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Syracuse football notebook: Florida State

One receiver hits a new milestone, while a new coordinator rejuvenates the SU offense.

Record Breakers

Florida State wide receiver Rashad Greene had six catches against Syracuse on Saturday, but one of them had added significance.

With his fifth catch of the game in the third quarter, Greene set a new school record with 213 career receptions, passing the previous mark set by Ron Sellers in 1968.

Greene has also caught a pass in 35 consecutive games and is only four behind Rodney Smith's program record.

Meanwhile, teammate Nick O'Leary broke the Seminoles record for career receptions by a tight end with his 83rd catch, which came on the first passing play of the game. The senior also holds the school record for career touchdowns by a tight end.

Streak Breakers

Syracuse's touchdown wth 6:21 remaining in the third quarter ended a drought dating back to September.

The score was the first by the SU offense since Terrel Hunt's touchdown run against Notre Dame on the opening play of the fourth quarter on Sept. 27. That equates to roughly a 112-minute stretch of game time.

The Orange's two second-half touchdowns were orchestrated by Tim Lester, who served as SU's offensive coordinator for the first time Saturday. The former quarterbacks coach said he was pleased with the mental fortitude of both Austin Wilson and AJ Long during their first extended college experience.

"I was impressed with their decision-making," Lester said. "They were going to the right place most of the time. AJ (Long) did a good job with his feet. It was the first time, so hopefully we get better from here."

Heart Breakers

The Orange had a number of chances to make a big play and swing momentum in its favor, but once again failed to execute in crucial situations.

SU's secondary dropped two would-be interceptions, including one on a deep throw by Seminoles quarterback Jameis Winston in the second quarter. Durell Eskridge got both hands on the ball, but could not corral it. Winston eventually threw a touchdown to put Syracuse in a 14-point hole.

Meanwhile, the Orange offense had two disastrous sequences in or near the red zone.

The first came late in the second quarter when SU faced first and goal at the FSU 10-yard line down 24-6. After failing to reach the end zone on three-straight runs, Lester dailed up a fade pass for Wilson on fourth down. However, freshman Steve Ishmael couldn't hold on to the ball, and the Orange failed to score.

The second came off a muffed punt by FSU's Jesus Wilson with just under four minutes left in the third quarter. On first down at the Seminoles' 21-yard line, Long tried to throw a pass away, but was instead intercepted by Nate Andrews.

Field hockey: first ACC victory over Louisville highlights weekend sweep

Laura Hurff's three goals lead SU to its third and fourth victories in a row.

No. 13 Syracuse vs. No. 5 Louisville

After being outscored 9-3 through its first three Atlantic Coast Conference games, Syracuse finally found an offensive groove against the Cardinals (10-3, 3-2 ACC).

Freshman Laura Hurff scored a pair of goals to help the Orange (9-3, 1-3 ACC) upset the Cardinals, 3-1, at J.S. Coyne Stadium Saturday.

"At the end of the day, we were aggressive and we came out to play like we are a viable contender for an ACC championship," SU head coach Ange Bradley said.

Hurff opened the scoring in the 28th minute when she redriceted a shot from Annalena Ulbrich past Louisville goalkeeper Sydney King.

Emma Russell later doubled the lead on a give-and-go by Alyssa Manley early in the second half, and Hurff added the insurance tally midway through the frame.

SU outshot the Cardinals 19-7.

No. 13 Syracuse at Cornell

Without much rest, the Orange boarded a bus to Ithaca to face Cornell (8-3) on Sunday. Luckily, it brought its offensive magic along for the ride.

Hurff scored once again, and Ulbrich tallied two goals of her own to lead SU in a 5-0 rout of the Big Red.

Ulbrich, Russell and Hurff all scored to give SU a 3-0 lead at the half, while Ulbrich and fellow breakout freshman Lieke Visser padded the lead in the second period.

Ulbrich now leads the Orange (10-3) with 10 goals this season, while Visser leads the team with 28 points.

Syracuse will face Wake Forest on Saturday at 1 p.m. in Winston-Salem, N.C.

SU football notes: Quarterback Terrel Hunt to miss 4-6 weeks

Additionally, Scott Shafer is making significant changes to his staff.

Syracuse will face the No. 1 team in the country Saturday, but it will have to do so without one of its best offensive weapons.

Quarterback Terrel Hunt, who left during the fourth quarter of Friday's loss to Louisville, has a fractured fibula in his left leg and will miss 4-6 weeks according to a press release from Syracuse Athletics.

Hunt leads the Orange with six rushing touchdowns this season and has also thrown for 983 yards.

Head coach Scott Shafer has not announced who will start against top-ranked Florida State on Saturday. Austin Wilson has been the Orange's primary backup this season.

