Peter knows how to do it.My time is thinner this time of the year due to my school workload. I have a motion due this week and a trial the next. Therefore my time to blog is thin, but over the past few days there have been some really juicy things to talk about. Thus, it is time for a seldom used here, but often impact filled “grinding gears” segment made famous by one of this country’s most eloquent poets Peter Griffin. Additionally, I just provide my commentary on several issues on the hot stove. Less gear grinding, more commentary and analysis that you’ve come to expect from Orange::44. Maybe there’ll be a Lloyd Carr rumor. You never know!
Connecticut Violations
If you know me, or have read this blog for any length of time, you know that I hate UConn for several reasons. However, additionally if you know me you know that for the past several years I have been saying that UConn recruits dirty and they Calhoun will sometime be involved in recruiting violations at some point in his career. Sure enough it finally happened. The NCAA has launched an investigation, but it seems like the proof is already at hand. Asked to comment earlier last week and Jim Calhoun basically denied a lot of the stuff, seemed uninterested, and didn’t seem to care about what the investigation was about or anything like that. However, later was a much different tune as a more contrite Calhoun admitted that a mistake could have been made. Yeah, apparently so. The original Yahoo! Sports report seemed to have plenty of facts including phone records and records of text messages to prove, based on the preponderance of the evidence, that violations have occurred. It will be interesting to see what the NCAA does. Do I think any games will be taken away from Connecticut? Probably not as Miles, the player at the center of this controversy, never played a game for Connecticut (because he was tossed off the team for violating a restraining order before the season even started. Great pick UConn!). But will UConn get hit with fines, lose scholarships, and be banned from postseason play? It is quite possible, as the main violation is not that these things happened, but rather that they happened, UConn knew about them, and did nothing about it.
UConn Linebacker Kijuan Dabney
One of the secondary missions of this notebook is to chronicle the off the field legal issues that fellow Big East and oppositional players get into. We take extra pleasure here at Orange::44 when it happens to be from UConn, for good reasons. Junior Linebacker Kijuan Dabney was arrested early Sunday morning at the UConn Student Union for a fight with another UConn student according to the Hartford Courant. He was charged with second degree breach of peace and had to be removed from the university sponsored event at the Union. Dabney started all 12 football games for Connecticut as a freshman, mostly on special teams as a strong safety, and six games last season as a reserve linebacker. He is expected to return to the team as the reserve linebacker this fall. Dabney is currently out on $500 bail. Leave it to UConn football to not even suspend a guy a game or something for getting into a fight. Then again this is nothing new for Coach Randy Edsall, who has a nice track record of letting his players run buck wild. I can get the proof, but unless you are a UConn fan trolling my site, you can take my word for it. Frankly UConn fans and Syracuse fans alike should remember the UConn player’s incident at the Wingz Over Storrs when a manager got punched because a player wanted to use a stolen credit card.
Connecticut Violations
If you know me, or have read this blog for any length of time, you know that I hate UConn for several reasons. However, additionally if you know me you know that for the past several years I have been saying that UConn recruits dirty and they Calhoun will sometime be involved in recruiting violations at some point in his career. Sure enough it finally happened. The NCAA has launched an investigation, but it seems like the proof is already at hand. Asked to comment earlier last week and Jim Calhoun basically denied a lot of the stuff, seemed uninterested, and didn’t seem to care about what the investigation was about or anything like that. However, later was a much different tune as a more contrite Calhoun admitted that a mistake could have been made. Yeah, apparently so. The original Yahoo! Sports report seemed to have plenty of facts including phone records and records of text messages to prove, based on the preponderance of the evidence, that violations have occurred. It will be interesting to see what the NCAA does. Do I think any games will be taken away from Connecticut? Probably not as Miles, the player at the center of this controversy, never played a game for Connecticut (because he was tossed off the team for violating a restraining order before the season even started. Great pick UConn!). But will UConn get hit with fines, lose scholarships, and be banned from postseason play? It is quite possible, as the main violation is not that these things happened, but rather that they happened, UConn knew about them, and did nothing about it.
UConn Linebacker Kijuan Dabney
One of the secondary missions of this notebook is to chronicle the off the field legal issues that fellow Big East and oppositional players get into. We take extra pleasure here at Orange::44 when it happens to be from UConn, for good reasons. Junior Linebacker Kijuan Dabney was arrested early Sunday morning at the UConn Student Union for a fight with another UConn student according to the Hartford Courant. He was charged with second degree breach of peace and had to be removed from the university sponsored event at the Union. Dabney started all 12 football games for Connecticut as a freshman, mostly on special teams as a strong safety, and six games last season as a reserve linebacker. He is expected to return to the team as the reserve linebacker this fall. Dabney is currently out on $500 bail. Leave it to UConn football to not even suspend a guy a game or something for getting into a fight. Then again this is nothing new for Coach Randy Edsall, who has a nice track record of letting his players run buck wild. I can get the proof, but unless you are a UConn fan trolling my site, you can take my word for it. Frankly UConn fans and Syracuse fans alike should remember the UConn player’s incident at the Wingz Over Storrs when a manager got punched because a player wanted to use a stolen credit card.
“The ‘Ville”
Honestly, congratulations to Louisville for making it to the Elite 8. But really, does anyone think a basketball pep band should wear hockey jerseys? Yeah I’m a band geek and I analyze this kind of stuff but I’ll take the hit on this one. I take pride in my past, as again if you are a long time reader you know I was in the Sour Sitrus Society, the basketball pep band at Syracuse. I’ve been in the band when we received standing ovations at the Big East Tournament, and had other bands decline to play because we were better than them. Now, Louisville’s band sounded alright, but to be foolish enough to think that you look alright at a basketball game in a hockey jersey is a complete dork and has a serious slipping grip on reality. Wearing a rugby, t-shirt, polo shirt, hell even a shirt and tie would be alright, but a hockey jersey makes no sense at all. On top of that it just says “The ‘Ville”. Come on. Put Louisville, or even just “L’ville” because that is how you say it. But to have “The ‘Ville”? Please. Way to look ridiculous on national television over and over again.
