Lately you've just gotten previews and postgame reactions from this notebook. Time to remedy that, as we're back with several topics to catch you up if you've been missing a Syracuse fix in a relatively light week for Syracuse basketball.

I hate following the recruiting beat. There are many, many sites and blogs dedicated to rating each player and class. It's all crap. Until these people play you'll never know how good they'll be. But it does do some good to become familiar with the kids that will be joining your favorite team next season. The full list of our incoming players is here.

Nike, the controlling overlords that really run the athletic department, have allegedly got yet another new Syracuse basketball uniform set in the can. As evident by these shots you can see a slight tweak of what we're already sporting. I could care less what the team wears. It could be potato sacks with Syracuse written across it. But under no circumstances should you EVER change uniforms in the middle of a season. Just don't it.

It seems like only last Thanksgiving that Syracuse, and more specifically Diamond Ferri, gave BC a delightful loss as a going away present as they left the Big East for ABC. Orange::44 Correspondent John Brennan was actually at the game and couldn't have had a better time in enemy territory. Alas, that was all the way back in 2004. It prevented them from going to the Fiesta Bowl. Well, we're playing that Boston College again. So in honor of the renewing of the rivalry the Syracuse version of the BC Fight Song:

(Sung to the tune of the real BC fight song)

If you would have told me South Florida would be in the top half of the league at this point I would have called you crazy. Even more crazy, I'm glad we've already played them and it was in Syracuse. Not that Syracuse needed to be terribly worried as we were still a top 5 team then, but still. Either way, USF now has won four league games in a row, including at #8 Georgetown. DePaul is rightfully at the bottom of the league again after Rutgers picked up their one and only league win in the RAC against Notre Dame this past weekend. Only ten of the 16 teams in the league are above .500 in conference at this point, with four teams sitting at exactly .500. Villanova is at the top, still undefeated in conference play at 9-0. Syracuse just behind with their only loss to Pittsburgh, a team that has lost their last two, both on the road. They very well may fall out of the rankings next week. Otherwise, currently the league has four teams in the top ten. Clearly this is the best league and it should be an exciting second half for the league and Syracuse.

We should not expand the tournament to anything remotely close to 90 plus teams. I'm all for expanding to four play-in games and they don't play the #1 seed, but maybe the #12 seed. Something different. But no way should we go more than that. It will water down the product to which we are talking about teams with 18 or 17 wins making the tournament. It shouldn't happen.

Syracuse was the unanimous selection as preseason favorite to finish first in the league. No kidding? Never would have guessed that. Oh wait, Syracuse will start the season ranked #1 or #2 nationally, they are two-time defending National Champions, and are a team ready for the three-peat. Lacrosse is set to fire up with a scrimmage this weekend, and will start officially later this month with an intriguing game against Denver. Should be a good one and a fun start to the season. Also, congratulations to Providence, the first ever last place selection. Go get 'em.

In this case it isn't a bad thing. Syracuse has announced that the Carrier Dome is officially sold out of tickets for the Villanova tilt coming later this month. A match up that would feature #2 Villanova v. #3/4 Syracuse, potentially #1 v. #2 at that point, will be simply electric and hopefully you either have a ticket or a seat reserved on your couch. 34,616 have been sold, and I imagine it will take forever to go to the bathroom, which I can only assume will be bad as people have all day to drink as this is a 9:00pm tip. I'll be right there with you people. Either way, you're gonna wanna look good and wear orange. So you can purchase the excellent shirt above to fulfill both. You can order online right here.

Thanks for joining me on another omnibus journey through the daily disaster that in Syracuse University athletics. Stay tuned for coverage of the Cincy game, including a Q&A with the only Cincinnati blog out there, coming soon.

It’s been a while since I have written anything here. Bloggers need vacations too, but even so I apologize. Either way, football season is right around the corner. That means that the blog is once again fully open for business and recommitted to the sharp analysis and quality writing that you have come to appreciate from this site. We will also be back to chronicling the daily disaster that is Syracuse University Athletics. Something everyone can appreciate. Today we get back into the fold with a massive grab bag however, addressing several football topics, as well as a little basketball. The new school year approaches, and as a future lawyer waiting for my certification I have a lot of time to do this nonsense for no money and little fame. Let’s get to it.

Bloggers v. The Media
No this isn’t another thread about bloggers versus the mainstream media. Rather this is about the results of various Media Day polls. First, as you saw I submitted a ballot to our little group of bloggers for expert compiling. H/T to Jon from Bleed Scarlet, a fine Rutgers blog, as well as Eye of a Panther for hosting the results. The bloggers agreed with me that USF will win the league this year. Syracuse was picked seventh, with Louisville in the eighth and final spot. The full results are here, as well as picks for individual positions and awards.