Lester Promoted

Following another sluggish performance against the Cardinals, the Orange offense is getting a new play-caller on the side lines.

Shafer also announced today that Tim Lester will replace George McDonald as offensive coordinator effective immediately. McDonald will continue to serve as a wide receivers coach.

Lester was previously an offensive coordinator at St. Joseph's College and Elmhurst College.

Men's soccer game against Colgate cancelled

No makeup date has been set for the non-conference matchup.

Mother Nature made sure the Syracuse University men's soccer team didn't have a chance to build on its breakthrough victory over Virginia this past weekend.

The Orange's Tuesday night match against Colgate was cancelled due to lightning in the area around SU Soccer Stadium. No makeup date has been scheduled.

SU (8-1-0, 2-1-0 Atlantic Coast) will return to action on Saturday, as it travels to Blacksburg, Va., to face Virginia Tech at 7 p.m. 

ESPN broadcaster Beth Mowins visits Syracuse

The Syracuse alum spoke to students about her career, the future of women in the play-by-play booth.

Beth Mowins has called a lot of games during her career as a broadcaster, but one stands out more than any other.

She can vividly recall every detail of the night she met NBA legend Michael Jordan while working for NBA Radio.

"Michael walked over and shook my hand," Mowins said with a smile. "This is the most famous person in the world, and then to be able to sit courtside and Michael's running up and down the floor... that was one of my ultimate highlights."

Mowins shared that story and many others with students in Newhouse III on Monday night. During the lecture, which was presented by the Newhouse Sports Media Center, the 1990 SU graduate and current ESPN broadcaster spoke about her own rise to broadcasting fame and the ever-changing landscape of boradcast media in sports.

Mowins grew up in Syracuse and kickstarted her career by working for campus media outlets and local television and radio stations. She was eventually hired by ESPN in 1994, where she now works today as a play-by-play voice for college football and other sports.

Mowins answered a variety of questions, many of which were related to her weekly preparation and personal experiences. She also shared her thoughts on why males still dominate the air waves in the play-by-play realm.

"It certainly doesn't help when some women in the profession act a certain way," she said. "For anybody new that shows up on the scene, you just have to prove yourself. It's important to be as professional as possible in that environment."

Ultimately, Mowins said the most important steps for an aspiring broadcaster are building relationships with other professionals and always volunterring to work, with or without compensation.

The only way to get better is to keep practicing.

"The important thing is not necessarily to worry about the road, but just to keep moving forward and working hard," Mowins said. "Keep pressing on for those opportunities and make yourself available to them."

Eight questions for improv comic Brad Sherwood

The 'Whose Line is It Anyway?' star talks candidly with The NewsHouse about creating comedy on the spot and making people laugh for more than two decades.

Armed with nothing but their imaginations, comedians Brad Sherwood and Colin Mochrie have been delivering laughter to cities across the United States since 2003.

And their next stop happens to be here in Syracuse.

Sherwood and Mochrie, famous for their roles on the popular improvisational comedy program Whose Line is It Anyway?, will perform their stage show, “Two Man Group,” at The Oncenter Crouse Hinds Theater on Thursday, Sept. 25 at 7:30 p.m. Using suggestions from the audience, the duo will create hilarious original scenes that delight both children and adults.

In an exclusive interview with The NewsHouse, Sherwood, 49, talked about his journey to improv stardom and life on the road with one of his best friends.

You’ve been doing improv for a long time. When did you first realize it was something you wanted to do for a career?

Sherwood: I started acting when I was eight, so I always knew that I wanted to be some type of a performer. I didn’t really find out about improv until I was in college. I went to see a show with a three-man improv group, and I was just blown away by it and was hooked ever since. I moved out to (Los Angeles) out of college, got into an improv workshop and group and never stopped after that.

Your big break came when you were cast on the British version of “Whose Line.” Now, you’ve had the chance to perform on three different versions of the show. What has been the most rewarding part of that experience and working with such talented performers?

It’s been really fun, just because I love doing improv and it’s my favorite type of performing. To get paid to do it live on the road with Colin and do it on the "Whose Line" shows has just been amazing. "Whose Line" has brought improv to the awareness of American culture, so it’s cool to be the old guard of getting this art form out to everybody in the world.

Colin Brad

Why do you think the show has been able to maintain its immense popularity for more than 20 years?

I think something that’s fun about improv in general is that you’re seeing comedy, but you’re also, in a sense, seeing a magic act. It makes you laugh and it fills you with wonder. "How did they do that?" It’s more impressive than watching funny stand-up. They’ve written that act and they keep re-writing it, changing it constantly, whereas we’re flying on the seat of our pants. It also has a broad popularity with different age groups. Kids that are 8 or 10 years old watch it, and their parents and grandparents like it. There’s no stand-up that is that broad in appeal.

