Football beat writers David Wilson, Stephen Bailey and Trevor Hass are counting down the days until Syracuse football opens its season against Penn State on Aug. 31. They’ll show you what you can expect from each position as the Orange moves toward its Atlantic Coast Conference debut, with the top position showcased in the DO’s annual season preview guide to be released on Aug. 29.

No. 10: Kick returners/punt returners

No. 9: The secondary

No. 8: The defensive line

Beckett Wales spent the end of Syracuse’s week in Fort Drum, N.Y., limited at practice. The tight end wore bags of ice strapped to both calves at times and, while the apparent injury doesn’t appear to be serious, it did raise a concern.

What does the Orange have at the tight end position if something more serious were to happen to Beckett Wales?

SU’s scrimmage Thursday in Fort Drum gave an idea of who some of the replacements could be and gave a reminder of just how important Wales is to Syracuse’s offense. The Orange undoubtedly has some talent at the position behind Wales, but the inexperience is much more prevalent.

Key returning players

That’s just the problem. There isn’t a whole lot of this. Wales started every game at the position in 2012, hauling in 35 catches for 389 yards. Those numbers are eerily similar to former tight end Nick Provo’s during his junior year — 33 catches for 365 yards. Provo broke out the next season, was a John Mackey Award semifinalist, and is currently on the Buffalo Bills’ preseason roster.

Wales, after his strong season as a junior, is on the Mackey Award Watch List as well, and seems poised for a breakout season, a la Provo, during his senior year.

Aside from Wales, though, SU doesn’t have any tight ends that so much as touched the field.

Reasons for optimism

Where there isn’t experience, though, there is talent. Two of Syracuse’s backups, PJ Batten and Provo’s brother Tyler Provo, were three-star recruits out of Florida. Another freshman, the 6-foot-6 Kendall Moore, is listed as an offensive lineman but has primarily taken his massive frame to tight end drills during practices in the summer. Any of the three have the talent to become the Orange’s tight end of the future and an additional playmaking option of the present.

The likely second option on the roster, though, is redshirt freshman Josh Parris. Quarterback Drew Allen targeted Parris frequently in Thursday’s scrimmage when Wales was sidelined. Sophomore Jacob Green was also targeted several times during the scrimmage.

But back to the freshmen, because that’s where the intrigue lies. Parris will likely be the insurance policy for Wales, but the true freshmen could be the difference makers. In an inexperienced wide receiving corps, Wales will be leaned on to consistently make plays, but the more explosive weapons in the tight end group might be the freshmen, with Moore being the one that head coach Scott Shafer has singled out.

During Tuesday’s practice at Fort Drum, Moore threw his 6-foot-6, 250-pound body around the field at the tight end position with the adeptness of the offensive lineman that he’s listed as to impress Shafer and his offensive coordinator George McDonald.

“He threw some good blocks, some things that we hadn’t seen out of him,” Shafer said. “Shoot, Coach McDonald almost stopped the play in the middle of the block because he was so excited running after him, so there’s good things going on with that group.”

Reasons for concern

For all the potential that’s flashed behind Wales in the unit, even Shafer admitted that no one has established himself as the No. 2 tight end.

“It’s sorting itself out a little bit,” Shafer said. “There’s not a lot of separation.”

Last year, David Stevens and Carl Cutler provided adequate backups at the position, though Wales almost exclusively manned the position. If Wales can do that again this year, Syracuse should be strong at tight end, but the inexperience will almost certainly show if he goes down with an injury for any extended period of time.

Sophomore Ron Thompson, who joined the Orange as a four-star tight end, missed last season and is now moving to defensive end. He would have been one of SU’s more veteran tight ends even never having played a snap.

There’s still a good chance that Batten, the younger Provo or Moore could become the next great Syracuse tight end, but for now they remain unproven.

“Really no solid two or three yet,” Shafer said. “I think we’re letting them fight that thing out. It’s still early enough.”

The verdict

With Wales healthy, the tight end position could be a strength, but the lack of depth is a bit unsettling. If he misses any extended action, an already thin receiving corps would be in even more trouble.

Wales will likely be counted on as one of the Orange’s most trusted targets, especially with the inexperience at the quarterback position, but there are still myriad holes behind him on the depth chart.

If one thing goes wrong, then this unit could be in trouble. If everything goes right, though, the tight end position will be, as it so often is at SU, one of the bright spots on the roster.

“I know what Beckett’s given us in the past,” wide receivers coach Rob Moore said. “He’s a talented kid and I’m quite sure that he’s going to help us in different facets of the game.”

Grade: B

Come back to DailyOrange.com tomorrow to find out what position comes in at No. 6.

Published on August 17, 2013 at 6:10 pm

Contact David: [email protected] | @DBWilson2