AJ Long

April 7, 2015 - 9:16am
The Orange offense was once again stuck in neutral through much of the annual scrimmage event.

Syracuse football fans got their first look at the 2015 Orange squad at the Carrier Dome on Saturday during the program's annual "spring game."

Although there was no game clock or score kept during the course of the event, more than 4,000 fans were treated to an afternoon of activity, including free hot dogs and post-game "selfie stations" on the field with players and coaches.

Here are a few nuggets from a busy afternoon at the Dome:

Hunt's Catch-up

November 27, 2014 - 3:11am
The Panthers pile up 256 rushing yards in a convincing 23-point victory.

A Pittsburgh defense that had given up an astounding 147 points over its past three games presented the Syracuse offense with a great opportunity to turn around what has been a dismal season.

November 3, 2014 - 9:54pm
After surrendering a second-half lead against N.C. State, SU must now win all of its remaining games to qualify for a bowl.

With less than five minutes remaining in the third quarter, Syracuse quarterback AJ Long was intercepted by N.C. State defensive end Pharoah McKever.  

McKever, who played wide receiver last year before switching to the defense in 2014, returned the interception for an 82-yard touchdown that put the Wolfpack ahead for good. 

“I really never ran that far in a long time, so when I got that ball my intention was to just go, go, go,” McKever said. 

October 28, 2014 - 4:34pm
SU's defense forces four turnovers, but the offense fails to reach the end zone in a 10-point defeat.

Few people expected Syracuse to handle the pressure of a big-time road game, especially not the team’s first trip to “Death Valley” against the No. 21 Clemson Tigers.

Surrounded by fireworks, balloons and 80,031 screaming Tigers fans, the Orange walked into an electric Memorial Stadium. It was the largest crowd to witness a Syracuse football game since 2009, when the Orange played at Penn State (106,387).

But after a hard-fought 16-6 loss to the Tigers, the mood in the Orange locker room was extremely somber.

October 20, 2014 - 5:28pm
A pair of defensive touchdowns propels SU to its first conference victory.

More than 25,000 fans were sprinkled in the stands on a sunny afternoon at BB&T Field in Winston-Salem, N.C., to see two Atlantic Coast Conference teams battle for their first conference victory this season. 

Instead, they witnessed a Syracuse blowout. 

The Orange (3-4) scored two defensive touchdowns and piled up 199 rushing yards to rout Wake Forest, 30-7. 

October 11, 2014 - 8:32pm
The freshmen connected for two touchdowns to help the Orange build offensive momentum for the rest of the season.

Right now, Syracuse simply does not have the firepower needed on either side of the ball to compete for Atlantic Coast Conference championships or be a nationally-recognized threat.

But Saturday afternoon, quarterback AJ Long and wide receiver Steve Ishmael showed the No. 1-ranked team in the country the Orange could reach that level fairly soon.

September 30, 2014 - 1:49pm
The $13 million project will help eliminate scheduling conflicts and weather woes for the Orange.

Syracuse University hopes its new indoor football-training facility’s full-size practice field, large roof and state-of-the-art equipment will impress new recruits, as well as ease the already-busy schedules of student-athletes.

“One of the biggest amenities is their time,” said Joe Giansante, an executive in the university’s athletics department, referring to student-athletes.