Senior offensive guard Ryan Durand is one of seven Syracuse players to earn mid-season All-BIG EAST honors.
Seven Orange Earn Mid-Season Honors
10/17/2008 9:34:12 AM | Football
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Seven Syracuse football student-athletes earned places on Phil Steele’s 2008 mid-season All-BIG EAST Team, including second team honorees Patrick Shadle (Morgantown, W. Va.), Mike Holmes (Jacksonville, Fla.) and Rob Long (Downingtown, Pa.). Third-team selections include Curtis Brinkley (Philadelphia, Pa.), Ryan Durand (Leominster, Mass.), Vincenzo Giruzzi (Utica, N.Y.) and Arthur Jones (Endicott, N.Y.).
Syracuse will play at #19/20 South Florida on Saturday, Oct. 18 (12:00 p.m., BIG EAST Network) in Raymond James Stadium in Tampa. USF is the fifth ranked opponent on Syracuse's 2008 schedule.
A 2008 All-America and Lou Groza candidate, Shadle ranks 12th among active kickers in the Football Bowl Subdivision with an 81.4 percent field goal accuracy rate. In the BIG EAST he is tied for second in field goal percentage (90.0), second in field goals per game (1.4), and is third in kick scoring (6.5 ppg). At West Virginia, Shadle hit a career-long 53-yard field goal, setting a Mountaineer Field record in his hometown.
Holmes earned recognition as a kick returner. He ranks 28th nationally and second in the BIG EAST with a 26.2 kick return average. Against Pittsburgh, Holmes ran back a kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown on Syracuse’s first possession.
A 2008 All-America and Ray Guy Award candidate, Long is ranked fourth nationally and leads the BIG EAST in punting average (46.3). His 43.04 career average ranks sixth among active kickers in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
Brinkley is averaging 103.5 yards per game and 5.4 yards per carry (621 yards on 112 carries). He recorded his fourth 100-yard rushing game of the season against West Virginia, gaining 144 yards on a career-high 28 carries. Brinkley has 1,589 career rushing yards on 369 carries (4.3 yards per rush).
Durand, who has started in 30 games for the Orange in his four-year career, has anchored the offensive line for Syracuse's productive running attack in 2008. The Orange offense is averaging 154.2 yards rushing per game, which ranks 56th nationally, and has nearly tripled its 2007 yards per game average. SU has gained more than 200 yards rushing in three games. Syracuse has given up six sacks for 41 yards in the trenches this year, compared to 25 sacks for 120 yards through the first six games last season.
Giruzzi has 32 tackles, including two for a loss of yards, and recovered one fumble. He has 84 career tackles, including 43 solo stops.
Jones has 19 tackles, including five for loss of 18 yards, one sack and one fumble recovery through the first six games. He is tied for 12th in the BIG EAST Conference with 0.83 tackles for loss per game. Jones is tied for ninth on Syracuse’s career tackles for loss record list (23.5).
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