 Two years ago, Ryan Nassib, Marcus Sales, and Alec Lemon graduated from Syracuse.  The passing attack was left in shambles with no answer at quarterback and a load of inexperience at the receiver position.  That year, Nassib racked up 3,749 passing yards with 26 touchdowns.  Lemon had a 1,000 yard receiving year and Sales finished with 882 receiving yards.  Lemon had seven TDs and Sales had eight.
Last year, the passing game took an expected hit.  The cycle of Orange quarterbacks threw for only 2,366 yards (only 63 percent of 2012’s total).  This was due, in part, to the embarrassing showing from the wide receivers.  Without Sales and Lemon, the Orange’s leading receiver was Ashton Broyld who only managed 452 receiving yards.  He had no touchdowns.  The Orange’s second leading receiver last season was Jarrod West, who had only 397 yards and one TD.
Enter 2014: the first full year of the Scott Shafer era.  The recruiting class was supposed to be a huge plus, but K.J. Williams, a four-star receiving recruit, reclassified for academic reasons and re-opened his recruitment.  This left Steve Ishmael as the top receiving recruit.
Ishmael played sparingly through the first chunk of the team’s schedule.  Until yesterday’s win against Wake Forest, the freshman had nine catches for 176 yards and two touchdowns.  But, against the Demon Deacons, Ishmael had his second-straight big day in Orange, hauling in six balls for 72 yards.  This built upon last week’s performance, in which he caught A.J. Long’s first two touchdown throws against the defending national champions.  In the last two weeks alone, Ishmael has tallied nine catches for 165 yards and two touchdowns.
Ishmael could have had his third touchdown in two weeks against the Demon Deacons, but the play was called back for offensive pass interference.  He also had a huge 33-yard reception on a jump ball that helped the Orange convert on 3rd and 14.  Cole Murphy would end up kicking a field goal after the conversion.  In addition, Long’s trust in Ishmael can be seen from his throw selection.  Ishmael caught five of his six balls on third down, four of which resulted in first downs.
The young receiver’s confidence is showing, as Ishmael is quickly becoming Long’s favorite target.  Hunt’s injury may have been the best-case scenario for the true freshman, as both him and Long have formed a connectionthat could be the cornerstone of Syracuse’s offense for the next four years.
Ishmael has a huge test next week against Clemson on the road.  The Tigers are allowing only 18 completions per game and have the 40th-best passing defense in Divison 1.  The Tigers only allow 215 yards through the air.  Ishmael will have to fight for yards, but next week’s performance will be telling.  If Ishmael can continue his climb to the top of the depth chart next weekend, Syracuse could have found its next top receiver.
Posted: Jason Weingold
8 responses to “Syracuse’s Steve Ishmael is The Answer”
Can you imagine that… Shafer finally starts playing the freshman and we start seeing kids develop into players. That’s a unique idea….
I suppose when you have an “elite” QB like Hunt there is no reason to give the freshmen playing time or at the very least.. First string reps…
I hope Shafer is learning a lesson. We are going to have to play freshmen for at least the next two years…
Thats a straw man argument.Neither Hunt nor ‘elite’ play had anything to do with coaches making a decision to play freshmen. I like Hunt but definitely agree that the article that called him elite was overstated(as many post game statements are..ie the headline to this a story). We have a tendency to be creatures of the moment. But I think its about time that you let go of the fact that one writer decided to call a qb elite. Its like that dude will never live it down.Hunt ain’t even playing and you’re still running with it.
Now back to the topic. I really like what I’ve seen out of Steve Ishmael. The thing I like the most about him is the fact that he came in as a true freshman with pretty refined route running skills. he’s not known for super blazing speed but the route running definitely helps him get open. Combine that with his good size and strong hands and you have been makings of a very good wide receiver. I don’t want to get crazy with the NFL comparisons but you can see good traits from different guys. if we like him this much now imagine how good he can be. He is 6’2 with a lanky frame that seems like it has the ability to pack on some solid muscle mass. He appears to have solid body control which is perfect for making tough catches where the quarterback may miss the target or in situations like side line or back of the end zone. Imagine Art Monk or Marvin Harrison working with Ish in the offseason on a few technical aspects.
ideally Ashton broyld and brisley estime get healthy and make improvements in their games. Broyld has the size and agility but isn’t the natural pass catcher quite yet. Estime once he gets going can be a real problem for teams especially against the 3rd corners. Long appears to be a good on the run thrower. so potentially the offense has some firepower. if we could get a better o line, long and his prediction of an ACC title may be realistic in a couple yrs,
Now my turn to make a knee jerk statement. I predict that Steve Ishmael has a monster Junior season and breaks Syracuse receiving Records.In my mind the quarterback situation(due to seasoning) will be conducive to featuring the talents of the receiving corp led by Ish. and the recruiting gains will be apparent by then.
I don’t believe anyone truly opposed playing freshman players(especially if they earned the time) but I must give special recognitionto Terry and Ron, who called for this in the preseason by hook or by crook.
The class of 2014 is the beginning of a “YOUTH MOVEMENT” at Syracuse University and will lead tommorows recruits to the promised land. Brooklyn su fb fan,you stole my thunder guy,I was going to say that if Ishmael improves over the next couple years,he will enter his senior season with the chance of becoming the best WR ever to play for the orangemen. I can’t believe that I’m saying that after watching Marvin Harrison and Art Monk play both in college and the NFL.
