Syracuse 2024

[JeremyCuse]

A fun start for early in the season ...4-0 in less than 4 minutes I think. Colgate tried some weird match-up zone - very unusual and horribly ineffective. They scored 4 of their goals on man-ups - not much on even strength. The FO's for Cuse were outstanding; both att. & mid. was darn good for most of the game; LSM's were solid (exception being Martin w/4 penalties but played very physical); Mark looed more like himself. Figueras and Dwan were excellent, but Caccamo replaced Kol and played the majority of the second half. Overall, this was a dominant W over a team that showede some mettle in winning at PSU!

Looking forward to the next few contests.

Cite some reservations amidst the positives . Can't have 8 penalties vs top ten teams and expect to win. Are using d backups best unit to play on man down? Mark start not as sharp as seen though he did stop a couple of close in shots when Gate separated from close defenders, not sold on foot speed of back line though Dwan overall soundness is appreciated, do prefer Caccamo stick in passing lanes as third . Clearing was sub par again , credit to Gate pressure, have to discover who can handle best before uva and nd. Cuse crisp ball movement shined but also seen some sloppiness. 21 turnovers .SSDM slimmed out further, had hopes for Clary replacing Rosa physicality , hope for the best there plan for the worst . Stevens is underutilized for a AA not sure where he gets additional minutes and who does Birtwhistle replace. guess last sentence involve good problems to have .

I also prefer Caccamo at the 3rd spot, wonder if he starts next game or we see Olexo bump down starting next week with Maryland.

Not sure how much they'll see the 10 man ride but they gotta get better against it.

I would think Birtwhistle replaces Hottle or Kellog (i think that's who have been running on the 2nd line so far?) Like you say though, its a good problem to have.

I think Olexo is one of the best LSM in the game. I get the need to move him but he's so much better in space and a threat on O imo.

I don't disagree with you, it would be a move out of necessity. They have plenty of poles on their roster, it would be nice if someone else was ready to take that spot but doesn't seem to be the case yet.

Wright and Schmitt could in theory take over as the 1-2 punch at LSM, both have pretty good backgrounds and Schmitt was the MAAC LSM of the year last year. They also have Sageder who was the #2 LSM for a large part of last year. The concern maybe that Schmitt has barely played so far (probably because he's the #3 LSM and Olexxo is so good at LSM its a bit of robbing Peter to pay Paul. I think ultimately he will get moved to close as his cover ability is to good and will be needed against UVA, ND and Duke but you can see the dilemma from SU's standpoint.

Sorry to clarify I meant it would be nice if someone else was ready to grab that 3rd spot at close. Think the depth at LSM with Wright, Schmitt and Sageder would be good if Olexo went back to close. Still think Caccomo could be the guy going foward with Fig/Dwan but guess we'll see.

No your right, there really isn't a no doubter guy for that third spot. Kol has shown flashes but struggles at getting lulled to sleep. Caccamo has also show flashes but struggles at times when left on an island against top end attackmen. SU had a few guy in the pipeline but Kilrain decomitted late to Hop and Donny Scott our top d recruit in this class blew his knee out playing box over the summer and is out for the year. I think SU is going to give Caccamo a long look at being the third guy, he feels like the most realistic option to be honest.

[Zonesurgeon]

Offense has been poetry in motion thus far. Do have some serious doubts about whether or not the style will catch up to them once they play some real defenses. See quite a bit of hot dogging coming from the starting 6. Not quite a complete disregard of fundamentals, but an undeniable desire to try to play with unnecessary flash that just won't translate at the top level. Once they get to the gauntlet of Duke, Hobart, and Notre Dame, this style of play will most certainly fail them

[coda]

Offense has been poetry in motion thus far. Do have some serious doubts about whether or not the style will catch up to them once they play some real defenses. See quite a bit of hot dogging coming from the starting 6. Not quite a complete disregard of fundamentals, but an undeniable desire to try to play with unnecessary flash that just won't translate at the top level. Once they get to the gauntlet of Duke, Hobart, and Notre Dame, this style of play will most certainly fail them

that was sneaky and made me do a double take. One of these is not like the others

