With the SU football team off this weekend, it's a good time to take a step back and look around the athletics program. It's been about three weeks into the season for all sports, so I think it's a solid barometer to check things out now -- habits die hard and the way teams have performed so far usually indicates how they'll be the rest of the year. Without further ado, a sport-by-sport checkup in the State of the Orange:
FOOTBALL
Record: 1-2 (0-1 Big East)
Every Syracuse fan was ridiculously pumped up for this season with a new head coach, new uniforms, new FieldTurf and -- most importantly -- promises that the team would turn around after a good three or four years of mediocrity. Well, SU stands at 1-2 after three games. Looks pretty mediocre to me, especially considering the one win came against a talent-depleted Buffalo team.
But this team plays hard, especially the defense. The D has kept the Orange in each of its games, with six sacks, six picks, four fumble recoveries and just 14 points per game allowed. But the lackluster offense has got to catch up if Syracuse has any hopes of postseason life. The team is based too much on the run and it's trying to play a West Coast offensive style with players that were recruited to play in the old option offense. It's players with square-peg talents trying to get into a circle-hole system.
My prediction for the rest of the year: SU splits its difficult schedule with a 4-4 record, finishes the year 5-6 and fails to make a bowl game.
MEN'S SOCCER
Record: 4-2-1 (0-2-1 Big East)
SU soccer had the best start to a season since 1986 by starting out 4-0. But the Orange has gone 0-2-1 in its last three games, games against stiffer Big East competition. SU tied conference newcomer Marquette, then lost to Notre Dame and Providence. This team is hurting physically right now and it's tired. They've played a lot of games in a short amount of time and still have three road games in the next week. That's brutal. But then the Orange play six of its last eight games at home. If SU can get healthy, look out. They'll have a chance to potentially make some noise in Big East play, which they haven't been able to do in a few years, as shown by a 7-19-5 record in Big East games the last three season.
WOMEN'S SOCCER
Record: 2-5-2 (1-0-1 Big East)
This team cannot score. Plain and simple. And that's a problem because, obviously, you can't win if you can't score. Syracuse has seven goals in nine games, a pretty paltry .77 goals per game. Not even a goal per game! SU has also been shut out five times, which does not bode well for the young Orange. Nine of the team's final 10 games come against Big East teams, one of the most competitive women's soccer conferences in America. This is another team that's been hit hard by injuries and SU relies very heavily on freshmen and other young players. They miss players like Shana Thomas and Helen Fox, seniors last year who sparked the Orange offense that are is now nonexistent. It's year of growing pains for the women's team, don't expect it to get better this season.
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VOLLEYBALL
Record: 9-4 (1-0 Big East)
After one of the best seasons in team history last year, SU stands at 9-4 this season, a pretty respectable record. The key to success for the Orange: five returning seniors and four returning sophomores who all saw plenty of minutes in SU's magical run to the Big East finals last year. Volleyball is definitely the strongest fall program this year for SU and there's really no reason they shouldn't be able to keep it up.
FIELD HOCKEY
Record: 3-4 (1-0 Big East)
At least field hockey is a consistent team: They've alternated wins and losses like clockwork this season. It's been loss-win-loss-win-loss-win-loss so far for the Orange. When the team wins, they score in bunches, averaging four goals per game in their wins. In losses, SU averages just .75 goals per. To fix this, SU says it's switching to a 5-3-2 formation mid-season, bringing five forwards up to try and pressure opposing defenses. Something to keep an eye on: head coach Kathleen Parker is just two wins away from 300 for her career.
TENNIS
Record: No team record
SU has only participated in one event so far, the Yale Invitational. At Yale, the Orange took four of six brackets, winning two doubles draws and two singles draws. What's been a young team the last few seasons is now growing up and playing well. Big East competition starts in the spring.
CROSS COUNTRY
SU men placed fifth at the Binghamton Open and the women placed second in Syracuse's only meet so far this year. It's the first season under new head coach Chris Fox, who promises to make the Orange a Big East contender. Conference championships are October 28th, we'll see what Fox has in his team by then.
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