Scott Shafer was fired Monday as Syracuse’s head coach. He’ll coach his final game for the Orange on Saturday against Boston College. Shafer’s three seasons at the helm were marked with early success and plenty of potential, but his final two seasons on the job have been a struggle. With one game remaining, Shafer has a 13-23 record as Syracuse’s head coach.

Here’s a look at some of the key moments of the Scott Shafer era.

Jan. 9, 2013: Scott Shafer is officially hired as Syracuse’s head coach, replacing Doug Marrone, who left abruptly to become the head coach of the Buffalo Bills. Shafer brought a sense of excitement to the program at his introductory press conference despite having to replace nearly the entire coaching staff.

Dec. 27, 2013: Syracuse wins the Texas Bowl, capping off a 7-6 season to start Shafer’s time at Syracuse. The Orange defeated Minnesota 21-17 for Syracuse’s third bowl win in four years.

Oct. 4, 2014: Shafer promotes Tim Lester to offensive coordinator after demoting George McDonald. The move came after Syracuse had scored 20 or more points just twice in its first five games. McDonald said he wouldn’t have taken the offensive coordinator job at SU if he had known he’d be relieved of his duties so soon.

Nov. 8, 2014: Following a 17-point loss to Duke that eliminated the Orange from bowl contention, Shafer had another impassioned press conference. This time, the coach left the podium chipped after he was asked if the season was a disappointment. Shafer smashed the podium with his fist, saying the goal coming into the season was to win eight games.

Sept. 26, 2015: Syracuse loses by 10 points to then-No. 8 LSU. Excitement for the season was arguably at its peak after the Orange started the season 3-0, and followed it with an impressive performance against the Tigers despite playing with a walk-on quarterback.

Nov. 7, 2015: Syracuse loses to Lousiville on the road in a blowout, but the bigger story is the health of freshman quarterback Eric Dungey. He was knocked out of the game with a head injury while playing down 31 points with about four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. Asked after the game why he left Dungey in, Shafer said he wanted to go for the comeback. Dungey had previously missed time in the season, and has taken multiple hits to the head since then.

Nov. 21, 2015: In what turns out to be his penultimate game as head coach, Shafer and Syracuse lose 42-29 at N.C. State. The loss is the eighth in a row for the Orange on the year, and tempers boil over during the game. Shafer was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct for the second game in a row, wide receiver Steve Ishmael was ejected for a pair of unsportsmanlike conduct penalties and wide receiver Brisly Estime was ejected for fighting.

Published on November 23, 2015 at 11:23 am

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