You’ve been touring with Colin for 11 years now. Why did you two decide to pair up and tour live?

The thing is that when you’re touring with 10 or more people, you don’t get to be on stage as much. You play a game and then you sit down and watch two games. Colin and I are stage hogs, so we wanted to be onstage the whole time. I had been touring for a while with a buddy of mine doing a two-man show in comedy clubs, and so I approached him and said, "I’ve sort of figured out a way to do the show with just two people. You want to take it on the road and give it a try?" We did a two-week tour, and it went well so we both said, "Let’s keep doing this."

How do you balance the demands of the tour with “Whose Line” and some of your other comedy projects?

I think we both agree that (this show) is the best job that we’ve ever had. It takes a lot of priority. We obviously move our schedule around when we’re shooting "Whose Line," and Colin has lots of other gigs that he does in Canada. The traveling part can be exhausting, but when you get to do your dream job and traveling is the only problem, it’s not that big a deal.

Does it ever cross your minds that you’ve made millions of people happy through the years just by doing something you enjoy so much?

It doesn’t usually cross our mind until we meet somebody after a show that says, "I just want to thank you because a family member was really sick, and we used to watch 'Whose Line' when they were in the hospital." Then it sort of brings it back into perspective because we think we’re just being jerks and trying to entertain. We forget the importance and the therapeutic value of laughter for people with hard times in their life. Sometimes, it’s just to make someone spit milk through their nose, but for other people it really is important.

Obviously the show is completely dependent on suggestions from the audience. Can you really do anything to prepare?

The only thing we do before a show is write up a set list of games that we’re going to do that night. We always try to vary that up and come up with new games, especially when we go somewhere we’ve been before… As a true purist improviser, you should be able to take the worst suggestion and make it as good as the best suggestion. That’s your job. We trust in our ability to turn into gold anything that we’re doing.

For someone new to improv or unfamiliar with the genre, what can they expect Thursday night?

Expect to see how our brains work to turn these unusual suggestions into something funny. It’s almost like you’re handing a chef a bunch of crappy ingredients that couldn’t possibly make good food, and we’re turning it into something delicious.

 

Baldwinsville, Cicero-North Syracuse added to Frozen Dome Classic

Schools will play first high school hockey game in Carrier Dome.

The Baldwinsville Bees and Cicero-North Syracuse Northstars, both Section III rivals, will face off in the Carrier Dome at 6 p.m. on Nov. 21 as part of the Toyota Frozen Dome Classic, the Syracuse Crunch announced in a press release Tuesday. It will be the first-ever high school hockey game played in the Dome.

"The possibility for our student athletes to participate in the events surrounding the Toyota Frozen Dome Classic is a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence," Section III Executive Director John Rathbun said. "It is also a golden opportunity for Section III to showcase the quality of ice hockey that is being played within Central and Northern New York."

Admission to the game is included with the purchase of a Frozen Dome Classic ticket. The weekend festivities also include a charity game between Syracuse and Utica law enforcement, a contest between SUNY Oswego and Utica College and the headline game featuring the Crunch and Utica Comets, all on Nov. 22.

Tickets for the event are available at the Carrier Dome Box Office and the War Memorial Arena at 800 S. State St. in downtown Syracuse.

Syracuse soccer player Hanna Strong releases apology

Strong makes first statement since using offensive language in viral online video.

Syracuse women's soccer player Hanna Strong has issued an apology following her indefinite suspension from the team this past weekend.

According to Mike Waters of syracuse.com, Hanna's father, Drew Strong, spoke with a reporter Tuesday evening before his daughter offered a personal apology via email. The apology read:

"I don't know how to express how truly sorry I am for my actions displayed in the recent online video. The words I chose are equally cruel and hurtful and do not reflect in any way how I view those it may have offended.

"The video does not accurately represent who I am or the person I strive to become. However, I put myself in a situation that resulted in this behavior and I take all the responsibility for my actions.

"To the Black and LGBT Communities, Coach Wheddon, Dr. Gross, both the athletic and academic community that is Syracuse University, and to my family, friends, and all those that have supported me: My sincere regret and apologies."

Strong was indefinitely suspended from the team Saturday after an Instagram video that showed her using racial and homophobic language went viral.

In response to the video, a campus forum is planned for Friday, Sept. 12, between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. in Grant Auditorium. The meeting, which is organized by the Syracuse University chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, will provide an open space for students, faculty and staff to comment on diversity issues, said Danielle Reed, a Spanish and African American Studies senior who is involved in the planning as a member of the NAACP’s executive board.