[oldbartman]

Offense has been poetry in motion thus far. Do have some serious doubts about whether or not the style will catch up to them once they play some real defenses. See quite a bit of hot dogging coming from the starting 6. Not quite a complete disregard of fundamentals, but an undeniable desire to try to play with unnecessary flash that just won't translate at the top level. Once they get to the gauntlet of Duke, Hobart, and Notre Dame, this style of play will most certainly fail them

that was sneaky and made me do a double take. One of these is not like the others

Yes! One team has beaten Cuse more than the other 2 combined....

[coda]

Offense has been poetry in motion thus far. Do have some serious doubts about whether or not the style will catch up to them once they play some real defenses. See quite a bit of hot dogging coming from the starting 6. Not quite a complete disregard of fundamentals, but an undeniable desire to try to play with unnecessary flash that just won't translate at the top level. Once they get to the gauntlet of Duke, Hobart, and Notre Dame, this style of play will most certainly fail them

that was sneaky and made me do a double take. One of these is not like the others

Yes! One team has beaten Cuse more than the other 2 combined....

That is not quite true. Cuse is 80-26-2 vs Hobart.. 20-21 vs UVa. 10-10 vs ND (though the website says 2-7 in last 10, which is interesting)

[oldbartman]

Offense has been poetry in motion thus far. Do have some serious doubts about whether or not the style will catch up to them once they play some real defenses. See quite a bit of hot dogging coming from the starting 6. Not quite a complete disregard of fundamentals, but an undeniable desire to try to play with unnecessary flash that just won't translate at the top level. Once they get to the gauntlet of Duke, Hobart, and Notre Dame, this style of play will most certainly fail them

that was sneaky and made me do a double take. One of these is not like the others

Yes! One team has beaten Cuse more than the other 2 combined....

That is not quite true. Cuse is 80-26-2 vs Hobart.. 20-21 vs UVa. 10-10 vs ND (though the website says 2-7 in last 10, which is interesting)

Only Duke and ND were mentioned... Just having some fun and looking forward to the trophy game.

[coda]

Offense has been poetry in motion thus far. Do have some serious doubts about whether or not the style will catch up to them once they play some real defenses. See quite a bit of hot dogging coming from the starting 6. Not quite a complete disregard of fundamentals, but an undeniable desire to try to play with unnecessary flash that just won't translate at the top level. Once they get to the gauntlet of Duke, Hobart, and Notre Dame, this style of play will most certainly fail them

that was sneaky and made me do a double take. One of these is not like the others

Yes! One team has beaten Cuse more than the other 2 combined....

That is not quite true. Cuse is 80-26-2 vs Hobart.. 20-21 vs UVa. 10-10 vs ND (though the website says 2-7 in last 10, which is interesting)

Only Duke and ND were mentioned... Just having some fun and looking forward to the trophy game.

My bad. I knew you were having fun, but had to look it up.. Cuse does seem to have Duke's number. Even a winning record in their last 10 games.

[Finster]

It's hard to say much about playing Manhattan. The Jaspers lost their defense from last year (minus one guy), goalie, and FOGO. Their new FOGO is a freshman from Canadauiga, so who knows. The backups saw little to no action in 2023.

Likely to not be much of a game.

[Pensky Material]

It's hard to say much about playing Manhattan. The Jaspers lost their defense from last year (minus one guy), goalie, and FOGO. Their new FOGO is a freshman from Canadauiga, so who knows. The backups saw little to no action in 2023.

Likely to not be much of a game.

Yeah no offense to Manhattan but hopefully this is a game they can empty the bench early.

[3rdPersonPlural]

It's hard to say much about playing Manhattan. The Jaspers lost their defense from last year (minus one guy), goalie, and FOGO. Their new FOGO is a freshman from Canadauiga, so who knows. The backups saw little to no action in 2023.

Likely to not be much of a game.

Yeah no offense to Manhattan but hopefully this is a game they can empty the bench early.

