There were only about 4,071 people in the Carrier Dome for Syracuse’s Spring Game on Saturday, but almost all of them made their way onto the field after the game.

There was a chance to pose for photos with Scott Shafer and get autographs from current and former players. The overhead view was something that more closely resembled the open side of the Dome during a big basketball game than the expectation for an Orange Spring Game.

And in the middle of it all was an older man — probably in his mid 60s — clutching two miniature American flags and sprinting in circles around the Carrier Dome field.

Spring football fever.

It was only 4,071, but the attendance was an improvement from last year — and it was 4,071 who genuinely seemed excited to be there. And what they saw wasn’t always pretty, but usually at least resembled and somehow finished with a football score. Despite a scoring system that awarded defensive stops and three-and-outs and a halftime show during which Riley Dixon scored seven points by punting, the offense triumphed over the defense 34-27, albeit with a disappointingly rudimentary playbook of short passes.

But the football was only part of what mattered. What was more important was that somehow football was earning the headlines for a week in mid-April. With a craftily executed “big announcement” at Destiny USA earlier in the week to lead in to Saturday’s Spring Game, SU found a way to fill, at least for a fleeting moment, Syracuse’s sports void that lasts from April until August.

“Being a small part of the community means a lot to me and this team,” Shafer said during his press conference at Destiny USA. “I’ve always talked a lot about how we want to represent this program in a first-class fashion, but we also want to make sure it’s your team.”

The big reveal on Wednesday that officially signaled the return of football wasn’t so much a surprise as it was an excuse to hype up a program that finally seems like it’s moving in the right direction.

Somehow the Orange had lured Louisiana State into a game at the Carrier Dome. And when the Tigers arrived, SU would be wearing new jerseys. Looks like Nike remembered they play some football in Central New York, too.

And love them or hate them, the jerseys make Syracuse at least look like the big-time program it’s striving to become.

Instrumental, though, was the decision to make the announcement at Destiny. With the band and cheerleaders in tow, there was fanfare to match the intrigue of this big announcement.

On Saturday, the Orange picked up right where it left off. Shafer opened the festivities with an appeal to the fans to take up his offer — he’ll buy you another ticket to the Villanova game as long as you buy the first. All the hallmarks he brings to the sideline, he’s trying to bring to the community, including his goofily named, yet perfectly fitting “Next Fan Up” campaign.

“I just really want this to be your team,” Shafer said while addressing the crowd before the Spring Game. “Our goal is increased attendance. Our job is to play good football.”

Typically the Spring Game just devolves into a forum for ridicule toward the often-bumbling SU football program. Even two years ago, a year before head coach Doug Marrone jumped to the NFL, the crowd witnessed the defense outscore the offense 9-0.

Oh, and there was no fancy scoring system in that one.

“I’d like to try to keep it a football score,” quarterbacks coach Tim Lester said. “I thought it worked out well.”

This year’s offense looked good with its limited playbook and Syracuse suddenly has some exciting playmakers — Ashton Broyld and Brisly Estime is a scary big-play tandem.

In the end, that’s what will get people excited for Syracuse football. This team needs to put a consistently better product on the field. Until then, at least that guy sprinting in circles in the Dome has enough energy for everyone.

David Wilson is a staff writer at The Daily Orange, where his column appears occasionally. He can be reached at dbwilson@syr.edu or on Twitter at @DBWilson2.

Published on April 20, 2014 at 9:42 pm