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Syracuse: A Season Tainted By Scandal

By Andrew Snyder

Mar 2, 2015; Syracuse, NY, USA; Syracuse Orange head coach Jim Boeheim watches the action during the second half of a game against the Virginia Cavaliers at the Carrier Dome. Virginia won the game 59-47. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 2, 2015; Syracuse, NY, USA; Syracuse Orange head coach Jim Boeheim watches the action during the second half of a game against the Virginia Cavaliers at the Carrier Dome. Virginia won the game 59-47. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports /
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It’s only March 7 and the lights are already out on Syracuse’s 2014-15 season. No ACC tournament, no NCAA tournament, no NIT, not even an invitation to the CBI or the CIT. Syracuse will sit at home as the sports world becomes enraptured by the magic that is March Madness.

The Orange’s second season in the ACC did not go as planned. After losing key players like Tyler Ennis, C.J. Fair and Jerami Grant from last season’s squad, they struggled through inconsistency and injuries. Saturday’s loss to NC State brought their record to 18-13 (9-9) which would likely put them just on the outside of the bubble.

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But that’s not why they will miss the postseason.

Earlier in the year Syracuse self-imposed a postseason ban as they anticipated stiff punishment after the NCAA concluded their lengthy investigation of various violations committed by the school.

On Friday afternoon, the NCAA revealed its findings and handed down its punishment. The report was a doozy.

Syracuse was charged with academic misconduct, most notably attempting to keep former top prospect Fab Melo eligible, providing extra benefits in the form of cash, and neglecting drug testing protocol. The report also placed much of the blame on Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim. His statement in response was steeped in denial, sarcasm, and deflection.

As far as punishment goes, there will be no further postseason ban. Next season Boeheim will serve a nine-game suspension during ACC play, 108 wins will be vacated, five years of probation will start immediately, and the program will deal with the loss of three scholarships per season through the 2018-19 season. Firm, but nothing that will completely bury the program.

Many in the media are no doubt engaging in schadenfreude with the release of this report. Boeheim is infamous for his difficulty with the media. He gives off an arrogant demeanor, which has to be frustrating to deal with, not to mention frequent temper tantrums on the sidelines when he does not agree with a call.

Boeheim is like Gregg Popovich with twice the smarm, half the genius, and without the dynasty. That persona can work out just fine, until something like this happens.

After Saturday’s loss on the road at NC State, Boeheim failed to attend the post-game press conference, instead sending a statement full of excuses and assistant coach Mike Hopkins. A curious move that does nothing to disprove his aforementioned reputation.

His legacy is undoubtedly tainted, and the current Syracuse team deserves better. This is not a vintage Syracuse team by any means, and it is unlikely that they would have made the NCAA tournament, but the controversial nature of this season has overshadowed Rakeem Christmas‘  tremendous senior season.

Heading into Saturday’s action, the star center was averaging 17.6 points, nine rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game on 56.3 percent shooting. That output was a substantial increase from the 5.8 points and 5.1 rebounds he contributed during his junior season. Christmas developed into Syracuse’s best offensive player and also their defensive anchor.

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    • This scandal is unfair to Christmas and the rest of his teammates. He deserves recognition for his outstanding play and deserves to end his season playing some kind of tournament basketball, rather than answering questions about violations he had nothing to do with. These kids were failed by their head coach and their administration.

    That is the most unfortunate part of this entire ordeal.

    However, Syracuse basketball is not dead. They may be bruised, but they will recover. The probation  hurts, as does the loss of scholarships, but eventually they will return to their winning ways. Perhaps under new leadership?

    Boeheim has given no indication that he will retire, but at this point it may not be his choice. Starting with a clean slate under a new regime is the best way to distance the program from this scandal. However, Syracuse has remained loyal to Boeheim throughout this entire process, so that may be a little too far fetched.

    This is the ugly side of college athletics; when the actions of adults get in the away of student athletes playing the game they love.

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