Rob Spence arrived at Syracuse an offensive play-calling cowboy. He leaves as a cow patty.
Known for his wide-open offense and swash-buckling ways, Spence seemed like the perfect fit for an Orange offense that had recently paid homage to Yale’s 1901 attack.
Ironically, the Pelham, NY native and Iona graduate seemed much more at home in his straw fedora and shades, implementing a high-powered offense down among the mangroves and pulled-pork of South Carolina.
At Clemson, Spence oversaw one of the most versatile attacks in the ACC. This season with the Orange? SU’s offense looked as sluggish as Otto the morning after Flip Night at Faegan’s.
Five times SU was held under two touchdowns and the three-game losing streak against Cincinnati, Pitt and Louisville in which the Orange scored a measly 26 points summoned the grim reaper.
It should be noted, Clemson had fired Spence in the wake of the Tommy Bowden blood-letting, so it wasn’t quite that SU had stolen a guy from under the nose of a perennial Top-25 team.
After becoming victim (alongside Derrick Jackson and Jaime Elizondo) to Marrone’s sickle yesterday, Spence has been let go twice in a calendar year.
Right now anything is possible (and not in the euphoric Kevin Garnett way).
Could Marrone take over the play-calling duties? Will The Krag, aka Steve Kragthorpe, be coming to The Hill to orchestrate the offense? Is there enough Dinosaur BBQ to sway Charlie Weis into a CNY visit?
Time to break out the game film of those 1901 Yalies.