With Strength of Schedule a major component in the calculations that put a team into (or keeps a team out of) the Big Dance, why on earth would 'cuse schedule Manhattan?

If this is this a legacy commitment, I get it, but when an annual final 4 candidate in a buzzsaw conference builds their schedule.....maybe call an OOC top 20?

[ohmilax34]

It's hard to say much about playing Manhattan. The Jaspers lost their defense from last year (minus one guy), goalie, and FOGO. Their new FOGO is a freshman from Canadauiga, so who knows. The backups saw little to no action in 2023.

Likely to not be much of a game.

Yeah no offense to Manhattan but hopefully this is a game they can empty the bench early.

With Strength of Schedule a major component in the calculations that put a team into (or keeps a team out of) the Big Dance, why on earth would 'cuse schedule Manhattan?

If this is this a legacy commitment, I get it, but when an annual final 4 candidate in a buzzsaw conference builds their schedule.....maybe call an OOC top 20?

Seems like there are enough opportunities for those kinds of wins with Army, Maryland, JHU and Cornell, and possibly High Point, Delaware and others. I think some coaches like these games better than a scrimmage, because the team will get more out of a game that matters.

[GaitsRightHand]

With Strength of Schedule a major component in the calculations that put a team into (or keeps a team out of) the Big Dance, why on earth would 'cuse schedule Manhattan?

If this is this a legacy commitment, I get it, but when an annual final 4 candidate in a buzzsaw conference builds their schedule.....maybe call an OOC top 20?

OOC= Vermont, Colgate*, Manhattan, MD*, Utah, Army*, HPU, Hop*, Delaware* and Hobart.
* = ranked in top 20.

3 in top 10. 5 ranked in top 20. 2 receiving votes. Vermont, Manhattan and Hobart are the only teams they play that are unranked/not receiving votes.

50% of schedule is top 20 teams, 20% receiving votes, and 30% receiving no ranking or votes. Pretty good OOC to me. Colgate may not be ranked mid-season, but they are right now.

[wgdsr]

It's hard to say much about playing Manhattan. The Jaspers lost their defense from last year (minus one guy), goalie, and FOGO. Their new FOGO is a freshman from Canadauiga, so who knows. The backups saw little to no action in 2023.

Likely to not be much of a game.

Yeah no offense to Manhattan but hopefully this is a game they can empty the bench early.

With Strength of Schedule a major component in the calculations that put a team into (or keeps a team out of) the Big Dance, why on earth would 'cuse schedule Manhattan?

If this is this a legacy commitment, I get it, but when an annual final 4 candidate in a buzzsaw conference builds their schedule.....maybe call an OOC top 20?

tea leaves in the preseason, but 'cuse will probably finish the year with a top 5 sos, and quite likely top 3. their schedule is a good notch higher than '23, and they finished top 3.

if manhattan turns out to be not their strongest opponent, they'll be eliminated from any sos calculation. if the committee uses it at all (and who knows anymore what they care about?), it's defined as your top 10 rpi games. last year, 'cuse had 2 teams holy cross and st bonnies who combined to go 2 and 26, and it didn't ding their sos at all. it would, however, affect rpi if the committee uses it... tho you may not be aware manhattan was 10 and 5 last year.

[Dip&Dunk]

Completely agree with Ohmilax34. Plus let's have a winning record in the "buzzsaw conference" and then worry about OOC scheduling.

[FMUBart]

Completely agree with Ohmilax34. Plus let's have a winning record in the "buzzsaw conference" and then worry about OOC scheduling.

Exactly; ACC is a gauntlet, okay to play a few teams not in top 20..not to mention the 3rd game in 7 days.

[Finster]

It's hard to say much about playing Manhattan. The Jaspers lost their defense from last year (minus one guy), goalie, and FOGO. Their new FOGO is a freshman from Canadauiga, so who knows. The backups saw little to no action in 2023.

Likely to not be much of a game.

Yeah no offense to Manhattan but hopefully this is a game they can empty the bench early.

