Sean Tucker is Something Special.
Jim Brown. Ernie Davis. Floyd Little. Joe Morris. Walter Reyes.
You know the names who have played running back at Syracuse who are in the upper pantheon of college football, and in a couple cases, pro football. A few have worn #44.
Who knows if Sean Tucker will wear #44 one day. What we do know is he is set up to join the above group and many others if you would like to toss them in, running backs and fullbacks alike. Larry Csonka, Michael Owens and Rob Konrad to name a few.
Sean Tucker is some kind of special. He hits the hole, has great vision, is quick
on his feet, can run North-South or East-West, is hard to bring down and has unbelievable body control. He is the first player in program history to rush for over 1,000 yards in eight games or less. Frankly, he is the Syracuse offense. When #34 goes, they go.
As of this writing, Syracuse has two games left against ranked teams, N.C. State and Pittsburgh, respectively, and still chases bowl eligibility. Perhaps this will be another Dino Babers finish and overall look that we have grown accustomed to around these parts. Splashes here and there, beat Clemson here, beat Virginia Tech there, win a Camping World Bowl with double digit wins (Eric Dungey!) as well, and of course falling apart in October and November. The result? A losing record. Or maybe a bowl and even a bowl victory.
But no matter what this team does, Sean Tucker will be the story of the 2021 season, his second freshman year due to COVID.
He is appointment viewing, in-person or on TV. You stop and watch him when he has the ball. He is electric and fun and strong and humble. He is everything you want in a college running back.
Do I think #44 should be brought down for him? Sure, why not? Retiring college numbers always seemed weird to me from the standpoint that if those legends go on to the professional ranks in any sport and become all-timers, that’s when you can retire a number. #7 with the Yankees. #4 with the Bruins. #99 in the sport of hockey. #9 with the Red Sox. #6 with the Celtics. #23 with the Bulls. #32 with the Browns (Yep, him again). The list goes on and on. It just always made more sense from this chair to retire numbers in the pro ranks.
Also, I don’t think the number is a recruiting tool anymore because not many 16-18-year olds know the names from the past, and most probably don’t care. They want to go to the NFL and play on big time TV as many times as possible and wear cool colors and uniforms and have a great college lifestyle.
However, bringing the number down would pay tribute to SU legends of the past. It would sell more jerseys. It would jolt the fan base. It would make people talk about the program more nationally. In other words, FREE marketing! Not even Daryl Gross could pull that one off with “New York’s College Team” on top of city cabs.
Sean Tucker is special. He is a developing legend in front of our eyes. #34 could become #44 before his days are done on The Hill.
Either way, enjoy the ride. Sean Tucker is something special.
