Syracuse moved to 2-1 over the weekend with a blowout win over I-90 rival UAlbany. These kinds of games are often referred to as stat sheet stuffer opportunities. For our purposes, these kinds of games are considered easy stock up fantasies. Let’s decipher whose stock is actually up and not just a one hit wonder performance. If you missed week two’s nominees click here.
Stock Up
DL Cody Roscoe
Yeah, the McNeese State transfer was on this list last week but his stock continues to ascend like an airplane. Roscoe followed up a seven tackle performance against Rutgers with a three sack outing against the Great Danes. The Texas native is getting more and more reps with Kingsley Jonathan still on the sideline. Defensive Coordinator Tony White has plenty of options to work with in the trenches.
QB Tommy DeVito
This isn’t based on the fifth year quarterback’s performance but rather optics. The New Jersey native didn’t play a single snap in the second half after earning the start on Saturday. This should lead critics to believe that DeVito will be the starting quarterback on Friday night against Liberty.
RB Jarveon Howard
The Mississippi native saw little no time before Saturday but he took advantage of the carries allotted to him against the Great Danes. Howard ran six times for 76 yards, a bulk of the output coming on a 50-yard burst. The Orange need to develop depth behind Sean Tucker for the treacherous ACC slate. Perhaps Howard is SU’s RB2 going forward.
WR Damien Alford
The Canadien saw extended action against UAlbany with Taj Harris on the sideline. All the second year freshman did was house call his first career reception. Alford flashed his length and big play ability, burning the corner and reeling in a beautifully thrown deep ball from DeVito. Does the six-foot, five pass catcher get more reps as the season progresses? Maybe it’s just what the doctor ordered for this ‚ÄòCuse offense.
WR Devaughn Cooper
The Utep and Arizona transfer is probably someone you’ve never heard of. If you were a champ and kept Saturday’s game on for the second half, you saw Cooper slicing and dicing the UAlbany defense. The Los Angeles native caught the first three passes of his Syracuse career and racked up 26 yards in the process. His skillset is something that could be used in the slot on short yardage situations. Cooper’s game is comparable to former SU receiver Nykeim Johnson.
Stock Down
RB Cooper Lutz
Let me preface our first nominee by saying that it’s really hard to find stock down options when you play an FCS team and win by 38 points. With that being said, Lutz was on this list last week and he‚Äôs here once again after touching the ball one time. It appears that both Howard and Abdul Adams have passed him on the depth chart.
WR Sharod Johnson
The only reason Johnson’s stock is down is because he did nothing to cement his status as a difference maker on the outside. Instead, Alford seized the opportunity and made a head-turning play. It wasn’t like that touchdown came in garbage time either because DeVito threw the pass and as previously mentioned didn’t play any of the insignificant time of the game. Just one catch for eleven yards for Johnson on Saturday. His spot might be in jeopardy despite still being listed as the starter in the week four depth chart.
We’ll be back this time next week for another edition of Syracuse Football stock up/stock down. Have suggestions? Shoot them to us @orangefizz on Twitter or hit the comment section below!