With Strength of Schedule a major component in the calculations that put a team into (or keeps a team out of) the Big Dance, why on earth would 'cuse schedule Manhattan?

If this is this a legacy commitment, I get it, but when an annual final 4 candidate in a buzzsaw conference builds their schedule.....maybe call an OOC top 20?

tea leaves in the preseason, but 'cuse will probably finish the year with a top 5 sos, and quite likely top 3. their schedule is a good notch higher than '23, and they finished top 3.

if manhattan turns out to be not their strongest opponent, they'll be eliminated from any sos calculation. if the committee uses it at all (and who knows anymore what they care about?), it's defined as your top 10 rpi games. last year, 'cuse had 2 teams holy cross and st bonnies who combined to go 2 and 26, and it didn't ding their sos at all. it would, however, affect rpi if the committee uses it... tho you may not be aware manhattan was 10 and 5 last year.

Last year’s records don’t impact this years rankings. Manhattan lost a ton from last year including their coach.

[wgdsr]

It's hard to say much about playing Manhattan. The Jaspers lost their defense from last year (minus one guy), goalie, and FOGO. Their new FOGO is a freshman from Canadauiga, so who knows. The backups saw little to no action in 2023.

Likely to not be much of a game.

Yeah no offense to Manhattan but hopefully this is a game they can empty the bench early.

With Strength of Schedule a major component in the calculations that put a team into (or keeps a team out of) the Big Dance, why on earth would 'cuse schedule Manhattan?

If this is this a legacy commitment, I get it, but when an annual final 4 candidate in a buzzsaw conference builds their schedule.....maybe call an OOC top 20?

tea leaves in the preseason, but 'cuse will probably finish the year with a top 5 sos, and quite likely top 3. their schedule is a good notch higher than '23, and they finished top 3.

if manhattan turns out to be not their strongest opponent, they'll be eliminated from any sos calculation. if the committee uses it at all (and who knows anymore what they care about?), it's defined as your top 10 rpi games. last year, 'cuse had 2 teams holy cross and st bonnies who combined to go 2 and 26, and it didn't ding their sos at all. it would, however, affect rpi if the committee uses it... tho you may not be aware manhattan was 10 and 5 last year.

Last year’s records don’t impact this years rankings. Manhattan lost a ton from last year including their coach.

i'm fairly sure most people are aware that metrics will ultimately be measured on 2024 results. are you making a prediction on manhattan's record? their rpi? 'cuse's sos?

[JBFortunato]

Pretty fantastic to see the best relief pitcher in MLB history at a lacrosse game Even Mo's kids would rather play lacrosse.

I am by no means a Syracuse fan, but I am so impressed with this team. I think they have to be considered one of a handful of teams with a shot to win it all this season. They've got a great FO guy, they've integrated important newcomers seamlessly, they have a magical player in Spallina, they share the ball and their defense looks strong.

This is the best Syracuse team I've seen in a long time.

[Laxguy703]

A few weeks ago Paul Carc out Spallinas hypothetical O/U point total at 80. I thought he was insane..

Turns out I was an idiot. I’d be shocked if he doesn’t hit at least 90 this year. Playing box this summer has clearly elevated his game and he looks a lot more confident now with a year of college lacrosse under his belt.

I know these first few games have been against weaker teams, but this offense is set up for him to succeed with all the Canadian inside guys and step down shooters. 24 points in 2.5 games and he has at least 13 more games on the schedule.

22 is so back.

[DMac]

Love the way this team plays the game. Catch the ball, look for open teammate, throw to open teammate, ball just moves, moves, moves, no one holds on to the ball (unless Joey is behind the cage all alone). Hilt's catch and release is just really pretty to watch, so smooth easy and quick. Just ridiculous. Seems to be an unself group that play very well together. There are a bunch of good players on this team at both ends of the field and in the middle...cage too. We'll see how they do v stiffer competition but there's not a whole lot to not like so far.
13 of 16 goals assisted in this one....this season to date 54 goals, 41 assisted.