“Syracuse football: we’re back and we’re going to an ACC Championship in the next four years.” - Words of motivation from freshman quarterback AJ Long after Syracuse fell to Florida State 38-20 at the Carrier Dome.
The last time Syracuse was in a quarterback competition was last August with Terrel Hunt and Drew Allen. Hunt eventually won, but Syracuse needs to reconsider its options at QB after the game Long  had against Florida State.
Although Long only took about half the snaps after sharing time with Austin Wilson, he was very impressive. Hunt struggled through his five games and was not the same quarterback as he was last year. Long completed 16-of-27 passes for 167 yards against the #1-ranked Seminoles.
Long’s ability to run the passing game effectively stood out, since that has been a huge issue for the Orange this season. He threw two¬†scores¬†in the loss, meaning¬†Long’s now the team‚Äôs leader in passing touchdowns. He also has the best abilities of the other two quarterbacks combined. He can run just like Hunt, and can throw effectively like Wilson.
Wilson and Hunt are both limited, but Long has a complete package. Long’s biggest flaw is simply his lack of¬†experience and the size. He‚Äôs on the smaller side for a starting QB, but what does size matter if you can play? This game was¬†a strong indication¬†of what he can bring to the table for the rest of the season.
Even when Hunt comes back after the injury, this job should belong to Long. He is going to be the quarterback of this program in the near future, and may as well start now. Let him develop with his young receivers and grow within the offense. He also clearly has the ambition, discussing the ACC Championship Game after just one game played.
Long already has a great connection in Steve Ishmael, who caught both of Long’s touchdown passes. This has been a connection in the making. Long said:
‚ÄúMost of the time we go up against each other versus the first team defense on scout team. Then we really built it. You put that ball within a ¬†two- to three-foot radius of that man, he is going to catch it. Doesn‚Äôt matter if it‚Äôs one-handed, two-handed, he could catch it with his eyes closed.”
Now with Wilson dealing with an upper body injury after a hard hit to the ground late in the game, Long will likely be the guy against Wake Forest next week.
Posted:  Austin Pollack
26 responses to “Syracuse Solution: AJ Long Should Be Orange QB Moving Forward”
‚ÄúSyracuse football ‚Äì we‚Äôre back and we‚Äôre going to an ACC Championship in the next four years.‚Äù ‚Äì Words of motivation from freshman quarterback AJ Long after Syracuse fell to Florida State 38-20 on Saturday at the Carrier Dome”
I don’t know if this statement could be used as cliche or not. Is AJ Long bragging about his abilities or is he using some of that inner city swaggerr eminding us all about his message ever since he committed to us last year. What ever it is,I like it. That positive attitude has been missing for a very long time here. Now I hope KJ Williams decides to join the team in January.
I’m a little confused here fella’s. I just looked at the Milford Acadamy’s football roster and KJ Williams isn’t listed on the 2014 roster,what’s up with that?
AJ appears to have some intangibles that you can’t quantify with a tape measure and a scale. We were all concerned about his size‚Ķ.but he has gotten a little bigger since the Spring‚Ķ..but despite his size, he plays big. He has earned the right to continue to lead this team with his performance on the field. Wilson, didn’t look bad either. He has a strong arm, but it appears that AJ can pass too. Play makers have been lacking in this offense, it is time for them to start showing up and AJ appears to be answering the call. The rest of the season just got more interesting!!!!!!!!!
Ron…KJ was excused from the school- Milford a week or 2 ago. Kid is a head case we don’t need.
Agree that LOng is the QB going forward. He has grown a little bit physically..arm strength noticeably better from spring game.
At 182 lbs…can he take the hits game in game out?? That will be the issue. I can live with an “inexperienced” mistake here and there in exchange for well thrown passes.
IF HEALTHY, CUSE could still make a bowl by going 4-2 beginning in Winston-Salem, NC this week…one game at a time….
Dr. Bill
I agree, But at I82 lbs doesn’t make AJ Long a physical strong player. Wilson was approximately 225 lbs. Maybe getting in the weight room and going through a strong conditioning regimen will help in the off season.
On a side note–the game yesterday answered all of the questions the media had asked of Shafer last week and put to rest all the worries the fans had about the program in 2014. I believe things look a little brighter moving forwards and will get a hell of a lot better in 2015,especially when Shafer and staff gets a full roster of their players.
orangeinva
Where did you get that information on KJ from? It’s gotta be true because like I said he’s not listed on Milford’s roster.