I’d love to see either or both Monk and Harrison come back and work with Ishmael. Brooklyn you stand behind Terrel as the QB,me I will always stand behind Austin Wilson as QB. I was bewildered when the papers kept on reporting about AJ Long becoming backup to Hunt. I just didn’t see it happening. I have to admit after watching him perform over the last two weeks amazes me to no end. He played with poise against the defending national champions and them equally for the entire 2nd half of the ball game. On Saturday he repeated his performance and orchestrated the destruction of the Demon Decons of Wake Forest. I know if he plays with the confidence that he’s shown us next week against Clemson we ought raise the upset flag. If I were Dabo Sweeny I think that I’d start worring about now. This Syracuse squad is nothing like last years squad
I let my mind roam a little and think that if AJ Long stays healthy in his junior or senior year could lead Syracuse to the ACC Championship Game. If he’s as good as he is now what’s he going to be like in 2015,2016,2017?
I also think about the possibilty of AJ Long turning into our own Johnnie Manziel and hoping he doesn’t turn into a Jamis Winston. I’m wishing he stay’s focused and his wishes/dreams are fulfilled. I’ve also come to the conclusion that the future of Syracuse Football is looking pretty damn good right now.
Brooklyn…. Only reminding the Homies not to get carried away..I’m very excited about the freshmen but let’s not crown the Harrison/Monk. We have a tendency to hype ourselves up and get our expectations out in front of the kids. The hype stuff wasn’t Hunts fault.. It was the press and some over enthusiastic posters.
Play the kids..let the recruits see true freshmen leading the team..”playing time” is our best friend in the recruiting battles. Good OC development of players and a creative game plan.. We’ll get the kids…then Ron/Dr Bill can live the dream….
I’ll be right with em!
For now.. Keep it in your pants.. Haven’t seen any Monks or Harrison’s ..YET!
You are correct no Monks or Harrisons yet, though I have long advocated the coaching staff reaching out to and allowing former SU greats to spend time with the players during camps. I’m not so sure if they want the legends to usurp the influence over the players but the qbs could definitely learn from McNabb or McPherson(what a great last name).
All around, I agree that the fact that SU is playing talented freshmen can be used to help hold together a solid recruiting class. I want to see SU try to win back Daiqaun Kelly and maybe seeing young guys gettng major pt and realizing that the safety positions could be up for grabs next yr might factor in.
As for qbs, I’ve said it before, Hunt was my guy and I do believe that he probably would have fared better with Lester calling his plays. But to be honest, a starter can lose his job if the backup comes in and performs well enough to project as a full time starter. Long has good potential. Again I like how he throws on the run. Physically he will get stronger, mentally he will become more familiar with college football. His mobility is an asset and his fire and enthusiasm seems like it can spur on a team as time goes on. Very pollyanna for us to buy into winning the ACC within the next few yrs considering that we don’t have much information to go on. But I think its a reasonable projection when you consider the value of early playing time and the projected talent of the next recruiting class. And we have seen a Duke team make a nice run(albeit in the weaker half of the ACC). I’m starting to grow an attachment to the 14 recruiting class the way I became attached to the 07-08 St Johns bball freshmen that struggled but eventually made the ncaa tourney as srs.
I’m kind of curious as to what would happen to Hunt if Long is the full time starter when he is declared healthy. He is a senior academically so will be in line to graduate, but does he try to go to another school for a graduate yr? Does he come back here knowing that it will be a qb battle to start again? Or does he just move on in life? If he transfers, I’d love to see him go to an FCS program with a level of prestige. I think Fordham’s current qb is a sr, maybe try an HBCU(I always want to see the HBCU schools have some level of success). But I’m way too ahead of myself and this season isn’t even over.
Cuse17
I was just comparing Ishmael to Harrison and Monk. It’s my opinion that Ishmael will indeed surpass the other two in the record books by becoming the #1 WR in the history of Syracuse Football.
I’ve been living the dream from the time I was thirteen years old,argued Syracuse Football up and down the Eastern Seaboard during that time and have witnessed a lot of great games over the years. I know that my optimism gets carried away at times,being labeled a “HOMIE” doesn’t bother me,I’ve been called a lot worse. The mindset of the current coaching staff has changed,they’ve decided to play the freshmen and boy you have to admit by doing so, have brought back the memories of yesterday year in some of us. My hope is that the recruiting classes get better and we start to bring in some good to great talent.
Let’s all hope that Shafer and staff continues to educate these young men in the game of football and the lessons given leads to success on the field.in the future. I hope it starts this weekend down at Death Valley against Clemson.
I am reading all of these posts with a smile on my face because it looks like we all got what we were looking for: a Syracuse team that is fun to watch and has a chance to win. There were a lot of nay Sayers out there talking about what terrible recruiters this staff was! I think the play of the young freshman should squash that talk. This 2014 class has some talented players that we have not seen yet. I also like the look of this 2015 class. I hope McDonald stays on. His relationship with coaches and player in Florida will be difficult to replace. Even though he is not on campus, I have a feeling that this Edouard kid can play. No question the talent level of the shader regime is better than the Dougie era…and let us not even mention G Rob.
McDonald hopefully relishes the role of recruiter..wasn’t Lester the recruiting coordinator..maybe give McD that title as a form of appeasement??? Almost like trading hats. I want to see what the 14 linebackers look like when they really get time to play. Solid foundation. The Line(both sides) is what really needs to get the talent upgrade before we can take the next step. Pugh and Hickey are our most recent NFL caliber guys, but if we can ever see SU churn out 2-3 solid linemen each year we’d really have reason to smile.