All Eyes on the Orange at ACC Football Kickoff

CHARLOTTE – Head coach Dino Babers, redshirt sophomore quarterback Tommy DeVito and senior defensive end Kendall Coleman were at the Westin Charlotte Hotel Wednesday to represent the Syracuse football team at the annual Atlantic Coast Conference Football Kickoff. The trio participated in nearly seven hours of interviews with almost 500 television, radio, print, and online media members in attendance.

Armed with 17 returning starters from last season's 10-3 team, many view the Orange as Clemson's top challenger for ACC superiority. However, Syracuse has two tough road games before it hosts the Tigers at the Dome on Sept. 14 in a game that has already been slated for ABC's "Saturday Night Football." That fact was not lost on Coleman.

"That Week 3 game is extremely important. The first thing we got to do in order to beat that team is beat the two teams we face before them," Coleman said. "If we sleep on either of those two opponents – Liberty and Maryland – they can easily throw us off track, throw a curve ball into the rest of the season."

Tweets by @CuseFootball

Coleman is the anchor of a Syracuse defense that set the school record with 43 sacks in 2018. The Orange finished the year ranked in the top 10 nationally in five statistical categories, including third-down defense (7th - .286), and Babers called the unit the strength of this year's football team.

"I think we have an outstanding defense," Babers said. "Not only do I believe they're outstanding, they need to play that way."

On offense, DeVito takes the controls from record-setting quarterback and four-year starter Eric Dungey. As intimidating as that might sound, DeVito said he is not shy about the leadership responsibilities that come with the position he plays.

"Being the quarterback of the team, the leadership role comes with it," DeVito said. "That's something I've always embraced since I was younger, something that I always look forward to having the team look up to me as that leader.

"From the past experiences I've had playing in games, I like to use that as a steppingstone moving forward and become the best possible leader I can for this offense and for this team."

- Tuesday, July 16 - Travel Day -