Finishing up our annual recap series with the TNIAAM staff’s best work (at least from my point of view).
Though I do write quite a bit around here, TNIAAM is truly a group effort and this place couldn’t function without the rest of the gang here. You’ve certainly read plenty of their contributions around the Syracuse Orange over the course of 2021. But I still wanted to shine a spotlight on the best articles from the blog’s other writers and editors.
These aren’t ranked below, but I’ve put them in chronological order just to see how the year progressed. Thanks to everyone on the TNIAAM staff for helping me and the site stay afloat despite every curveball thrown our way.
Syracuse women’s lacrosse’s 2021 season: A true success story (John Orsenigo)
John puts a triumphant exclamation point on the Orange women’s lacrosse team’s 2021 season despite the team falling just short in the title game. Despite a year of tumult around SU sports overall, the WLAX squad’s success was a definitive bright spot.
Hello World: Women’s sports are growing and no glass ceiling can stop them (Sara Stanley)
Former Orange women’s basketball writer Sara talked about the issues around women’s sports, both in terms of how athletes are treated by the NCAA and TV partners. It’s a worthwhile read that 2022 will need to respond to (especially when it comes to the NCAA Tournament).
The Council of 44 conclave commences (Kevin Wall)
The Council of 44 bit was a great distraction from Syracuse avoiding handing Sean Tucker 44 all year, plus it was a great example of jokes and garbage if I’ve ever seen one. It also would’ve been too easy to lean on Kevin’s fine work tracking Jim Boeheim’s wardrobe instead.
Someone needs to get Syracuse’s other wide receivers involved in the passing game (Christian De Guzman)
This was before Taj Harris departed via the transfer portal. But Christian did ID some of the bigger issues around the Orange offense before they became debilitating ones later on in 2021.
Which coaching decisions actually cost Syracuse football the game against Wake Forest? (Andy Pregler)
Remember when we could ID just a few decisions as the problems for Syracuse football after a loss? Good times. Andy looked at some of the decisions that helped create a loss for the Orange vs. Wake Forest.
The unsolved mystery of how Mario & Salvo’s Pizzeria became the designated post-game meal for Syracuse basketball (James Szuba)
I don’t want to reduce James’s contributions here to an article “just” about pizza, but this sort of piece is exactly the sort of thing that keeps me enjoying TNIAAM. It’s also one of the most-read pieces of the year here.
Syracuse football 2021 season report card: Offensive line (Steve Haller)
Credit to Steve for rewatching every game each season with a keen eye on the offensive line play. While this year’s was certainly improved over the last couple seasons, it’s still a big lift and these pieces always wind up teaching me something I didn’t know about specific players or overall line play.
The Vonn Read Dilemma (Jonathan Kinane)
Yes, a recent addition, but a good one considering the unique situation Syracuse women’s basketball is in right now. We’re obviously not rooting against the team while they continue to win. But the more that happens, the weirder this all becomes as the athletic department stares out into its future.
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And that’s just scratching the surface of what TNIAAM’s staff did in 2021. So if a piece wasn’t included here, that’s no indication it lacked quality. There was just a lot of great things to read here over the last 12 months. Hopefully re-reading the articles above also lead you to rediscovering others contributed by all of our writers. Thanks again for being here with us.
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