SU football has a been a revolving door of coaches ever since the Pinstripe Bowl. First, coordinators Tony White and Robert Anae departed the program on the same day. White’s hiring at Nebraska left holes in the secondary, and Anae’s move to NC State also meant the Orange were without a tight ends coach. Then, Nick Monroe left for Minnesota after the bowl game, and today, another Syracuse coach is off to another ACC foe. Chip West, the ‘Cuse’s former cornerbacks coach, is headed down South.
West spent nine years in the ACC, three of those with SU. Every starting cornerback he worked with on the Hill received all-conference accolades. He does have prior relationships with Wake HC Dave Clawson (coached together at Fordham) and DC Brad Lambert (worked together at Charlotte and Marshall).
It seems like this move is more a symptom of what Rocky Long wants to do defensively. After Monroe departed the 315, it was quickly reported that SU would hire Travis Fisher from Nebraska as the new cornerbacks coach. Maybe Long is forcing out the old guys to teach new techniques, which wouldn’t make a whole lot of sense given the same 3-3-5 defense will be played next year. Of course, salaries are also a real thing in college coaching. If the money is better, people will leave without blinking an eye.
Syracuse and Dino Babers have responded well. Jason Beck was promote to OC almost immediately after Anae left, and did a decent job in the Pinstripe Bowl. Nunzio Campanile was hired as the tight end coach last week. The key now has to be retention. Garrett Shrader should not have to play five years of football with five offensive coordinators. Nor should a defense which was full of talented young starters be forced to learn new terminology and technique year after year.
Offensively, it seems as if the Orange have all the holes patched up. And defensively, it seems like Long is getting close. Let’s just hope it sticks.
