With the season-ending injury to sophomore Prince-Tyson Gulley earlier in the year, the Orange is using a runningback by committee when senior Antwon Bailey needs a rest.
Jerome Smith, Adonis Ameen-Moore and Steve Rene have all seen playing time, with Ameen-Moore and Smith combining for 14 carries and 53 yards in Syracuse’s 49-23 win over West Virginia on Friday. While Rene didn’t record a carry against the Mountaineers, he was active against Tulane, with four carries for eight yards, and a catch for four yards.
“We will continue with our rotation, and we’re happy with the roles and the development of how the players are coming along,” Syracuse coach Doug Marrone said during his press conference on Monday. “It’s tough to manage four in that position, because they’re all involved in the game plan, and the way the game goes dictates how many snaps they get.”
Recently, the game has been going very well.
In the past two games, the Orange has scored 86 points. While the Orange struggled to get a grasp of their blocking schemes earlier in the season, SU has seen dramatic improvement across the board.
“It’s really everyone,” Marrone said. “It’s really a lot of people involved with the tight ends and the fullbacks and obviously the way the backs are running because they’re doing a much better job running north and south now.”
That will create more opportunities for everyone, and that’s never a bad thing.
Said Marrone: “The more competition you have, the better chance of have of players rising to the occasion.”
