Former Syracuse LB predicts bowl game for in 2022

Dino Babers
Jul 17, 2019; Charlotte, NC, USA; Syracuse Orange head football coach Dino Babers speaks to members of the media during ACC Kickoff the Westin Charlotte. Mandatory Credit: Brad Bierman, The Juice Online.

Former Syracuse linebacker Jake Flaherty is predicting at least six wins for SU in 2022, he said on this week’s The Juice on the Cuse Podcast, presented by SNY.tv.

Flaherty, who played at Syracuse from 2005-08, was captain his senior year and appeared in 47 games throughout his career, starting 21 of them. He points to the experience at linebacker as one of the biggest reasons why the Orange will finish at .500 or better this year.

The Orange has one of the top linebacking cores in the ACC, featuring All-ACC linebacker Mikel Jones, Stefon Thompson and Marlowe Wax.

“They’re all carbon copies of each other,” Flaherty said. “They’re stout guys that can really run and are super explosive. It’s clear they can make plays in the open field, but they can rush the quarterback.”

And while SU also returns an experienced secondary, the main question revolves around the defensive line. Syracuse lost three starters from last year’s team.

“It’s going to be really critical to see how quickly they can mature,” Flaherty said. “By October, November, I think you see some great things from them.”

On the other side of the ball, Flaherty expressed excitement about new offensive coordinator Robert Anae, and pointed to key returning players at the skill positions as other reasons for SU’s return to the postseason in 2022.

Jake Flaherty
Former Syracuse linebacker Jake Flaherty

“With Garrett (Shrader) having some experience under his belt, he’s going to be coming in really confident,” Flaherty said. “I think he’s going to surprise some people. The defense is going to be on point. We’ve got some good people in the secondary and maturity in the linebacking position. And oh, by the way we have one of the best running backs in the country (Sean Tucker).”

That has Flaherty looking south come the turn of the new year.

“I definitely think we are going to be going somewhere warm in January. Let’s pray for Florida.”

» Related: ESPN national writer puts Orange in the postseason in 2022

As for Flaherty these days, he and former Syracuse athletes are working at Terzo Cloud, an SaaS enterprise solution for vendor relationship management. It was founded by former Syracuse linebacker Brandon Card and former Syracuse lacrosse midfielder Al Giocondi.

The company is expecting to finish its Series A round of funding within the next 4-8 weeks.

“It’s been a great opportunity,” Flaherty said.

Afterward, editor in chief Brad Bierman calls in to discuss the latest storylines out of football camp.

Catch up on all episodes of “The Juice on the Cuse Podcast,” a Syracuse Orange podcast, by subscribing to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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About Wes Cheng 2907 Articles
Wes has worked for Rivals.com covering the New York Knicks, as well as for Scout.com covering Syracuse athletics. Wes has also been a contributing writer for the South China Morning Post (Hong Kong), for SportsNet New York (SNY) as a news desk writer covering all of New York professional sports, and reported on the NBA and MLB for the New York Sportscene. A native of Long Island, New York, Wes graduated from Syracuse University in 2005 with a degree in journalism. Contact him at wes[at]sujuiceonline.com.