24 D E C E M B E R 6 , 2 0 1 2
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TOP 10 MOMENTS OF 2012
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rom an individual national championship in track and field to a berth in the women’s lacrosse national championship and the men’s basketball team’s run to the Elite Eight, Syracuse athletics enjoyed some historic moments in 2012. The Daily Orange chose 24 of the top moments in Syracuse sports this year. Readers ranked their favorite moments online in the last week. The men’s basketball team is currently ranked No. 4 in the nation while the football team will close out the year at the Pinstripe Bowl. Here’s a look at the top 10 moments thus far as voted by the readers.
10 9 8 7 6
—Compiled by Jacob Klinger and David Wilson, asst. copy editors, jmklinge@sry.edu, dbwilson@syr.edu
RYAN NASSIB SETS ALMOST ALL MAJOR SINGLESEASON AND CAREER QUARTERBACK RECORDS The career touchdowns list is the only Syracuse quarterback list that Nassib does not head. He owns the records for most passes, completions and yards, and his 3,748 yards of total offense in 2012 are good for the highest single-season total in SU history. His 68 career touchdown passes are just nine short of Donovan McNabb’s Orange and Big East record. Nassib is also second in career total offense with 9,215 yards in his four years under center at SU.
andrew renneisen | staff photographer
MEN’S SOCCER TO SWEET 16 After a three-win 2011 season the Orange was voted second-to-last in the Big East preseason coaches’ poll. Then a team welded together by long-suffering seniors and highly touted freshmen went 5-3 in conference play before nearly upsetting then-No. 7 Notre Dame in the Big East quarterfinals. The Orange squeaked into the NCAA tournament despite the loss, though, and upset then-No. 11 Cornell in the first round. The run continued in Richmond as Louis Clark’s 108th minute drive found the corner of the net and sent SU to the Sweet 16 for the first time in program history. The Orange nearly made it to the Elite Eight, only falling to Georgetown in the regional semis on penalty kicks. ziniu chen
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staff photogr apher
WOMEN’S LACROSSE FIRST NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME For more than 50 minutes during the national semifinal against top-seeded Florida on May 25, it appeared as though Syracuse would have to wait at least one more year for its first national championship appearance. But the Orange rallied back from a seven-goal deficit in the second half to win in overtime and advance to the final. There, SU was reacquainted with the stall tactics that have made Northwestern one of the most successful programs in all of college sports. The Wildcats used that strategy to come up with an 8-6 victory over Syracuse, but simply reaching the game was a major milestone for the Orange, which begins the 2013 season ranked No. 1 in the country.
ankur patankar | presentation director
FOOTBALL BECOMES BOWL ELIGIBLE WITH WIN OVER MISSOURI Down three with less than two minutes to go, Syracuse needed to go 81 yards for a touchdown to win its sixth game and become bowl eligible. Ryan Nassib hooked up with Alec Lemon four times to span all 81 yards and give the Orange a go-ahead touchdown. Two plays into Missouri’s ensuing drive Corbin Berkstresser threw an interception to seal the 31-27 victory for SU and clinch its second bowl appearance of the Doug Marrone era.
taylor baucom | contributing photographer
SU ANNOUNCES BIG EAST EXIT IN JULY 2013 Syracuse announced it agreed to a deal with the Big East that allows the school to leave the conference for the ACC in July 2013. The move means SU will leave a year early, as the conference requires a 27-month exit period. After negotiations, the athletic department agreed to pay $7.5 million to leave early. The $2.5 million more than conference bylaws require effectively bought the Orange an extra year in the ACC. Six more teams have announced their departure from the conference since. Texas Christian agreed to join before leaving without playing a game.
nate shron | staff photographer