excerpts:
...offensive lineman Aaron Roberts will miss the entire 2017 season after suffering a left knee injury during offseason workouts earlier this summer, SU Athletics told The Post-Standard/Syracuse.com.
Roberts, a redshirt junior, started every game at left guard for the Orange last year and was arguably the team's top offensive lineman. His loss is a crushing blow for a unit that featured five first-year starters for the majority of 2016 and failed to establish a consistent run game.....
...Since Roberts redshirted in 2014, seemingly unrelated to an injury, it's unlikely he's granted a sixth season of eligibility by the NCAA.
In his absence, Syracuse must now figure out its best combination of interior offensive linemen during preseason camp, which opens on Sunday.
When Roberts suffered an apparent hand/wrist injury during SU's spring game, redshirt freshman Airon Servais slid from center to left guard and redshirt freshman Sam Heckel came on at center.
That grouping is certainly a possibility. Redshirt sophomore Colin Byrne, who filled in as SU's starting center for eight games last year, also gained some positional flexibility by working at guard this spring. Redshirt sophomore right guard Evan Adams has seen time at center, too, while 21-year-old freshman Patrick Davis was listed as the second-team left guard on SU's preseason camp depth chart.
However it shakes out, SU's offensive line will need to be prepared for a daunting schedule. The young group will face a Week 2 test when ex-SU head coach Scott Shafer and his blitz-heavy Middle Tennessee State defense visit the Carrier Dome.....
...offensive lineman Aaron Roberts will miss the entire 2017 season after suffering a left knee injury during offseason workouts earlier this summer, SU Athletics told The Post-Standard/Syracuse.com.
Roberts, a redshirt junior, started every game at left guard for the Orange last year and was arguably the team's top offensive lineman. His loss is a crushing blow for a unit that featured five first-year starters for the majority of 2016 and failed to establish a consistent run game.....
...Since Roberts redshirted in 2014, seemingly unrelated to an injury, it's unlikely he's granted a sixth season of eligibility by the NCAA.
In his absence, Syracuse must now figure out its best combination of interior offensive linemen during preseason camp, which opens on Sunday.
When Roberts suffered an apparent hand/wrist injury during SU's spring game, redshirt freshman Airon Servais slid from center to left guard and redshirt freshman Sam Heckel came on at center.
That grouping is certainly a possibility. Redshirt sophomore Colin Byrne, who filled in as SU's starting center for eight games last year, also gained some positional flexibility by working at guard this spring. Redshirt sophomore right guard Evan Adams has seen time at center, too, while 21-year-old freshman Patrick Davis was listed as the second-team left guard on SU's preseason camp depth chart.
However it shakes out, SU's offensive line will need to be prepared for a daunting schedule. The young group will face a Week 2 test when ex-SU head coach Scott Shafer and his blitz-heavy Middle Tennessee State defense visit the Carrier Dome.....
