Syracuse football: ACC Kickoff Recap

Of course we brought our punter

It was the Syracuse Orange’s turn at the ACC Kickoff in Charlotte yesterday. We start with the fashion, then we’ll get some words from the Orange attendees. Let us know which look was the best from the players…not fair to put them up against Fran.

Fran Brown

Of course the big topic was the starting quarterback battle and Fran kept it down the middle saying “(We have) Two really good quarterbacks..” and adding that it’s not the only position battle when camp opens up “No one’s safe for us. Everyone is competing to play, at every single position” Brown reiterated that the goal is to play for a National Championship.

Fran talked about the Orange having the “strongest non-conference schedule in the country” and that he felt he won a recruiting battle when he kept Jeff Nixon in Syracuse. If you’re in marketing and looking for a new t-shirt slogan, this one might work, “You practice all week to win, you don’t practice to lose.”

Berry Buxton III

Buxton was very candid about the play of the defense last year. “Last year we didn’t perform to our standard”. He said that that the returning players have taken accountability and that they believe that they can be better on that side of the ball, even after the departure of Wax, Clark, Diggs and Barron to the NFL: “We’re still the MOB. We want to be a tenacious defense and hold each other accountable”

Rickie Collins

When Collins was asked about the competition with Steve Angeli, Collins said “he’ll bring the best out of me and I’ll do the same for him.” He said he’s excited about some of the offensive players the Orange will deploy this season saying that the word which comes to mind is explosion, “We’ve got a lot of guys who can turn short plays into one-play drives for us”

Like Fran Brown, Collins said that OC Jeff Nixon is an important part of the puzzle: “He’s getting me ready for the next level.”

Dan Villari

One of those offensive weapons is the man Fran Brown said would lead the tight end room. Villari spoke about overcoming position changes, transferring and injury telling the media, “Every tough time has been like a chip added to my armor. I’m fully equipped this year”

You can see why Fran likes Villari when he says things like this “We’re a bunch of really tough dudes….and a head coach that’s an absolute dawg”

Jack Stonehouse

Of course #PunterU knows about the importance of the job and The Coffin Corner Cowboy said he’s been working with an Orange legend in the off-season: “I’ve talked to Riley Dixon. I’ve gone out punting with him before. He’s teaching me how to be more consistent” (Maybe he’s even teaching Stonehouse some trickery too)

You can watch the full recap on the ACC Digital Network and media days mean camp is just around the corner.