Terrel Hunt’s achilles injury is devastating. He was set to take the reigns back after the team faltered when he went down with a league injury and he was ripe for a great comeback story. However, it was not to be as the Hunt is now done for the season. Hunt may be granted a medical redshirt which would allow him a sixth year, however, it should not, and most likely will not be at SU.
Last season, when Hunt went down with a severe leg injury, two young quarterbacks got a shot to lead the Orange offense. Neither A.J. Long nor Austin Wilson were overly impressive in their somewhat limited time under center. They bothsaw their role as the back-up disappear as Eric Dungey emerged as Scott Shafer’s second option at QB. Now, Dungey, coming off of a strong showing against Rhode Island is the starter and the Orange are left with three young QBs on the depth chart.
It seems very likely that Dungey will be handed the keys to the offense and he will be given the chance to assert himself as the quarterback of the future. If he is able to do so, there is really no place for Hunt on the team. Neither Hunt nor the Orange benefit from a sixth year senior sitting on the bench behind a true sophomore.
Even if Dungey fails to completely convince Shafer and Co. that he is worthy of the starting job, Hunt would have to compete with four young QBs in 2016 as the Orange are set to add Rex Culpepper. Again, it is hard to see much of a role for Hunt on that team.
It is hard to justify impeding the process of young quarterbacks for a guy who can’t seem to stay healthy.
There is no doubt Hunt was an important part of Syracuse’s run to the 2013 Texas Bowl, but sadly, through no fault of his own, his time on The Hill looks like it is coming to an end.