When we get Broyld and Estime plus the recruits that are coming in in 2015 we’re going to be ok at the WR position. It appears that Jamal Custis is having trouble this year. Maybe as the season carries on having a QB that can get the ball down field will help turn his season around. I was impressed with Steve Ishmael yesterday. By the time he graduates,if he continues to shine could break the records set by Marvin Harrison and become the best that’s ever played at Syracuse.
It was because of Long’s size that I thought he would benefit most from a redshirt year. But with Hunt going down like he did, the kid was forced to play and clearly, it looks like the right call if we are going to save the season. He is now looking at a career of 3 and 1/2 seasons versus 4 full seasons if he redshirted. Kids want to play‚Ķhe sacrificed the second half of his Sr year in HS to come in January and compete to play and it looks like that move is paying off. Now with the other QB from Florida coming in January, if they redshirt him next year, there will be 2 years between him and Long. The two of them can fight it out and push each other. We should have some good QB play going forward. Go Cuse!!!!!
Ron…There was an article-veryshort- on SYracuse.com on 10/1 by Stephen Bailey…
Coach at Milford said it was his decision.
orangeinva
I missed that article. If it was posted on 10/1 then,why did Shafer host KJ Williams plus 8 or 9 other recruits/players from Milford Acadamy in for the Louisville Game? Shafer still must be interested in having him on the team,what do you think? My son told me at the game that Shafer was host to 19 recruits in yesterday for the 2016/2017 recruiting seasons.
Ok guy’s let me ask a question. With all of the problems that Brady Hoke is having coaching Michigan and his job is on the line at the end of the year. He hasn’t committed to anyone yet and was just wondering if you thought we had a chance at 3* 6’6″ TE-Y T.J. Wheatley Jr. out of Buffalo NY? I see that Devante Davis hasn’t committed to another school yet either. Hmmmmmm wondering what the problem with him is? Next few months should be awful interesting.
Ron,
I think Wheatley is a “Michigan Man” regardless of the coach. D. Davis, I sure he still considers the Orange!!! With his skill set, he comes right in and plays CB next year!
What do any of us know? What we know, most likely, we learned from someone else!
With our troubles at OC this week, I found it interesting to note the success one of our former graduate assistants is having this year as the head coach of Mississippi State, Dan Mullen. What does that have to do with the Cuse? What you know is often dictated by who you have studied under. What is the pedigree of our offensive staff and can it offer any predictive value for future success? As I looked at Dan Mullen, Mullen was a grad assistant in 1998 here at the Cuse under Kevin Rogers, the OC and leader of some of the most explosive offenses in Syracuse history. After the Cuse, he goes to Notre Dame and works with Urban Meyer, he then follows Urban to for the next 10 years to Bowling Green, Utah, and then Florida. With that kind of influence, is there any wonder he is viewed as a bright creative offensive talent and a good head coach? Just a question to ask, Who has influenced our OC and offensive staff? I know Bill Cubit at Western Michigan comes to mind…any other thoughts on this? DA….where does our offensive philosophy come from and is it one we should all believe in?
Ron,
I think AJ’s size is one of the things he lacks. He reminds me of Russell Wilson, but obviously Russell has shown he is the real deal. He’s young, so he needs to bulk up and hit the weight room — I completely agree. Right now he is just the best option, despite his size. He can do more than Wilson, and it seems as if he has already built a strong relationship with some of his targets — especially Steve Ishmael.
Thanks for reading guys.
AP
Didn’t see the game….Sounds like they stood up well. It was Fla State.
This has been my point for sometime. ….give the kids a chance to play. Hunt isn’t the answer and you might find a QB. What did we have to loose. I know little about AJ Long but like what I hear. Let’s not forget him because of the “experts” view of size. It’s only college. Roster says he’s 6’….
I wouldn’t be worring about Bowl Games. First, I see little chance..Second..it will be another stinker bowl..so what!
Win a couple of games… Coach the kids and find the players! Don’t worry about additional loses. Worry about developing your talent. Double your efforts on hanging on the the recruits we have while presenting a face that Shafer is our Coach and knows what he’s doing! The MCD situation was showing leadership… Move on and work with the kids.
Very happy for MR. A J Long!
KJ will never play football for the Orange He flunked out of Milford and thats the end of his college career as in zilch.
Austain
I didn’t expect a response from you on what I posted. Nice surprise,thank you.
Chris Maalas
Thanks for the update on KJ Williams,like “orangeinva” said in his post,KJ Williams is a head case and we don’t need him here. I agree we just don’t need that his talent here.
