team and individual records set this season, maybe all of that can be put aside and Utica can set another team record...WINS and a playoff birth!

A very big thankyou goes out to Coach Faggiano for being gracious enough to contribute so much this season as well as Christopher Penree for providing the amazing pictures of the Utica College Pioneers. You can buy Utica College Pioneer Photo's from Christopher Penree at Green Couch Studios. And don't forget, if you're interested in attending Utica College and playing for a great program, fill out a Utica College Football Recruiting Form.