A rough winter in more ways than one
It was a rough winter for the Syracuse Orange and that was reflected in the latest Learfield Director’s Cup rankings.
Syracuse has dropped all the way to 67th after being shut out in the winter sports (basketball, hockey, track and field, swimming, wrestling, fencing, skiing and rifle). How bad is it? The Orange were in 21st after the Fall rankings came out and 7th among ACC schools.
Now, the Orange are 16th among ACC schools and find themselves one spot behind Vermont and just ahead of Mississippi State and Clemson. How far the Orange can rise looks to depend on the post-season success of lacrosse, women’s rowing and outdoor track and field. It doesn’t look like either tennis or softball will qualify for post-season play.
North Carolina leads the rankings followed by Stanford, Wisconsin, Ohio State. Last year Syracuse stayed on brand with a 44th place finish, so we’ll see if they can get some deep lacrosse runs this May to jump back up.