Some good comments people,keep them coming.
Shaking my head, KJ Williams quitting prep school because he wasn’t making the grades is disheartening. Not just from the football perspective but from a real life standpoint. I don’t know if its a case of having a legit learning disability or if its just a lack of desire to work in the classroom. Either way, its best if SU focuses elsewhere. I wish him the best. But he needs to get something going because being a hs football star only gets you but so far in life.
I considered AJ small back during the spring game but not from purely a height point of view. I think thats fine,he just needs to pack on some mass. That will happen in time. I mean he is fresh out of hs and has time to add healthy weight to his frame. He needs it because his mobility can possibly put him in the position to get hit with some clean shots on the run. At any rate, I like what I saw from the young qb.. I like how he was able to throw on the run(a very very good asset for a qb like him). His arm strength is going to develop as he physically develops but is fine at this point in time. He appears to have a good feel for young Ishmael(I agree with Ron, he can possibly be another great SUwr before its all done)Game experience will hopefully curb certain types of mistakes. He basically brings some of the traits I like about Terell Hunt to the table in a different package. He is fiery which can possibly get the crowd into games during big drives and get teammates riled up. ANd he is pretty mobile. I hate comparisons, but he is the type of mobile qb who buys time with the mobility to make plays downfield ala a Russell Wilson(aka the new benchmark for smaller, mobile qbs.) I’m going to be level headed in my praise and declarations of AJ being the solution because he still needs to play other games this season. But, when AJ says that SU will win the conf within the next 4 yrs, I don’t think its out of the realm of possibility. Depending on how well the 2014 and 2015classes pan out and scheduling, I can see SU catching fire and making a good run like the Duke program made.
My stance on Long going forward is that, I believe a player can lose a job due to injury(as we have seen in the NFL before). If Long continues to show improvement and the offense continues to play well around him, then you have to let him keep the reins. I’m still a fan of Hunt, but the only way I can see him getting the gig back is if Long truly has a hard time the rest of the way and Hunt is deemed physically healthy. Under any other circumstance, you almost have to let Long keep the gig since the redshirt has been taken away.
I wish Long well and I wish Hunt health.
Terry and I talked last year about Syracuse not letting the freshmen play and wanted to know why. It seemed everyone else was playing freshmen,why not us? We also agreed that Syracuse needed to bring the team into the present day of college football and start playing them. Last night at work I received a big surprise when in walked 3 members of the 2014 freshman class. LB Colton MosKal,LB Zaire Franklin and C Donnie Foster. I didn’t realize that Zaire Franklin had played in the game against FSU. He had two tackles and caused the fumble when Syracuse punted the ball to FSU setting up the 2nd touchdown of the game for us. I talked about 5 minutes with the three of them and all said they were happy to be at Syracuse and all agreed good things would start to happen. Colton made the statement that all of the points in Saturday’s game were scored by FRESHMEN. Cole Murphy kicked the 2 field goals for the first 6 pointds and AJ Long threw two TD’s to Steve Ishmael for another 14 points. I think the 2014 class has set goals for them to reach. The 5 players that I know of that played against FSU is setting the BAR HIGH and is expecting the other freshmen to elevate themselves and become better and stronger and help lead Syracuse back to National Relevance. I thanked them all for coming to Syracuse and wished tham all good luck over the next 4-5 years. The team is going to be completely different when Coach Shafer gets the roster filled with his recruits. The next 3-4 years we should see some damn good football up on the hill again. Maybe AJ Long is right in saying that Syracuse should be playing for the ACC Championship in the near future.
Thanks Ron..
Keep saying it… Play the freshman…give them reps…from where we are it is nothing but upside. Get those recruits… Show them you play freshmen…the best players play..
While obviously not as talented, Long reminds me of Russell Wilson. He should definitely be starting over Hunt. Let Hunt play LB or TE next year.
I think Zaire got into a couple of other games as well.I want to say he was in the C Michigan game. I started re-watching the FSU game again and definitely like the showing from the offense as a whole to be honest. This does not take away from what Long was able to do, but I think the offense looked better on the whole though it still struggles in the redzone. I want to continue seeing Ish ball out and step up, but I’m also going to keep any eye out on Flemming. I believe he can be a redzone threat with the TEs.