That being said, the media had a different take. The “experts” selected Pittsburgh to take the crown, which is not that far fetched a pick. They return 14 starters and will look to improve on their record from last season. The media were uncreative and picked Syracuse to finish last, with L’ville in seventh. The bloggers disagree, so that means Syracuse has to win some more Big East games. Media results here.

Greg Paulus
Greg gets the call up to be starter for the ailing Syracuse offense. An offense that has ranked dead last most of the past several years. With the likes of Perry Patterson, Cameron Dantley, and Andrew Robinson at the helm, clearly Greg Paulus has no where to go but up. Announcing him as the starter will get him more repetitions in practice, and allow him the best chance to win some games for the ailing Orange. I never thought he was going to start this season, but it looks like he is now the guy, and Axeman states my thoughts and the way we all should think about this perfectly.

We In Here Talkin’ ‘Bout Practice
Syracuse kicked off practices in the Carrier Dome last week. God it must be hot as balls in there. It was during band camp for me and I wasn’t in pads and a helmet doing Oklahoma drills. However, all reports are all systems go and there have already been impressive things from the quarterbacks, and a shuffle of the depth chart for the offensive line. The good news is, despite players leaving (which I will get to), hyped QB’s, and a concern for lack of talent, we should see moderate increments of improvement each game and each day. That is a refreshing change from the previous era in SU Football.

Fab
Yes, it is true. Old Man Boeheim still has it. It is funny that only a year or two ago people were actually blogging about how he should retire. Mike Hopkins is still a gem as an assistant and heir apparent. Things are looking great for the future of SU Basketball. While I do think we will finish about the same as we did, about 7th or 6th place, the 2010-2011 season should by all accounts be off the chain.

Meadowlands
Is it cool that we will be having three games there? Yeah I suppose. But really, taking away a chance to fill the Carrier Dome for a USC game seems like sheer robbery for the hometown faithful. That is a chance to generate revenue at home, so I hope either USC or the stadium is shelling out big bucks to Syracuse.

Players Leaving
I have said this point before, so I’ll surely reiterate it here. Players leave for various reasons. Some are just done with football, some just hate the new staff. Mostly and most probable I believe that this coaching staff is making this kids work harder than they ever have, and are also being more critical then they are used to, so they quit. Either way, if they are not willing to put in the work, or they can’t handle a coach critiquing them at this level, then thanks for stopping by and best of luck in the future. It was the soft attitude and obviously weak practices that Greg Robinson led that contributed to this weak play and inability to last all four quarters on the field. Marrone is doing the right thing by putting these people through the toughest regiment of their lives to get back to the level of athletic ability the Syracuse football team should have.

College Gameday
The Gameday crew will once again be in the Carrier Dome on February 27th, 2010 for the contest between Villanova and Syracuse. I have attended the previous two College Gameday affairs in the Carrier Dome, and they are always an exciting game. This should be no exception. The full Gameday slate is here, which includes a women's game from the Big East as well for the first time.

Marrone
Still making all the right moves in my mind. The man is working hard and as he said in a closed meeting to one of my sources a few weeks ago, “we gotta win some fucking games.” Marrone knows what he has to do to keep his job, and that is to turn the SU Football program back into a winner. He publicly says when something is not to his liking, and although many things are “tremendous” to him, we are not getting the same double talk and sheer delusions that we did the previous four years. It is a refreshing change and at the very least already an improvement over before.

I do have to give some dap to some folks that have done quality work all summer while I have been studying/test taking/goofing off. Sean at Nunes/Magician has always been solid, but the guys over at Orange Fizz are doing some really underrated work and as we all know they were on top of the Fab Melo situation from the start. Kudos to you folks and keep up the good work.

So there are some of the topics circulating but I have a golf game to get to. Either way, the regular writing of articles will commence again right here at Orange::44 so check back often. Starting on September 1st we here at Orange::44 will bring back our Big East Prospectus, a comprehensive and critical guide to each Big East team and specifically the Orange’s realistic chances of picking up a W on them. It will again be a must read for you Big East football fans out there, all 17 of you. That will again premier September 1st, with two teams being released each day until Friday, the day before Syracuse begins their 2009 football campaign in the Carrier Dome against Minnesota at 12:00pm. You can always keep up with me via twitter as well right here.

The next quarterback of the SU Football team?

God damn I hate Duke. Anyone that did not go there does as well most likely. My good friend Sean from Troy Nunes is an Absolute Magician just had to know what I thought about this guy. He also asks me about the Big East next season, some basketball, some lacrosse, and M Street bars of yesteryear. It is riveting as always. Enjoy the latest Orange::44 is an Absolute Magician.