For Syracuse head coach Doug Marrone, all it took to assure that he could sleep the night before games was having a backup punter and kicker. With the addition of placekicker Jake Smith, the first-year coach should have no problem by getting plenty of shut-eye this season. To bolster a depleted special teams unit, the Orange added Smith to serve primarily as a backup punter to Rob Long and to also compete with freshman Ryan Lichtenstein for the starting placekicker position. Smith was headed to Milford (N.Y.) Academy for a post-graduate year before the SU offered him a scholarship this summer. ‘He can kick. He can punt. It gives us a lot of versatility at that position,’ Marrone said. ‘Obviously, we were very short at that position. It is like (offensive lineman Ryan Bartholomew) coming back and being the backup center. I know the night before the game I can sleep. If something happens the next day, you have someone who can go in and perform well enough for you to win.’ ‘God forbid if something happens to Rob, I think we have someone who can punt now.’ After projected starting kicker Shane Raupers left the team earlier this summer, it left the squad with just one placekicker in Lichtenstein. In addition to not having a replacement for Long, the Orange special teams were in dire need of an extra body. Austin Wallis was slated as the starting kicker during spring practice, but he left SU after the spring semester. That’s when Syracuse found Smith, who graduated in the spring from Cheltenham High School in Elkins Park, Pa. Smith made 59-of-59 PAT’s between the 2007 and ’08 seasons, while making five of seven field goals, according to Kicking.com, a Web site that tracks statistics for kickers and punters. He also averaged 41.8 yards per punt. ‘We needed it,’ Marrone said of Smith’s addition. ‘We were short. That’s not a lie.’ Though Marrone said Smith will get some looks on kickoff, he has more of a chance to see the field as a placekicker than as punter, with Long considered one of the best at his position in the Big East. For that to happen, though, Lichtenstein will have to struggle, which for now looks unlikely, as he has received praise from Marrone during summer training camp. ‘If Ryan goes in there, and he doesn’t make the kicks, then obviously we have someone who can compete against him,’ Marrone said. ‘He has to win it. Ryan has to fail at doing what he’s doing because he’s been doing a good job. Our get-off times the last two days are right on the money.’ Syracuse Names Team Captains

Teammates say Greg Paulus commanded a leadership role from the get-go during summer 7-on-7 sessions. Now SU’s unlikely starting quarterback is also one of the four team captains. On Saturday, the team announced that Paulus, tight end Mike Owen, defensive tackle Art Jones and punter Rob Long will serve as SU’s captains in the fall. Although Paulus didn’t choose Syracuse until spring practices concluded, his teammates say it has not been difficult for him to slip into a leadership role. They’ve seen him man the point for the Duke basketball squad the past four seasons, enduring plenty of scrutiny with a gung-ho demeanor. During practices, Paulus is a hands-on communicator despite being away from the game since 2004, freshman wide receiver Alec Lemon said. ‘The way he approaches basketball during the game – how fired up he is – he brings the same mentality to the field here,’ Lemon said. ‘He brings everybody to the next level.’

Gearing up for the Gophers

Piecing together a gameplan for Minnesota has not been easy for Syracuse’s new head coach. Like Syracuse, Minnesota has new coordinators on offense and defense. Marrone, thus, has been on the hunt, leaving no stone unturned. ‘You’re going through blogs, you’re going through newspapers, you’re looking at every single quote by every single player and every quote by the head coach,’ Marrone said. ‘They’re doing the same thing for us.’ Last season, the Golden Gophers started 7-1 and climbed to No. 17 in the nation before losing their final five games. A predominant running team in 2008, Minnesota returns tailback DeLeon Eskridge, who rushed for 714 yards and seven touchdowns.

mrehalt@syr.eduthdunne@syr.edu