In a week where Syracuse has lost some talent, the Orange have added the graduate transfer Wide Reciever Amba Etta-Tawo from the University of Maryland. Etta-Tawo has graduated and is eligible to play immediately. He joins a largely unchanged receiver core from last season, with Ben Lewis being the only one to depart the school.
Etta-Tawo is not someone who will come to Syracuse and light up opposing defenses. His transfer to Syracuse could be loosely compared to John Gillon’s transfer to the SU basketball team. Etta-Tawo played three seasons for the Terrapins after redshriting his freshman year in 2012. Over the three seasons at Maryland he had 61 total receptions for a total of 938 yards.
By far his best season at UMD was his second year on campus, his redshirt freshman season. He totaled 31 receptions for 500 yards and two touchdowns. His best game this past season was the most difficult game on the Maryland schedule. On the road against Michigan State, Etta-Tawo grabbed five receptions for 63 yards. He finished the 2015 season with no touchdown receptions.
Etta-Tawo’s greatest contribution to this football team, like Gillon’s may be on the basketball team, is experience. Though Etta-Tawo has not been a top threat for the Terrapins, he does have four years of experience being on a college football team, three years of actual playing experience.
Dino Baber’s offense, from his quarterback to his running backs and receivers, are largely young and inexperienced. While the core receivers in Ervin Philips, Steve Ishmael and Brisly Estime are all upperclassmen, there is a plethora¬†of young receivers on the roster.
Etta-Tawo can provide some depth to a team that has suffered through some serious injury problems the past couple of seasons. In short, it is never a bad thing to surround a young quarterback, like Eric Dungey, with experienced players and the transfer of Amba Etta-Tawo just adds a little more experience to Eric Dungey’s arsenal of weapons.
