CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Danny Varello can’t say it’s been easy. Syracuse repeated — again and again — it wouldn’t neglect the depth of its faceoff unit, and head coach John Desko said he would “ride the hot hand” of the “two-headed monster.” And then Jakob Phaup became a top-five faceoff specialist in the country. The “hot hand” most often was him. When Phaup is in a rhythm, why stop him?

“Yeah,” Varello said, “it’s been up and down.”

Varello, now in his second season as a major contributor in the Orange’s faceoff unit, has always exemplified a raw ability to succeed at the X. Phaup “envies” Varello’s quickness. In good moments and in bad, Varello’s aware of what he needs to change and how to do it. Against North Carolina, Varello put it together for a 13-of-18 performance from the faceoff X after Phaup was pegged to be the forefront of the unit.

After making small changes to his grip of the stick, Varello is “happy where (he is).” He said “it’s good to give Jakob a nice backup every now and then,” but Saturday’s game proved the Orange aren’t steadfast on a clear frontrunner in the faceoff. Phaup got his opportunity early and didn’t deliver against North Carolina. Varello responded with 10-straight wins, gaining valuable possessions as SU fought back from an early hole. Now, with Varello at the pinnacle of his season performance, he said Syracuse’s faceoff unit is “strong as it’s ever been.”

“I don’t really care if I’m playing — starting, first guy out,” Varello said. “I just care about helping our team win.”

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Earlier in the season, Varello felt off. The form he had grown accustomed to no longer was suitable. Varello called his brother, former Navy lacrosse player Joe Varello, in “crisis mode.”

Varello tried to not get too frantic, but his playing time dipped. Though his quickness is perhaps his biggest strength, he was struggling to get under the stick of the opponent. When he beat them on the clamp, Desko said he struggled to make decisions. He’d win at the X — then he’d lose the ball.

Joe helped him calm down, Varello said. Daily calls to his parents did the same. In practices at SU, Varello noticed Phaup’s grip: bent at the elbow, with his forearm parallel to the floor. At the time, Varello had a “hovering wrist” which he held at an angle in his stance. His arms were almost locked and his motion, which failed to make the best use of his speed, went downward instead of forward. When he was looking for a change, Varello noticed Phaup’s grip helped Phaup thrive.

“I decided to try it out,” Varello said.

Though a large part of the season for Varello was “trial and error,” he settled into his new grip and made small tweaks in his stance. The bend of his elbow forced him to use more of his arm muscles and the increase in explosion got him under the stick head of the opponent and win clamps.

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In Varello’s past two games, he’s won 79% of his faceoffs and said he feels more comfortable than he has at any point of the season. The speed finally had made its mark. Varello’s resurgence now allows a diversified approach at the X for Syracuse — a specialized player for every possible matchup.

Faceoffs remain a key point of Syracuse’s pregame strategy. Though it’s difficult to decipher the whistle on film — further complicating the scouting process for speed off the jump — SU focuses on the stick heads of its opponents’ top faceoff specialists. Ones with quicker hands tend to use a Nike CEO, a “popular head for face-off specialists,” according to lax.com. Those who rely more on their power, similar to Phaup, use a Dual 2 head because it allows players to “place your hand closer to the ball.”

Though the speed was hard to point out in film, Syracuse noticed UNC faceoff specialist Zachary Tucci used a Nike CEO stick head. On the first three faceoffs of the game, Phaup’s methodical style wasn’t enough to counter the quick clamp of Tucci.

Varello quickly came in, and won his first opportunity. Then a second, a third, a fourth. When the ball was between two players, he created separation and scooped it cleanly. He ran away with the ball, found the wings and delivered passes without err. It was the best Desko’s ever seen Varello, Desko said.

“I’m always tweaking stuff throughout the year,” Varello said, “and now I feel like I found a sweet spot.”

And when Varello is in a rhythm, why stop him?

Published on April 18, 2019 at 12:10 am

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