Brooklyn SU Football fan
FSU’s Nick O’Leary showed us Saturday just how much of an offensive weapon a TE is if used correctly. He tore us apart,and we couldn’t stop him. So why doesn’t Syracuse insert the tight end into the offensive scheme and use him as a receiver instead of another blocker? I agree Brooklyn with you on “Adrian Flemming”,he’s a senior, so why haven’t we used him more ? Last year(2013) as a junior he had only 2 passes thrown to him and in (2014) has had 9 passes thrown to him. Is it a case of overlooking his ability? Is it because Adrian wasn’t practicing hard enough to please the coaches? I just can’t figure out why a player like Adrian hasn’t been thrown more passes especially when it appears he’s the only one catching any of them. I hope some of the players out with injury will return this week and play against Wake Forest. The game will be televised in the upstate region on the YES Network. Saturday’s game leaves some of the fans wondering what the outcome might have been if players like Brisley Estime and Ashton Broyld would have played.
Syracuse regained the respect they were in search of against FSU. Let’s hope that they carry that energy over too the Wake Forest game on Saturday. A win here would give them motovation and rekindle the fire that just might get them into another bowl game with a 6-6 record at the end of the year.
GO ORANGE
kj deserves the nod for the starting job.
Amazing, often a superb part of formulate which has been uncover in the a long time period of time. Actually do usually head to my very own website.
You guys remind me of Janet Jackson’s smash hit from the late 80’s “What have you done for me lately?”. First of, starting QBs rarely lose their jobs while injured unless the replacement comes in and does an out of this world job. THAT DIDN’T HAPPEN THIS PAST WEEKEND. Long played decent but, in just 1/2 a game he threw 2 picks. That prorates to 4 per game. That alone would have your sometimey asses screaming and crying for T Hunt. And you don’t know what he may back this uneven-at-best performance up with. This aside from the fact that it’s really unfair to judge them together when they have never played in the same game. What you probably saw is what happens when there is a credible run threat, which T Hunt has not had since CMU. Five games in The QB was the leading rusher. Probably still is. Think about that. We had 59 yards rushing against UL. Against ND, we had 130 yards rushing but T Hunt was the leading rusher with 26. 26 F’ing YARDS! Are you kidding me?!? It’s hard to find passing lanes when the D can stuff your run game with just the front 4 and 1 LB. FCS ‘Nova stuffed us all game long. If not for that long run by PTG, we would not have had 100 rushing yards as a team. Ditto for the ND game if not for the long run by the Punter on a fake. But you guys waffle like Mitt Romney and are as emotional as a pregnant woman so logic passes you by.
Da Cuseman, if you read my other posts on this game, you will see that my sentiment is very very similar to yours(didn’t explicitly verbalize it here). I have said the same thing about starters losing their gig. I said I believe a starter CAN lose their job if the backup comes in and performs well and looks like a viable starter/upgrade on the position. I also said wait and see how this plays out. Because I know for a fact that if Long stinks it up against Wake, the mood here will be different. But it is fair to say that Long did look good in his performance considering he was playing as a true freshman against what was then the #1 team in the country.. He has things that he does well and other things that he hasn’t done well. Oddly enough, the thing I like the most about Hunt is an attribute that Long has. Mobility at qb is an equalizer for a team that may not have elite playmakers or great O Line play. Just making it clear, I’m still a fan of Hunt because I have probably been his biggest most vocal defender here. But the same way I wanted everyone to be fair about evaluating Hunt, I gotta do the same about Wilson or Long as well. If Long continues to improve and looks good/looks like he is a viable starter then the Orange are almost in no position to make a switch. But if Long cannot builld upon the good will his first game earned him, then Hunt(if Healthy) should definitely get the chance to have the starting gig back.
Ron.,ever since last yr, I’ve felt like O’Leary is probably the most underrated player in college football. SU has TE with some talent. I think Parris could be a bigger factor. I think most teams only use the TE if they are those athletic TE/WR.
Flemming looked like he was goin to be a big part of last season but he had a big injury in the Penn St opener and was down for the count. He has been cursed with injuries in his career and never really got himself on track despite having size and jumping ability. I remember all the “mossing” dbs in practice talk from a couple yrs back. Right now, as a sr, I think he can atleast be a redzone target/possession guy. Healthy Broyld, Flemming, and the TEs should be looked upon in the redzone. Tall Targets. Have faith in them to go up and get it.
I‚Äôm a lot of unique the place to begin with this particular particular write-up, therefore Let me basically mention it’s really a incredibly great article. I‚Äôve cherished under-going it and as well weighing the particular a lot of products people produce.