Honestly, congratulations to Louisville for making it to the Elite 8. But really, does anyone think a basketball pep band should wear hockey jerseys? Yeah I’m a band geek and I analyze this kind of stuff but I’ll take the hit on this one. I take pride in my past, as again if you are a long time reader you know I was in the Sour Sitrus Society, the basketball pep band at Syracuse. I’ve been in the band when we received standing ovations at the Big East Tournament, and had other bands decline to play because we were better than them. Now, Louisville’s band sounded alright, but to be foolish enough to think that you look alright at a basketball game in a hockey jersey is a complete dork and has a serious slipping grip on reality. Wearing a rugby, t-shirt, polo shirt, hell even a shirt and tie would be alright, but a hockey jersey makes no sense at all. On top of that it just says “The ‘Ville”. Come on. Put Louisville, or even just “L’ville” because that is how you say it. But to have “The ‘Ville”? Please. Way to look ridiculous on national television over and over again.
The Old Ball Coach
Doug Marrone has gotten right down to business. I have it on good authority that the only thing he has on his desk in his office are his computer monitor and a big, white binder that says “The Plan” on it. Seriously. Already he has had players tackling in drills, and some players are complaining about the work they have had to put in for Marrone. To that I say damn right. Your ass should be dragging after a good practice. You’re a football player. You should be tough enough to hack it during practice, and if not you should quit. Football isn’t for pansies. Oh and what a novel concept, having players actually tackling in practice. Does anyone miss Greg? Not Greg the elloquent wordsmith, but Greg the football coach mind you.
Starting QB
Marrone, based on a week of practice has decided that Redshirt Freshman Ryan Nassib will be the starting quarterback for your Syracuse University football team. Frankly if Marrone is that impressed with him then that is good enough for me right now, considering the season is 156 days away. Second string is now Cantley, who endeared himself to Orange Football fans everywhere by leading the comeback victory over Notre Dame in South Bend last season. Andrew “I guess I’m not very good at being quarterback after all” Robinson has either chosen, or the coaching staff has recommended, to make the switch to tight end. This is much like the epic switch Matt Saracen made from QB to wide receiver on the popular television drama Friday Night Lights (thankfully renewed for two more seasons). Robinson probably knows the routes already, so he could prove to be an ample target, and could be utilized in possible trick plays in the future. However, judging by his completion percentage as a starter that is probably a terrible idea.
Happy Birthday To Us
What a strange trip it has been. Orange::44 turned four this March. It seems like only yesterday I joined writing for this notebook at the behest of my good friend and mentor Matt Glaude. As I like to say, even if we aren’t the best, we were definitely the first. In the past I have posted some of my favorite stories that are the best representation of what this notebook produces, but I will forgo that again this season and wait until our fifth anniversary. Yes, I promise you there will be a fifth. However, I do have to thank some people because in this internet age, four years (starting March 12th of 2005) is a long time. Thanks to Matt Glaude for starting the site and giving me a chance to write for it, even when at the beginning some of my articles were not very good at all. Also thanks to him for continuing to blog after handing over the reigns to Orange::44, as he is brilliant and hilarious. Thanks to all the SU bloggers out there for reading and being so supportive and talented themselves. Special thanks to Brent Axe (The Axeman), Sean at Nunes/Magician, Danny at The Sport Hump, and all of The Three Idiots for being so awesome and continuing to do great work. Thanks to all the other talented Big East bloggers out there for stopping by, trading knowledge, and realizing that we can all have some good fun at each other’s expense once in a while. Thanks to my network of friends and informants that continue to tip me off to the inner workings of the Athletic Department, especially those that would surely get in trouble if they knew they were friends with a blogger. Keep up the good work guys, and your secrets are safe with me. That is those that I can’t post here. I also have to thank the Athletic Department, because without some amazing incompetence or overstated minor victories, as well as extreme ineptitude or success on the field of play, half the fodder for this notebook would not exist. The mission of chronicling the daily disaster that is Syracuse University Athletics is not taken lightly around here. Finally, thanks to you, the average reader for continuing to stop by and enjoy some Syracuse stories, analysis, commentary, reporting, or just plain goofiness. On occasion we strike a chord that resonates across the internet, but more often than not we just plug along, giving you information that you can just find in a box score, but somehow you find what I write entertaining or enjoyable enough to waste your time here. For that I’m grateful and continue to be inspired to write new and occasionally funny articles. I have to take breaks here and there because of real life, but you are the reason that I keep coming back, occasionally against better judgment. Maybe some day I’ll actually let someone else write for this… but I doubt it. As for me, I’ll be here so as always GO ORANGE!
PS - Maybe someday I'll stop saying "we" and just say "I" because it's just me around here.
Labels: Athletic Department, Basketball, Big East, Breaking The Law, Connvicts, Football, Tooting Our Own Horn, UConn, Unprompted Hatred
I think you've earned "WE" status... nice post.. keep on chronicaling UConn's failures, caught cheatings and general filthiness and I'm sure the readers will follow.
Make sure you put "Law Douche" in their place. With a family of lawyers, I have come accustomed to keeping the douche in check!
Good luck with school!
Danny
TheSportHump.net
Christ, four years.
And I don't even know if it was the first. I just made that claim and nobody seemed to contradict me.
So therefore, by default, true.
Thanks guys. Danny, I always fight the law douche. And Matt, it is written on the internet so it must be true.
Thanks for the kind words (kiss ass) and happy happy happy happy happy anniversary!