The Wiz of Odds

Syracuse

Syracuse coach Scott Shafer caught our attention in 2007 when he was the defensive coordinator at Stanford. It was Jim Harbaugh's first season as coach and Shafer's defense contributed mightily in the Cardinal's 24-23 upset of No. 2 USC, ending the Trojans' 35-game home winning streak. Stanford, if you'll recall, was a 41-point underdog to USC. Shafer left in 2008 for Michigan and became defensive coordinator for Syracuse in 2009. He was named head coach last season and guided the Orange to a 7-6 record, which included a 21-17 victory over Minnesota in the Texas Bowl.

Poster designed by Old Hat Creative.

Syracuse

It's a season of change for Syracuse, which has a new coach in Scott Shafer and conference in the Atlantic Coast. Shafer takes over for Doug Marrone, who left for the riches of the NFL's Buffalo Bills.

No shortage of challenges for the Orange. They play Penn State in the opener at East Rutherford. Week 2 brings a trip to Northwestern. Then there are the Clemsons and Florida States of the world that come with the move to the ACC.

Poster designed by Old Hat Creative.

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Syracuse

Syracuse made a Herculean comeback against Northwestern, rallying from a 35-13 deficit in the third quarter to take a 41-35 lead with 2:40 left in the fourth quarter. But the Wildcats scored the winning touchdown with 44 seconds remaining to send the Orange to a sixth-consecutive loss. That skid will likely reach seven this weekend because powerhouse USC is rolling into East Rutherford to play the Orange.

Poster designed by Old Hat Creative.

Cincinnati Overpowers Syracuse, 30-13

Wiz correspondent Greg Laughlin spent Saturday in Syracuse, where the hometown Orange took on Big East rival Cincinnati. The Bearcats won, 30-13, marking the fourth consecutive loss for Syracuse, which will need a victory Saturday at Pittsburgh to become eligible for a bowl.

Cincinnati can clinch a share of its third Big East title in four years with a win Saturday against Connecticut. That, combined with a West Virginia loss to South Florida on Thursday night, would give the Bearcats the league's automatic BCS bowl berth.

There are more photos after the jump, and you can view Greg's full gallery by clicking here.

Syracuse

It took two years for Doug Marrone to turn around the Syracuse program, and after winning eight games in 2011 — including a victory in the Pinstripe Bowl — expectations are sky-high in New York.

Click the image to enlarge. Poster designed by Old Hat Creative.

Syracuse

The Orange opened with a 29-3 victory at Akron and now have to travel cross-country to play at Washington. At worse, Syracuse should be 3-1 after home games against Maine and Colgate. Then comes Big East play. Can the Orange squeeze three wins out of league play to become bowl eligible? It certainly appears possible.

As a run-up to the start of the season, the Wiz will display one poster each day until our supply is exhausted.

Then we turn it over to readers, who will vote on the poster of the year. In the meantime, send your team's poster schedule to jayzuma (at) gmail.com.

Last year, the site displayed 69 posters. This is poster No. 67 for 2010. Poster designed by Old Hat Creative.