OFFENSE

New offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, whose role was expanded in the offseason, can hardly contain his enthusiasm about an Orange unit that returns starters at eight of 11 positions.

Junior quarterback Ryan Nassib has a veteran line and receiving corps, and versatile senior tailback Antwon Bailey is an able replacement for leading rusher Delone Carter. Bailey, an inch shorter and about 25 pounds lighter than Carter, was the team’s second-leading rusher (569 yards) and receiver (35 catches).

All five of SU’s top receivers return, including wideouts Van Chew, Marcus Sales and Alec Lemon, as well as tight end Nick Provo and Bailey. However, Sales' status with the team could be in doubt after an arrest in late July. Chew led the team with 41 catches last year after combining for 10 receptions in his first two seasons.

The only newcomer to the offensive line is center Macky MacPherson — the grandson of former Syracuse coach Dick McPherson — and for the first time in several years there’s depth at guard and tackle.

The Orange scored just over 22 points per game in 2010, but averaged less than 17 in Big East games. Those numbers should go way up this year.

DEFENSE

While the Orange offense struggled in 2010, the defense usually shined. The stingy unit was directly responsible for three of the Orange’s four Big East wins. But eight seniors, seven of them starters, are gone from a unit that allowed less than 20 points per game.

The Orange need to replace both defensive tackles, both cornerbacks and two of three linebackers.

Junior end Chandler Jones could emerge as a star, and his bookend, senior Mikhail Marinovich, will be vital to any success on this side of the ball. A pair of junior safeties (Shamarko Thomas and Phillip Thomas) will add stability in the backfield. A fifth-year senior (Kevyn Scott) and a pair of sophomores (Keon Lyn and Ri’Shard Anderson) are competing for the cornerback spots.

After starting on the outside as a freshman, linebacker Marquis Spruill moves into the middle this year. He’ll have inexperience on either side.

SPECIALISTS

Sophomore Ross Krautman earned Freshman All-America honors as a placekicker in 2010, making 18-of-19 field goals and leading the Orange in scoring. But the team will miss Rob Long, the team’s punter for four years who also was Krautman’s holder and shared kickoff duties. The Orange signed a new punter and long-snapper, and they’ll compete with a pair of walk-ons at those spots. 

FINAL ANALYSIS

After turning a 4–8 record into an 8–5 campaign in 2010 and earning its first bowl invite in six years, a program that spent five seasons as a Big East laughingstock was suddenly back on the fringes of the top 25. But 13 seniors played key roles for last year’s Orange, eight of them on defense.

The equation could be pretty simple for Doug Marrone’s team: Can a much-improved offense balance a young, inexperienced defense? The units might swap roles this season, with the offense riding in to save the day while the defense struggles to find itself. If the defense comes together, this team could again surprise people in 2011. If the offense struggles, the Orange could take a step backward this fall.

“The challenges are going to be replacing the seniors that left,” Marrone says. “A lot of those seniors played well for us, but more importantly, who’s replacing that leadership role?”