Over the summer, I received a wonderful opportunity to help out Sean Keeley in contributing for Maple Street Press’s 2010-11 Syracuse Tip Off Magazine. Earlier today, word came down that the publication is now available for preorder at MSP’s website.

To give you the rundown, the magazine was edited by Sean, who if you don’t know already (and if not, you should), runs Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician. All of the contributors have presence in the SU Blogosphere/Twitterati, so the articles come from those of us who hold the team very near and dear, as opposed to nebulous writers who would just now be asking what in the world a “Fab Melo” is. The cast of characters (via Sean) and the Orange-y goodness with which they’re supplying the magazine includes:

Matt Glaude (HoyaSuxa) writes about the Georgetown rivalry and the Carrier Dome’s 30th Anniversary.

Jameson Fleming delves into the good work Otto’s Army is doing, talks with Scoop about the 2-3 zone and gets the Class of 2011′s thoughts on The Melo Center.

Adam “Voteprime” Gerard finds out how important former coach Roy Danforth was to SU Basketball.

Brian Harrison (Orange44) recaps the top moments of last season and ponders what lies ahead for Mookie Jones.

I recap last season’s glorious run and looks at Kris Joseph in his quest to be Syracuse’s next star.

Sean profiles Mike Hopkins, our head coach in waiting, and delves into the traditions and history that make SU athletics what it is today.

Plus player and coach profiles from those mentioned above as well as The McSportsFix’s Matt McClusky, Dan Lyons, Kevin Kearns and Alex Kirby.

One of the best parts about it is that it’s 128 pages of pure SU content. No ads.

Copies will hit newsstands and bookstores in the New York area on October 26, but if you preorder a copy online, it will ship on the 11th, so spread the word to your family and friends, and keep a copy handy throughout the season!

With last week’s release of the 2010-11 Big East schedule, the regular season calendar is complete. On the non-conference side of things, a game against Morgan State was squeezed in, finalizing that portion of the slate. The schedule looks robust, but it isn’t without light criticism.

As has been the case on varying levels for several years, a point of contention sure to come up among national writers is the fact that Syracuse won’t venture farther away from campus than Atlantic City before conference play begins. In recent years, SU did a few things to shake this reputation by scheduling games in Virginia, Memphis, Kansas City and Tampa, but this season, we’re seeing something of a regression to the norm. Raucous Big East environments like the ones at the campuses of Pittsburgh, Villanova, Connecticut, Georgetown and Louisville help SU’s strength of schedule, but only so much. The tournament committee gives consideration to netting wins away from home in the non-conference portion, though the exact weight remains to be seen. In 2011, the lack of a true road win before the New Year could be the difference between the Orange playing NCAA Tournament games in DC versus, say, Tulsa.

Still, that doesn’t mean SU won’t face any major challenges before Big East play gets underway. In fact, Orange opponents have accomplished plenty in recent seasons. The non-conference schedule includes five games against NCAA Tournament teams from 2010, and a few of the other schools on the schedule are doing some interesting things of their own. I won’t cover each and every non-con opponent here because, hey, who’s really hungry for dirt on William and Mary? But here are some things to ponder as the first official day of practice approaches on October 15. Read the rest of this entry »

At long last, Big East HQ has spoken, and we have the conference slate complete with dates. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Syracuse’s 2010-11 conference schedule:

• Dec. 28 vs. Providence
• Jan. 1 vs. Notre Dame
• Jan. 8 at Seton Hall
• Jan. 12 at St. John’s
• Jan. 15 vs. Cincinnati
• Jan. 17 at Pittsburgh
• Jan. 22 vs. Villanova
• Jan. 25 vs. Seton Hall
• Jan. 29 at Marquette
• Feb. 2 at Connecticut
• Feb. 5 at USF
• Feb. 9 vs. Georgetown
• Feb. 12 at Louisville
• Feb. 14 vs. West Virginia
• Feb. 19 vs. Rutgers
• Feb. 21 at Villanova
• Feb. 26 at Georgetown
• Mar. 5 vs. DePaul Read the rest of this entry »

As we sit on pins and needles waiting for the full SU basketball schedule to be released, the powers that be continue to feed us pieces of it, rather than releasing the whole slate at once. But like a weekend crowd at Sam’s Club (or whatever your big box wholesale retailer of choice may be), we devour the tiny samples like caged animals without regard for simple propriety.

Hey, old lady under the hairnet – quit judging me. Read the rest of this entry »