In some ways, Reed said, the forum will be a continuation of the conversation started at the meeting in Goldstein Student Center on Saturday, called in response to the video just hours after it went viral on social media. Organizers of Friday’s forum, including a staff mediator, will open the two-hour event by showing the Hanna Strong video and reactionary Tweets, with the intention that participants can then have an educated conversation on what happened.

“You should be able to come into this forum without knowing anything that happened on campus last week,” Reed said, adding that attendees will leave better-informed. Organizers will also tie in the ongoing controversy in Ferguson, Mo., before opening the microphones for public comment.

Although the forum is independent of the community forum promised by Chancellor Kent Syverud in a Sunday evening email, Reed said the chancellor will be invited to attend. 

Safe spaces to discuss issues of race and identity are rare on campus, said Michelle Bowen, a policy studies and critical and rhetorical studies senior who has been active in student response to the video. She said this was a key point raised in breakout discussions at Saturday’s meeting, and one of the ideas that organizers sent to the chancellor in an email following the same-day meeting.

“This is our school,” Bowen said. “We’re paying the money. We need to be the ones standing up and speaking out.”

For Reed, Strong’s video has acted as a rallying point for breaking open important conversations on campus. “What she said are things that get said on a daily basis on this campus,” Reed said of Strong. “The only difference is that it was caught on video.”

“But had it not been for the video, I can promise you that we wouldn’t be hosting a forum so quickly and people wouldn’t be so excited to attend.” 

Nicki Gorny contributed reporting to this story.

Men's soccer notebook: Orange ready for ACC opener against Notre Dame

SU faces the defending national champion Saturday night.

Although undefeated through four games, Syracuse still believes it has something to prove.

Especially with the defending NCAA champion coming to town.

With Notre Dame scheduled to invade SU Soccer Stadium on Saturday, the Orange is hoping to open its second Atlantic Coast Conference slate with a statement victory.

"They're a big team coming in here, and they're going to be a big test for us overall," senior defender Chris Makowski said. "We have to show them and the ACC that we are a good team, and we mean business."

SU finished 3-7-1 in 2013 conference play, and one of those losses was a 3-0 shutout by the Irish on Sept. 13.

However, goalkeeper Alex Bono said this Orange team is different from a year ago. Now ranked in the top 25 of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll, SU has more offensive weapons and an improved back line.

They should help the Orange be a more serious contender.

"With what we're seeing around the ACC, we believe that we have a team that can go as far as we can in the ACC Tournament," Bono said. "We're excited to get to play in the ACC, and Saturday will be a good start for it."

Pro Bono

Speaking of Bono, the junior has begun the 2014 season with four shutouts. He is already halfway to his total from last season, and his career mark has climbed to 22.

Head coach Ian McIntyre said Bono is a completely different goalkeeper from last season and even the preseason.

"He's evolving," McIntyre said. "You see that with his training habits, and his presence is evolving as well."

Bono doesn't point to any mechanical adjustment for his sensational play. Instead, he credits the entire team's hard work and mental fortitude.

"When you're playing with confidence and you just have those days where you're feeling like nothing is going past you, those are the best days you can have," Bono said. "It's just a different feeling on the field that we can play with any team in the nation that we may not have had in years past."

Syracuse women's basketball receives ACC schedule

Games against Notre Dame, North Carolina highlight home lineup.

The Atlantic Coast Conference announced its complete women's basketball schedule for the 2014-15 season Tuesday morning, according to Syracuse Athletics.

Syracuse, which enters its second season in the ACC, will play 16 conference games. Eight of those will be held at the Carrier Dome.

The Orange opens conference play on Jan. 4 in the Dome against 2014 national finalist Notre Dame. Seven total games will come against opponents from last season's NCAA Tournament field.

Here is the complete conference schedule with home games in bold:

Notre Dame, Jan. 4, 1 p.m.

At Duke, Jan. 8, 6:30 p.m.

Virginia, Jan. 11, 1 p.m.

Wake Forest, Jan. 15, 7 p.m.

At Boston College, Jan. 18, 1 p.m.

At Pittsburgh, Jan. 22, 7 p.m.

NC State, Jan. 25, 3 p.m.

At Louisville, Jan. 29, 7 p.m.

At Florida State, Feb. 2, 7 p.m.

North Carolina, Feb. 5, 7 p.m.

At Georgia Tech, Feb. 8, 2 p.m.

Miami, Feb. 12, 7 p.m.

At Virginia Tech, Feb. 15, 2 p.m.

Boston College, Feb. 19, 7 p.m.

Pittsburgh, Feb. 22, 2 p.m.

At Clemson, Feb. 26, 7 p.m.

The 2015 ACC Women's Basketball Tournament will be held March 4-8 in Greensboro, N.C.