With just hours until kickoff of the 2024 college football season for Syracuse, there’s many different things that fans can be excited about. A new coach, a new stadium look, a brand-new roster and more. But when you turn to the actual Xs and Os, it’s a Texas A&M transfer – defensive lineman Fadil Diggs – who has a chance to make the biggest week one impact.
Of course there’s many arguments to be made about an offensive guy for that title. Kyle McCord is one of the most hyped Syracuse quarterbacks in recent history. Oronde Gadsden is back. There’s not one, but two receiver transfers from Georgia.
That’s a lot of good options. But there’s not much debate of whether Syracuse is going to score points today. The Orange are the heavy betting favorites and have a major home field advantage in week one.
Instead, week one is going to be the showcase of a brand new defense. And with that, Diggs has a chance to showcase his skillset early on.
New Syracuse defensive coordinator Elijah Robinson also came over from Texas A&M and quickly implemented a new 4-2-5 defensive scheme for the Orange. With now four defensive lineman and two linebackers, SU on paper should have more control at the line and find it easier to break through to the quarterback.
That’s where Diggs comes into play. The senior started 12 games last year for the Aggies, but only had four sacks to go with it. Syracuse will certainly take four sacks, but Diggs has a big chance in week one to show he can be even more dominant this season.
It also helps playing a rather-inexperienced quarterback. Ohio starter Parker Navarrao has one career start in college, and Ohio lost their leading rusher and seven (yes, seven) leading receivers from a year ago.
Diggs has a chance to take control against a possibly disjointed Bobcats offense. But more importantly, he can show that a defensive scheme switch for the Orange this offseason was the right decision.
